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HEAL

HEAL, a student-led health innovation nonprofit

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What HEAL is

HEAL is a student-led nonprofit that helps high school students start chapters at their schools, where members work in teams on projects in health technology, research, competition, and community health.

We started HEAL at Leland High School in San Jose in 2026. Most of us had been in health clubs built around presentations and awareness weeks, and although the people in those rooms were curious and capable, the year usually ended without much to show for their interest in medicine.

We organized our club around projects instead, and once that was working we set it up so that students at other schools could do the same. Each chapter runs its own teams, while we provide nonprofit status through our fiscal sponsor, funding for materials and competitions, mentors, and the documents a new chapter needs.

What members make

Members choose the problem they want to work on, and the focus area decides what a finished project looks like. The examples below show the kind of work each area tends to produce.

Example
9:41100%

Tuesday

Today’s doses

  • Morning dose

    8:00 AM

  • Midday dose

    12:30 PM

    Due soon

  • Evening dose

    7:00 PM

Mark midday dose as taken
01

Technology

Applications, devices, and data tools built around a specific need in patient care or public health.

Example

Manuscript · Draft 3

Sleep duration and perceived stress among high school students: a cross-sectional survey

Chapter research team

Abstract

Adolescent healthSleepSurvey

Submitted for review

02

Research

Original studies and structured literature reviews, written up carefully and submitted for review.

Example

Competition entry

Measuring hand tremor with a phone’s motion sensor

CategoryHealth and medicine
Team3 members
  • Project abstract
  • Prototype demonstration
  • Judging presentation
Entry submitted · awaiting judging
03

Competition

Entries prepared for science fairs and national competitions, with the registration fees covered by us.

Example

Community program

Health literacy workshops

With a partner public library

  1. 01Reading a nutrition label
  2. 02Understanding a prescription
  3. 03Finding low-cost care nearby
  4. 04Questions to ask a doctor

3 of 4 sessions held

04

Community health

Workshops, outreach, and support programs that chapters run with partners in their own communities.

More about the focus areas

A chapter year

Every chapter follows the same calendar, which gives teams clear deadlines and means problems surface while there is still time to fix them.

  1. 01 · Fall

    Define the project

    Teams form around problems their members care about, and each team writes down what a finished project will look like before the work begins.

  2. 02 · Winter

    Build a first version

    Teams produce a prototype, a draft paper, or a pilot session, and their mentors review it with them while there is still time to change course.

  3. 03 · Spring

    Finish and submit

    The work is completed and sent where it belongs, whether that is a journal, a competition, a partner organization, or the people it was built for.

  4. 04 · June

    Present at the showcase

    Each chapter presents its finished projects to members, advisors, and families at the end of the school year.

Starting a chapter

Founding a chapter means recruiting a team, keeping its projects on schedule, and working with a faculty advisor at your school. It takes about one to two hours a week, and we give founders the support listed here from the start so that their time goes toward their teams rather than paperwork.

How to start a chapter
  1. 01

    Nonprofit status

    Your chapter operates under our 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsorship from the first week, so it can accept tax-deductible donations and apply for grants without incorporating.

  2. 02

    Project funding

    Micro-grants for materials and hardware, along with coverage of competition entry fees.

  3. 03

    Launch kit

    A chapter constitution, an advisor pitch, recruitment materials, meeting agendas, and project worksheets.

  4. 04

    Mentorship

    Access to the researchers, physicians, and graduate students who advise HEAL project teams.

  5. 05

    Leadership record

    The title of Founding Chapter Director, and a recommendation letter at graduation describing what you built.