Chelsea Center

The Chelsea Center has many community partners dedicated to the growth and development of Webster Groves High School students. We couldn’t do this work without them! Are you interested in partnering with us? We’d love to have you! Please utilize the Get Involved–Community form on our website or email Dr. Kerry Arens, arens.kerry@wgmail.org to get in touch.

Webster Groves High School is full of caring, courageous, and compassionate teens who look to make positive impacts at every turn. We have flocks of students especially interested in learning to care for our furry and feathered friends. Luckily, we exist in a community brimming with generous, accommodating community partners who graciously host our students to provide experiences with the multifaceted veterinary care provided by their organizations. Brentwood and Yorkshire Animal Hospitals have hosted introductory, personalized job shadows for individual students just getting curious about the field; students observe standard preventative care as well as surgical care. Webster Groves Animal Hospital is hosting a more intensive job shadow for students preparing their applications for the Summer Mizzou Advanced Veterinary Academy. In addition to standard treatments, Webster Groves Animal Hospital provides emergency medical care. The World Bird Sanctuary hospital has hosted individuals and small groups who are looking to expand their knowledge of specialty areas within veterinary science. Their rehabilitation hospital treats over 600 birds of prey a year, and oversees conservation efforts facilitating breeding programs for critically endangered species.

We’re grateful for these instrumental partnerships, and proud of our students as they explore future careers in veterinary medicine!

Summer school through the Chelsea Center is part of the WGHS summer school program, but has a different operations model. We offer our standard internship, independent service learning, passion pursuit, and travel credit courses. But additionally, the Chelsea Center offers the opportunity for students to pair attendance at a chosen regional summer experience with goal setting, engagement with three assignments, and reflection. Together, the experience and the reflective coursework create the eligibility for WGHS academic elective credit to be earned. In many cases the Chelsea Center can sponsor the cost of the experience. See last week's newsletter (linked below) for a listing of regional experiences; students may access details through their GivePulse accounts.

The general process for Chelsea Center summer school registration is:

1. Student registers interest in the chosen experience on GivePulse (see us if assistance is needed)

2. Student comes to the Chelsea Center to receive our paper summer registration packet

3. Student takes the packet home, then returns it with parent/guardian signatures

This process for requesting coordination and funding for a regional experience must be completed no later than March 25, 2026. Arrangements for Chelsea Center standard internship, independent service learning, passion pursuit, and travel credit courses must be finalized no later than May 1.

Reminder: We can help students who are pursuing their A+ hours find connections to service learning that include the mentorship or job shadowing components the A+ program requires. Have your students stop by to talk with us, or independently explore their GivePulse account opportunity listings by using their school google email credentials at wgsd.givepulse.com.

For more information please contact Dr. Kerry Arens, Coordinator of the Chelsea Center

Email: arens.kerry@wgmail.org
Website: https://hs.webster.k12.mo.us/programs/chelsea-center
Location: Webster Groves High School, Room 200
Phone: (314) 918-4181