December 18, 2025, Seward Folly

Somi Clendaniel, a senior at Seward High School, will attend a summer honors program in Athens, Greece, from June 27 to July 11, 2026. FutureDocs Abroad is an honors-only program that enables high school and undergraduate university students to access what only third- and fourth-year medical students can in the United States.

The purpose of this internship is to honor, inspire, motivate, and direct the top students in the country who aspire to careers in medicine to stay true to their dreams, and, after the program, to provide a path, plan, and resources to help them reach their goals.  

“I am excited to expand my knowledge in medicine and to experience the lives of physicians firsthand,” says Somi. 

During the two-week program, Somi will join students from across the United States and observe surgeries in the operating room, with the surgeon explaining the procedure as it’s performed. Somi will be in the gross anatomy lab with an anatomy professor, learning about the anatomy and proper dissection of human cadavers and practicing dissection techniques on animal parts. And she will also shadow physicians in the Emergency Room, clinics, and wards across over a dozen specialties (pediatrics, surgery, orthopedics, OB/GYN, and more).

FutureDocs Abroad is a program of The National Leadership Academies, founded on the belief that strong emotional intelligence is the cornerstone of student success, and is committed to supporting students in their development.

The National Leadership Academies also recognize that prospective talent must be identified at the earliest possible age and that these students must be supported in acquiring the experience and skills to reach the doorstep of vital careers as leaders in medicine and the sciences.