Thompson Completes Project SEARCH Internship at NMMC

Tyler Thompson, a student at Saltillo High School, recently completed his first 10-week Project SEARCH internship at North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo. Since August, Tyler has interned with NMMC’s Supply, Processing and Distribution Department. Thanks to his mentors, Tyler has learned many new skills, including the process for receiving and sorting packages, determining which department the packages belong to and then delivering to the appropriate departments. He will begin his second 10-week internship Nov. 14 with Centralized Monitoring.

Project SEARCH is a national program designed to help students with disabilities obtain competitive community-based employment. Students rotate through three areas of interest at the hospital while gaining social, communication and life skills.

Since 2019, Project SEARCH has placed 17 students with disabilities in internships at NMMC during their final year of high school eligibility (students are often 21). In addition to Saltillo High School, NMMC can host Project SEARCH interns from Tupelo High School, Saltillo High School, Shannon High School, Mooreville High School and Nettleton High School. NMMC is one of 18 Project SEARCH sites in Mississippi.