Students Unsure About UDC Right-Sizing

BY jeania BagleY, kEITH bROOKS & JABARI LEVELL

Students listening to the board of trustees about the plans for the udc right-sizing . PHOTO BY JABARI LEVELL. Students at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) have mixed reactions to proposed plans to scale down the school’s offerings and faculty.| READ MORE

Tribute to Dr. Meredith Rode:Artist, Professor

BY RADAKA LIGHTFOOT

DR. RODE ARTWORK PHOTO: RADAKA LIGHTFOOT

The room was filled to capacity taking in the sight of artwork made out of gold colored hubcaps with images of different faces painted on them. Spectators looked in amazement and awe, as soft recalled of the artist and her legacy.

On Wednesday, Sept.19 the University of the District of Columbia’s President, students, faculty, friends and family of Dr. Meredith Rode gathered to pay tribute and honor her life. Dr. Rode was a well known artist, professor and an asset to the UDC community. | READ MORE

Students Help Haiti

BY KEir gaines

EDWIN MUNGI COURTESY OF UDC NUSRING DEPT.

For three students from the University of The District of Columbia’s (UDC) nursing program, a 2012 humanitarian trip to the island nation of Haiti, provided an opportunity to practice the valuable skills they are learning in the classroom.

The Multi-Disciplinary Service Learning Experience, which allows students to travel to economically deprived countries, is only in its second year, but has already gained traction. Elgloria Harrison, chairperson of UDC’s nursing department, developed the program to give students a unique learning experience.

Kenyan native Edwin Mungi was among the group in Haiti, a country licking its wounds in the wake of the devastating earthquake that rocked the island in 2010. “We worked out of a tiny hospital about two hours away from Port au Prince,” says Mungi. The hot and humid weather was all too familiar to the young man who spoke candidly about similarities between his country and Haiti. “There was no clean running water. Even when taking a shower, you are advised not to expose your eyes to [the water].”

Five Haitian nursing students accompanied the UDC students and Mungi said their help came in handy, especially for translating purposes. “A lot of people there speak English, but the language barrier was still very big,” he explained. The students saw countless patients with ailments stemming from minor aches and pains, to untreatable illnesses. The small hospital in the tiny village lacked the proper supplies needed to treat everyone properly. Funded by donations, the hospital is a very long way from completion. Only having one doctor on staff and limited instruments, having UDC students was a lot of help.
The people of Haiti were very generous, and showed tremendous hospitality to the students. All of them were moved by the spirit of the locals in the face of such despair. “You cannot even imagine what it’s like,” Mungi said, thinking back on the living conditions. “I encourage everybody to take a trip there, see what its like, and return with a true appreciation for life.”    

The idea for the program came about when Professor Harrison took three of her students to Meredith, Mexico for a similar project that involved collaboration with two other universities. “We all met in Mexico and had a wonderful experience treating the patients out there,” she says, adding “a lot of our American students don’t often get the opportunity to travel abroad and I think they should experience that kind of service.”

“The health, water, and architectural conditions in Haiti are in much need of some type of help,” says Harrison. The university has thus far sent over students from architecture, water resource management, and three RN students to help. Harrison hopes that that they will not only make an impact, but also engage other schools to become involved.

Professor Harrison believes strongly in the program and is planning to make the visit to Haiti an annual event. She says “In the healthcare profession, we really should extend outside of ourselves to wherever the need is.”