I held the lungs in my hands, thinking about how apparent the effects of smoking were. That moment stuck with me throughout the day.
On April 13, what started as a normal school day turned into a memorable experience. In the morning, Donor Alliance presented Transplantation Science in the Classroom, an interactive program where students explored how transplantation works in real life. It featured real plastinated human organs, which I was able to see and experience firsthand. This experience not only deepened my understanding of the human body but also showed me how impactful hands-on learning can be.
When I first arrived at school, I didn’t know about the program. I happened to see my teacher, Leah, in the commons setting up something in an area usually used for large events. Leah is Animas High School’s nurse and one of our teachers for college-level medical courses. She explained that Ellen Angeles, an educator with Transplantation Science, was coming in to host an interactive lesson with real human organs. This immediately caught my interest. Opportunities like that are very rare outside a medical cadaver lab or professional medical training. Leah invited me to join the lesson even though I was not in the class.
As the lesson began, I moved around the room observing students as they worked through different stations. One group was matching hypothetical organs to patients, which taught us how organs are matched to recipients. What really stood out to me was that students had physical organs in front of them that they could look at and interact with instead of relying solely on diagrams and descriptions. This made the learning process much more engaging.
I spoke with a couple of students at the event, and they said the experience was impressive and memorable. The hands-on aspect also helped the information stick better. One moment that stood out came when I watched Ellen discuss the organs with a group of students. She carefully explained each one, including the liver, heart and a pair of lungs. The lungs belonged to a smoker and were covered in black marks visible to the naked eye. This visual stayed with me. It was fascinating and showed the effects cigarettes and other forms of smoking can have on the body.
Looking back, my biggest takeaway is how powerful learning can be when it’s hands-on and real. This wasn’t just another school activity; it actually changed the way I think about health and the human body. It also showed me how important it is to have more experiences like this in school because they make learning stick in a completely different way. I’m really grateful I got to be part of it, even though I wasn’t officially in the class. It’s one of the coolest things I’ve been able to see and do, and it’s something I won’t forget anytime soon.
I’m grateful to Donor Alliance for providing a program like this for students in grades 6 through 12 throughout the region, and I also want to thank Ellen for bringing the program to Animas High School. I know many other students found the experience just as cool and exciting as I did.
Hannah Luzietti is a senior at Animas High School who grew up in Bayfield with her parents, Richard and Brandy Luzietti, and siblings, Eli and Emily.
