Medical Students Host Future Physicians Fair for Valley High School Students at CHSU Medical School
January 12, 2026
The second annual Future Physicians Fair held on Saturday, January 10th at the California Health Sciences University (CHSU) College of Osteopathic Medicine in Clovis was a great success.
Organized by medical students in the Valley Mentors student organization, the event introduced local high school students and their parents to medicine in the medical school classrooms, labs, and simulation center environment.
“We invited local high school students and their parents from across Fresno, Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Visalia to attend the Future Physicians Fair, with the hope that the experience will inspire the next generation of physicians here in the Central Valley,” stated Akashdeep Gill, President of Valley Mentors and second-year medical student at CHSU.
The high school students and their parents rotated through stations with interactive hands-on activities and demonstrations led by medical students, faculty physicians, and staff from the college.
Kevin Blackney, MD, Anesthesiologist at Kaiser Permanente Fresno, helped to recruit physicians from Kaiser to participate in the event for the second year in a row. He spoke passionately about helping to inspire the next generation of physicians and shared tips to make medical school more achievable, like attending community college and Fresno State prior to medical school to reduce educational costs.
About a dozen physicians from Kaiser Permanente in Fresno also led demonstrations in the stations and conversed with students about their experiences as physicians.
The stations included Intubation, Hand-held Ultrasound, Musculoskeletal overview, HoloAnatomy (Augmented Virtual Reality Anatomy), Taking Vitals, Suturing, Osteopathic Principles & Practice, Heart and Lungs overview, Overdose Prevention Committee, Medical School Admissions and Pathway programs overview.
Over 60 high school students were in attendance. When asked what they were excited to learn at the Future Physicians Fair during the registration process, one student replied,
“I want to learn about different types of doctors and what they do and learn about the experience of being a doctor.”
The attendees were provided lunch and a lively Questions and Answer session with the physicians and medical students. The physicians eagerly spoke about why their specialty was the best choice. There was also great interest in discussing how AI is augmenting medical practice for the physicians so they can spend more quality time with their patients.
ABC30 Action News featured a story on the Future Physicians Fair in their live evening news broadcasts on Saturday, January 10. David Torres, CHSU-COM second-year medical student and Valley Mentors board member, was interviewed and spoke about the goal of the event. You can watch a news clip from the live broadcast here on our website.