About MeMy name is Kate Samuel and I as of May, 2018 I will be a graduate from the University of South Carolina. My major is Public Health with minors in Spanish and Psychology and a cognate in Religious Studies. I am completing the Global Pathway for Graduation with Leadership Distinction. In the Fall of 2017, I studied abroad with USAC in Bangalore, India. While I was there, I took classes that included Hinduism; Buddhism; Islam; Class, Caste, Gender; Environmental Issues Facing India; and more. I was also involved in a Service Learning course in which we volunteered in the slums. Further in my college career, I have had the opportunity to pursue multiple leadership roles such as Philanthropy Chair of Indian Cultural Exchange and President of Public Health Society. In addition, I have had opportunities to volunteer with non-profit organizations including The Good Samaritan Clinic, PASOS, PALSS, and more that have enhanced my knowledge of global health and pandemics such as HIV/AIDs. I have plans to join the Peace Corps in Peru as a Public Health Educator for 27 months which I discuss more in the Leadership Section of the e-portfolio. Throughout my college career, I have been fortunate to make important realizations relating to Public Health that I have described through my key insights on the following pages. |
Why India?
Along with my experiences with Latino communities and healthcare clinics, my e-portfolio focuses on my semester abroad in Bangalore, India including the learning and cultural experiences I have brought back home and utilized in other fields. I chose to go to India for multiple reasons. In high school I studied abroad with Rotary International Youth Exchange to Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands of Spain. I had an amazing senior year of high school abroad, learning the culture and the Spanish language. I decided that for college I wanted to expand past my comfort zone, figuratively, and expand borders, literally, to Asia. I no longer wanted to be a Western World Traveler, but instead a World Traveler. Second, I have been involved in a student organization at the University of South Carolina called Indian Cultural Exchange- an organization for which I was the philanthropy chair my sophomore year.
As a Public Health major, I carefully selected India, knowing that it is a developing country. I gained vast amounts of insight into public health and safety in the developing world. The gap between the impoverished and the wealthy leading to health disparities, the abundance of pollution, and the cultural differences within a single nation were most impactful- specifically in India. I have come to the realization that a worldwide effort is required by dedicated global citizens to improve our current conditions of pollution, health disparities, and rejection of HIV stigma. Studying abroad in India has developed a deeper sense of importance of advocacy and social reform which I hope to achieve in my professional and personal future.
As a Public Health major, I carefully selected India, knowing that it is a developing country. I gained vast amounts of insight into public health and safety in the developing world. The gap between the impoverished and the wealthy leading to health disparities, the abundance of pollution, and the cultural differences within a single nation were most impactful- specifically in India. I have come to the realization that a worldwide effort is required by dedicated global citizens to improve our current conditions of pollution, health disparities, and rejection of HIV stigma. Studying abroad in India has developed a deeper sense of importance of advocacy and social reform which I hope to achieve in my professional and personal future.
Thank you for visiting my e-portfolio!