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Public Health

Public health major joins eight-week summer residential program

SURGE members and WSU administrators on an outing in 2022 from left to right: Graduate School Program Director Mary Wood, mentor Marion A. Tate, trainee Nikki Alvarenga, mentor Tracy Boyce, mentor Rayshawda Temple, Graduate School Dean Amanda Bryant-Friedrich, trainee Jordan Vanek, and former Learning Communities Academic Services Officer Amy Potter
Success for Underrepresented Students in Graduate Education (SURGE) members and WSU administrators on an outing in 2022 from left to right: Graduate School Program Director Mary Wood, mentor Marion A. Tate, trainee Nikki Alvarenga, mentor Tracy Boyce, mentor Rayshawda Temple, Graduate School Dean Amanda Bryant-Friedrich, trainee Jordan Vanek and former Learning Communities Academic Services Officer Amy Potter.

Public health major, Jordan Vanek, has been accepted to the 2023 Pitt Public Health Undergraduate Scholars Program - an eight-week summer residential program! As part of this opportunity, Vanek will present their research at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters in Atlanta later this year.

"Being a part of SURGE has really boosted my academic self-esteem," Vanek said. "Since I'm a first-gen college student paying for my own education, I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing. It has been really wonderful to have somebody who understands the difficulties I'm facing and rooting for me."

Vanek credits their mentor Rayshawnda Temple with helping them write a strong application. Temple is a Master of Public Health student and has taken Vanek to a number of events hosted by the M.P.H. student organization.

"It has been a really rewarding experience being able to be there for Jordan," Temple said. "I feel like we were matched perfectly!! We have very similar, yet different experiences, that have allowed us to connect on a deeper level. I really respect them and love how determined they are. It is motivating to me! I know Jordan will make an impact in whatever they decide to do in life."

Vanek plans to apply for the dual Master of Public Health/Master of Social Work program once they've completed their bachelor's.

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