In the summer of 2015, Co-Founder and Project Leader, Alyssa Nguyen created the Honors in Community Health organization! She is majoring in biotechnology, and stays busy working on ways to improve the community. If Alyssa isn’t volunteering you can find her painting, biking, or watching movies. Continue to find out more about this wonder woman!
What does your organization do?
“Honors in Community Health strives to build a community health network between the different colleges on campus as well as students and faculty members. Our three main goals are direct service, research, and advocacy. Off campus, we lead community health service projects including students who are trained to be state certified Community Health Workers.”
Position Duties?
“I helped with much of the foundation of the organization in the beginning, and I continue to help with internal development. The project that I helped lead last year was with the residents at New Hope Housing. This year, my project is with creative care. I will be working on projects that link health and well-being with creative approaches such as art and fitness.”
“These projects have included creating narratives with residents at New Hope Housing, gardening at local gardens such as the NuWaters Co-Op, and creating lead education models and a community voice toolbox that can be utilized by people across the nation. This semester we’re also getting a Community Health Worker certification class for some of our students. Many of our students commit to 10 hours of service per week.”
Why did you choose your major?
“I’ve always been really interested in science and especially biology. When I realized that biotechnology was offered, I thought that it was the perfect way to use my knowledge of biology in more practical ways in the real world. biotechnology is used in all types of fields such as forensics, industrial, agricultural, and medicine. I am particularly interested in the medical applications.”
Are you in any other extracurricular activities?
“I am the vice president of the American Medical Women’s Association. I’m a tutor and lesson plan developer for Pay it Forward for Education. I am a social media coordinator at Houston Shoulder to Shoulder. I’m part of the Bonner Leadership Program. I’m also part of the Filipino Student Association and have participated on their cultural dance team.”
How would you like to impact society?
“My ultimate goal is to become a doctor, more specifically a Pediatrician. I feel like doctors already make a huge impact on the well-being of members in society. I want to go even beyond that and try to be more involved with community and public health as well as health policy and advocacy. I hope to also become a professor and mentor for students interested in medicine.”
What would you like to do after graduation?
“I plan on attending Medical School.”
What’s the most exciting thing you’ve done all summer?
“I went on a medical learning abroad trip to Honduras for two weeks. We worked at a local clinic in Santa Ana, Honduras. While we were there we helped the clinic, taught students and community leaders about Zika prevention, helped train a fumigation team, and helped paint schools. For the rest of the trip, we got to go to Guatemala as well.”
We are lucky to have a passionate COOG like Alyssa Nguyen on campus making a difference.