Improving the health of vulnerable populations through leadership and service is at the core of the mission of The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship (ASF). Recently, the New Hampshire/Vermont Schweitzer Fellows Program announced the names of the 2014-15 Schweitzer Fellows, including 11 members of the Class of 2017 at the University of Vermont College of Medicine, ten of whom will be working on projects as teams of two. These students, along with two 2013-14 Fellows from UVM, participated in an orientation and Celebration of Service event at Dartmouth College’s Outing Club in Hanover, N.H., on April 6, 2014.
As Schweitzer Fellows, students work in partnership with community-based organizations to identify an unmet health need and then implement and carry out a year-long, 200-hour service project designed to have a demonstrable impact on that need. According to the ASF, these projects, which are rooted in a holistic understanding of health, address not only clinical issues, but also the social determinants of health.
The UVM College of Medicine 2014-15 Schweitzer Fellows and their respective projects include:
Leah Cipri and Matthew Shear: With the support of Outright Vermont, Cipri and Shear will be implementing a confidential SMS texting service to disseminate accurate reproductive and sexual health information to LGBTQ youth across Vermont.
Jia Xin “Jessica” Huang and Alejandro Velez: Huang and Velez will be working with UVM Extension’s Migrant Health “Bridges to Health” program on a project to improve health care access for Latino migrant farm workers in Vermont.
Mary Ledoux and Laura Leonard: Working with the Winooski Teen Center, Leonard and Ledoux’s project will create a mentoring program for teenage girls in Winooski, Vt.
Christopher Mayhew and Carl Nunziato: Mayhew and Nunziato will work with Vermont Veteran Services to expand access to support services for veterans suffering from trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Erin Pichiotino: In collaboration with Support and Services at Home and Cathedral Square, Pichiotino is organizing an “Aging Well” pilot program, which has a goal to empower seniors to take control of their health and wellbeing.
Amy Schumer and Syed “Samin” Shehab: Working with the Howard Center, Schumer and Shehab will conduct self-advocacy workshops for adults with developmental delays at the Howard Center.
Based in Boston, Mass., and founded in 1940, the ASF includes 13 chapters around the U.S. Annually, approximately 250 Schweitzer Fellows deliver more than 40,000 hours of health-related community service.
Since 1996, the NH/VT Schweitzer Fellowship Program has supported more than nearly 400 Schweitzer Fellows in delivering about 70,000 hours of service. The program is funded entirely through charitable donations and grants. Current supporters include: Byrne Foundation; Children’s Fund of the Upper Valley; Couch Family Foundation; Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center; Emily Landecker Foundation; Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth; Grafton County Medical Society; Lintilhac Foundation; New Hampshire Charitable Foundation; Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth; University of New Hampshire School of Law; University of Vermont College of Medicine; Vermont Community Foundation; and Vermont Law School.