Key Hartwick Activities: water polo team, Student Athletic Advisory Board, supplemental instructor for Anatomy and Physiology, Emerson International Internship Scholarship
Career Plans: Become a nurse specializing in community nursing or nursing education in Central or South America
Major decisions: During my first year, I completed my requirements and still hadn’t decided on a major. I took a seminar for undecided students and found I was interested in humanitarian work and travel. I had a friend who was a nursing major, and, after asking her some questions, I started looking into nursing.
Special Experiences: I went to Mexico on an Emerson International Internship Scholarship to complete my senior independent practicum working in a public health clinic. Every summer, the teachers strike in Oaxaca, and this year, due to increased political conflict, they protested much longer than usual. One day I was on the bus to work and a guy in a ski mask got on and said, everyone get off the bus; we are overthrowing the government. The second to last week, all the public health clinics were closed down. Everyone coming to the clinic was turned away. This made me stop and think: this political situation is completely out of the control of the public, yet it is putting their health at risk. I decided to do my senior thesis on the effect of political and social unrest on health.
I also went to Jamaica with the nursing department during J Term. That’s a whole story in itself. I expected to leave thinking, I’m so grateful to have my TV, etc., but it actually made me think: why do I need a TV? It made me take a whole different look at things.
About my professors: The nursing professors have been so supportive right from the beginning, and some have really pushed me to go beyond my comfort zone, which has been important. The cool thing is that I never thought I was going to be a nursing major, and I got so many things out of my education here that I never could have expected.
