A new program looks to pair Dartmouth medical students as mentors with LGBTQ youth in the Upper Valley.
Qmmunity is a collaboration between the Dartmouth Geisel School of Medicine and the group Rural Outright.
It’s based on the idea that young people with differing sexual orientations and identities who are living in rural areas face extra challenges to their mental health and well-being.
Matt Mooshian with Rural Outright says pairing up with a Dartmouth med student will give the teens support and a positive role model.
“I think everyone could benefit from something like that, but this is a population that could really, really use something like that.”
Mooshian says some of the Dartmouth med-student mentors identify as straight, and others as gay.
“LGBTQ teens and young adults are up against a wide variety of obstacles. So having someone that helps them that’s like them that can help them navigate this experience will be really powerful.”
The program is celebrating its launch with free pizza and bowling in Claremont on Friday evening.
