High School Students Explore Robotic Surgery

Over 100 students from Oak Park and River Forest High School recently explored future career options by interacting with a Da Vinci Robotic Surgical System. This advanced device, with a price tag exceeding $1 million, has evolved through more than 30 updates. It was transported from Loyola University to give students a firsthand look at its application in minimally invasive surgeries.

Grouped in small teams, students learned the robot’s functionalities and operation. Allison Hennings, the nursing program coordinator at the school, emphasized the value of the experience. “Giving them hands-on experience shows they can do different careers they may have never thought about,” Hennings said.

Students tried tasks like unwrapping a Starburst candy and tying knots using the surgical robot. Senior Oliver Harks participated, drawn by his interest in microbiology. “The opportunity to see an actual surgical robot at school, like in the flesh, was amazing,” Harks said. He aims for acceptance into Case Western Reserve University or Loyola University Chicago to study level 4 pathogens.

After using the robot, Harks felt more assured of his career choice, noting, “It just reminded me how far we’ve come with all sorts of things relating to the merging of technology and science, and how those are just so deeply intertwined.”

An operator uses the Da Vinci robotic surgical system to unwrap a Starburst candy at Oak Park and River Forest High School on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (Cam’ron Hardy/Pioneer Press)

The event was facilitated through a partnership with the Health Career Collaborative, linked to the National Association of Health Services Executives. This collaboration involves the school’s Medical Club working with Loyola University medical students to mentor students in health-related topics and career paths.

Junior Coralai Groulx, part of OPRF’s nursing program, shared her excitement about the experience, saying, “I just think it’s super cool because obviously surgery is an option, but for me at least, just doing this, I was able to actually kind of experience what a surgery would be like and what it would be like working with these instruments.”

Groulx’s interest in healthcare was sparked by the support her mother received during breast cancer treatment. “That was really intriguing to me, so I definitely really wanted to go into nursing because as much as a doctor is extremely helpful to patients, I want to have that patient interaction and that relationship,” she explained.