Country of Residence
United States
Age
17
Project title
Rochester Youth Healthcare Pathways
Project Summary: Describe your project in one sentence
Rochester Youth Healthcare Pathways helps teenagers discover legitimate opportunities in healthcare by transforming scattered employment, internship, and volunteer information into accessible, research-backed resources while working to remove unnecessary barriers to early career exploration.
Website URL(s) or social media handles.
https://marmonfoundation.com https://marmonfoundation.com/our-work https://sonnymarmon.com TikTok: @marmonfoundation
Project Category
My project is an existing project that I started
Project Stage
Pilot-Stage (We’ve tried an activity or two)
Founding Story: What was the spark that led you to start your project? What was the "Aha!" moment that led you to get started and see the potential for this to succeed?
At 17, I moved to Rochester, Minnesota, determined to build a future in healthcare. I had completed a laboratory internship at Mayo Clinic, taken on healthcare operations responsibilities, and devoted more than 4,000 hours to community service. Yet some of the next jobs I pursued were out of reach because of age or diploma requirements. Some limits were legitimate; others were difficult to find or understand. My “aha” moment came when I stopped seeing this as just my own setback. If I was struggling to figure out where a 17-year-old could start—even with experience and professional contacts—how would another teenager without those advantages navigate the system? I changed the question from “Why can’t I get this job?” to “Which opportunities actually exist, what are the rules, and where could we safely build more?” That question became the Rochester Youth Healthcare Pathways Project. I founded The Marmon Foundation to turn personal frustration into public research, practical resources, and a clearer starting point for other young people. I want the next student to find a pathway, not just another closed door.
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve? Why does it matter to you and your community?
Rochester is known around the world for healthcare, yet many local teenagers cannot easily tell how to get their first experience in the field. Jobs, internships, volunteer roles, educational programs, and career-exploration opportunities are scattered across different websites. Minimum ages, diploma rules, school-credit requirements, and supervision conditions are often unclear. Some restrictions are necessary for patient safety or compliance. Others may be communication gaps rather than actual barriers. In our initial review of 55 opportunity records, 12 had supported eligibility for young people, 31 needed clarification, and 12 had documented restrictions. That is a finding about our research sample—not a claim about every healthcare opportunity in Rochester. When students cannot distinguish “not allowed” from “not clearly explained,” they may give up before getting started. Families and counselors also lack an easy way to point them toward appropriate opportunities. I know that frustration firsthand. Solving it means giving young people accurate information and helping employers see where safe early-career pathways could be strengthened.
Your Solution: How are you solving this problem? Share your specific solution.
I started by treating the problem as a research question, not a campaign slogan. Through The Marmon Foundation, the Rochester Youth Healthcare Pathways Project reviews public healthcare job listings, volunteer programs, internships, educational pathways, and career-exploration opportunities, with a particular focus on ages 16–17. We examine published eligibility requirements, including age, grade level, diplomas, supervision, scheduling, and whether a role involves restricted duties. Each researched record is labeled GREEN when youth eligibility is supported, YELLOW when requirements are unclear or conditional, and RED when a restriction is documented. The labels make an important distinction: “not yet confirmed” does not mean “impossible.” We have reviewed more than 200 public listings, program pages, and leads and completed an initial structured inventory of 55 records. Our website shares the project and its findings, while Rochester Health Pathways, a student-facing digital resource, is being developed to make opportunities easier to search and understand. The second part of the solution is dialogue. I use the research to ask educators, healthcare employers, workforce professionals, and government contacts what the rules actually permit and where clearer information or supervised, nonclinical pathways may help. This is not a staffing service, a promise of employment, or a push to remove safety rules. It is a way to turn fragmented information into usable guidance and evidence for responsible change.
Impact: How has your project created impact / made a difference so far? Or, if at an early stage, what will impact look like?
This is an early-stage project, so I separate what we have built from what we still hope to achieve. So far, we have reviewed more than 200 public listings, program pages, and leads, created an initial inventory of 55 healthcare pathway records, and classified them by eligibility: 12 supported youth pathways, 31 needing clarification, and 12 with documented restrictions. We have launched a public website to explain the research and its methodology, and The Marmon Foundation was incorporated as a Minnesota nonprofit in October 2026. I have also begun outreach to people in healthcare, workforce development, and government to clarify barriers and explore practical responses. These numbers represent research activity—not 55 students helped, 200 available jobs, or confirmed placements. We have not yet established a reliable count of people directly served. Our immediate impact is making a confusing problem visible and giving the community a starting evidence base. Next, we will measure use of our resources, verified eligibility updates, youth feedback, organizational participation, and eventually confirmed educational or career outcomes. To me, success means that a student can move from “I don’t know where to begin” to an informed next step.
Your Innovation: What is different about your project compared to other programs or solutions already out there? How is your project new or innovative?
Most career websites help people search for openings. Our project asks a more specific question: “Can a 16- or 17-year-old actually do this, and how do we know?” That distinction matters. A listing may sound entry-level but quietly require a high-school diploma; a volunteer program may accept teens but impose scheduling or supervision conditions; an opportunity might be available even though its age requirements are hard to find. Standard job boards often cannot explain these differences. Our model combines source-based research with a simple GREEN/YELLOW/RED framework. GREEN means youth eligibility is supported by the available evidence, YELLOW means clarification is required, and RED means a documented restriction applies. We preserve uncertainty rather than turning every unanswered question into a rejection or an approval. We also connect three things that are often separate: a researched opportunity inventory, a student-facing resource in development, and practical conversations with organizations about where policies and communication can improve. The same methodology could eventually be adapted for other communities. The innovation is not claiming that every teenager should be able to do every healthcare job. It is making the real rules understandable, showing where legitimate pathways already exist, and giving decision-makers a responsible way to identify gaps. As someone who encountered these barriers at 17, I am building the resource I wish I had.
How many people are on your team?
1
Your team: What role(s) do your team members play? How do you share leadership with them?
I currently lead the project as its founder, overseeing research, eligibility verification, public resources, digital development, outreach, and planning. I seek guidance and information from healthcare, education, workforce, and community contacts, but I do not count outside contacts as team members. As we grow, I want to share leadership with youth researchers, educators, and healthcare professionals who can own research, outreach, accessibility, and evaluation.
What’s Next: What are the next steps you plan to take to grow or strengthen your project over the next year? If your project is still in the idea stage, describe the steps you will take over the next three months to launch or begin developing it.
Over the next year, I want to turn our promising research foundation into a resource young people actually use. First, I will recheck eligibility information, add source links and update dates, and improve our public opportunity directory. I plan to test and launch the Rochester Health Pathways student-facing resource after reviewing accuracy, accessibility, and usability with students. Next, I will recruit youth contributors and volunteer advisers, invite schools and healthcare employers to verify information, and develop short workshops or guides for students, parents, and counselors. I also want a clear way for organizations to suggest corrections and submit legitimate youth opportunities. I will track concrete outcomes rather than only visibility: records independently confirmed, students reached, questions answered, useful referrals, organizational engagement, and any verified placements or learning experiences. Research into Minnesota youth employment rules will continue, with a focus on existing lawful options before proposing new policy. Rochester is the pilot community. If the model proves useful, I hope to adapt it for other Minnesota communities and ultimately build a broader network of accessible, responsible pathways into healthcare.
How do you encourage other people to join your project or learn about the problem you’re working on? If you have a new idea, tell us how you will do this in the future.
I want young people to help shape this project, not just read about it. I share the research and the story behind it through The Marmon Foundation’s website, social media, and public outreach. I have contacted healthcare and workforce professionals, community organizations, and government contacts to request clarification, feedback, or collaboration. Those conversations are outreach efforts, not claims of formal partnerships. There is a useful role for everyone: students can flag confusing listings and test the resource; counselors can suggest missing programs; employers can verify eligibility requirements; healthcare professionals can advise on safety and supervision; and volunteers can help research and update records. The Foundation’s website provides a way for people to express interest. I do not yet have a verified total of people engaged or served, so I will not invent one. As participation grows, I plan to track contributors, student feedback, confirmed corrections, and attendance at any workshops. My goal is to make accurate opportunity information a shared community effort—and to give other young people an active role in opening doors for the next generation.
