Hi everyone! My name is Emily and I am a Health Studies major concentrating on epidemiology and biostatistics in my academic work and personal research. I am what you would label a non-traditional student, as I have transferred several times since beginning college and have finally landed at Texas Woman's University. My journey as a student has also included taking a year-long hiatus in 2009, which allowed me to examine and explore the world around me and truly discover my passions. This break reinforced my interest in science as well as my deep love for people around me and across the globe.
I took an interest in science in high school and always imagined I would be some sort of clinician. When I originally began college in 2007 at the University of Oklahoma, I was a pre-med biology major. In 2008, I had the opportunity to journey to Cambodia to work with World Relief (www.wr.org) and equip their staff with English language skills. I saw firsthand through their ministry the importance of health promotion and disease prevention through education. The dire circumstances that exist in Cambodia do not just require the aid of doctors and nurses to treat conditions. My eyes were opened to the preventive side of health, which requires research, planning, implementing, and managing in order to bring about a healthy and fruitful society. My quest to be involved in this way led me to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website (www.cdc.gov), forever piquing my interest in disease prevention. For me, becoming an epidemiologist means a career that I love and am passionate about, an avenue in which I can serve in global and local missions, and of course perpetually satisfying my nerdy side.
Participating in a Dengue Fever campaign with
World Relief worker and English student, Menghong.
Outisde of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. 2009.
As far as my non-academic life is concerned, I stay pretty busy! Last August I decided to bring my Starbucks Coffee Master skills to my church (www.benttree.org) and I currently work for our wonderful coffee bar. So far I think they like me! I spend my free time cooking (much to the enjoyment of my boyfriend), reading (all the time), spending time with friends and family, going to movies, traveling, serving in outreach at church, getting outdoors as much as I can, running, doing art projects, and taking care of Banksy, a 5 month-old boxer-mix.
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Banksy, the boxer-mix! Isn't he cute?
Health as it concerns my personal life is manifested through my hobbies of cooking and running. I love eating well and researching nutrition (and forcing it on others, just ask my friends). I absolutely love running and will be running one 5K race per month along with my friend as part of our New Year's resolution. We are shooting for the White Rock half-marathon in December, so we will see how that goes!
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My friend, Hannah, and I at our first 5K of the year.
One thing not very many people know about me is that I know a fairly sufficient amount of French (though I get nervous and forgetful when presented with an opportunity to parler en français) and in another life I would be a fully-sleeved tattoo artist. Lucky for mom and dad, I went another route.
Through taking this course I hope to become more sensitive to the health needs of women and become more aware of the political, economic, and cultural circumstances that influence our lives. I hope you can learn something from my blog and I really hope that you will share your personal opinions and experiences as you feel led.
Cheers to good health,
Emily
