Overview

The 2024-25 Schweitzer Fellows include 26 outstanding students representing 09 schools, 11 disciplines, and 10 academic programs. The Program’s interdisciplinary approach exposes students to real-world inter-professional collaborative care. Each of the Fellows will design and implement year-long projects to address a variety of urgent health needs (including social determinants of health) facing Chicago’s underserved communities.

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Kavya Anjur, University of Illinois at Chicago, Medicine

Kavya will facilitate a series of wellness classes and craft a sustainable guidebook for women and children living in domestic violence shelters in Chicago. Kavya plans to partner with Connections for Abused Women and Their Children Program to educate this community on healthy physical and mental health practices and provide them with a space to develop social support networks, learn about positive parenting practices and methods for taking charge of their healthcare.

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Mohammad Abdallah, University of Illinois at Chicago, Pharmacy

In partnering with the Tobacco Treatment Center at UI Health, Mohammad will create a Telehealth initiative that greatly improves access to healthcare for this patient population.

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Rachel Bartnett, Loyola University, Medicine

Rachel plans to implement consistent mental health programming for children and adolescents at Maywood Fine Arts (MFA). Rachel’s programming will equip students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds with critical knowledge about mental health and wellness while organizing community assets so programming can be replicated for years to come.

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Daniel Benedum, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Art Therapy and Counseling

Daniel will facilitate an arts-based zine-making workshop for LGBTQ+ youth in Chicago Public Charter Schools. The zine-making workshop will offer participants education on Queer Theory, LGBTQ+ activism, and community resources used to voice different personal needs and political changes that seek to reduce mental health symptoms due to stigma and discrimination.

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Brian Carter, Northwestern University, Medicine

Brian plans to develop educational modules to train individuals experiencing homelessness, individuals diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, and low-income families to identify legal barriers to accessing quality healthcare services and to articulate those barriers to the Legal Council for Health Justice (LCHJ). Brian, a former practicing attorney, will partner with LCHJ to address identified barriers by assisting with individual cases and drafting proposed legislation aimed at systemic change.

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Kevin Chen, University of Chicago, Medicine

Kevin will design educational sessions and activities addressing the increasing burden of musculoskeletal health problems in the older Chinese population living in Bridgeport and Chinatown. By providing culturally sensitive prevention strategies and management options that community members can be comfortable pursuing, Kevin will equip Chinese seniors with the knowledge to protect against age-related decline in physical function and quality of life while also limiting the impact of musculoskeletal-related pain.

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Ateh Fonteh, Northwestern University, Medicine and Public Health

Ateh will partner with Schweitzer Fellow Katie Owens in performing a medical needs assessment and aims to use the results to initiate workshops about topics including chronic diseases, nutrition, and exercise. The workshops focus on increasing health literacy and improving health outcomes for people experiencing homelessness and migrants in Downtown Chicago.

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Axel Garcia, Roosevelt University, Pharmacy

Axel plans to partner with RUSH in executing a community outreach effort that will provide the Latino immigrant population of the South/Southwest side of Chicago with education in Spanish on affordable healthcare. His project will equip this population with the tools necessary to better prevent chronic disease states and manage existing ones.

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Jesse Gamoran, DePaul University, Clinical and Community Psychology

Jesse plans to facilitate a volunteer program for The Boulevard’s clients, a provider of housing and case management for adults experiencing homelessness. Jesse will match clients with meaningful volunteer opportunities, lead a parallel discussion group, and further empower participants through individual coaching meetings geared toward finding meaning through service.

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Ivory Hopkins, Northeastern Illinois University, Public Health

Ivory plans to lead school reentry workshops for adolescents and families battling mental health challenges at Hartgrove Behavioral Health System. These workshops will provide education and training while serving as a social support structure for families seeking a triumphant return to their schools.

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Sayyida Hasan, Rush University, Medicine

Sayyida plans to deliver seminars and workshops on musculoskeletal health for victims of gender-based violence. These sessions will provide education and serve as a support structure for long-term musculoskeletal health outcomes.

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Grace Keegan, University of Chicago, Medicine

In partnership with Firebird Community Arts, Grace plans to implement an emergency preparedness and empowerment program for people affected by community violence. Grace will teach life-saving skills (STOP THE BLEED^®) to those in trauma recovery programs and organize an art wall for expressions on the burden of community violence.

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Erika Meraz, Roosevelt University, Biomedical Science

Erika will deliver health insurance literacy workshops for the Latinx community. The workshops will provide education and serve as a tool to further empower individuals with the knowledge needed to navigate the health system effectively.

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Roberto Mizhquiri, DePaul University, Nursing 

In partnership with the Peace Exchange, Roberto plans to facilitate an educational project rooted in the south side of Chicago. The project will focus on violence prevention through activities exploring health literacy, nutrition, and mental health.

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Saranya Menon, University of Illinois at Chicago, Medicine

Saranya plans to explore nutritional psychiatry, aiming to build upon the healthy eating habits of women who have previously faced homelessness at Deborah’s Place. She will facilitate cooking classes and nutritional workshops that seek to dismantle the perception that healthy food can’t be delicious while further enhancing health literacy regarding the nutritional benefits of certain foods.

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Deniz Namik, University of Illinois at Chicago, Dentistry

Deniz plans to implement a community-based oral health education program targeting underserved populations (particularly refugees and immigrants) in collaboration with the Palos Islamic Center. She will design workshops, educational materials, and weekly activities to activate community members to prioritize their oral health and access to dental services.

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Katie Owens, Northwestern University, Medicine and Public Health

Katie will partner with Schweitzer Fellow Ateh Fonteh to perform a medical needs assessment. They will use the results to initiate workshops about topics including chronic diseases, nutrition, and exercise. The workshops they plan to facilitate are designed to expand health literacy and improve health outcomes for migrants and people experiencing homelessness in Downtown Chicago.

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Binita Pandya, Rosalind Franklin University, Medicine

Binita plans to facilitate health agency workshops for immigrant teenagers that will provide actionable steps to increase internal health locus of control.

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Anjali Pinto, University of Illinois at Chicago, Nursing

Anjali plans to ignite a holistic support program for migrant women, particularly new mothers, in Chicago shelters. This program will offer education on safe sleep practices, provide essential postpartum supplies, facilitate group educational sessions on infant safety, and promote healing for postpartum parents.

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Trevor Poulson, Rush University, Medicine

In partnership with the Center for the Underserved at Rush ENT (CURE), Trevor plans to expand specialties to focus on the needs of unhoused Chicagoans specifically.  Trevor also plans to expand outreach to additional shelters for those experiencing homelessness.

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Sara Ruiz, Loyola University, Public Health

Sara plans to increase awareness and prevention of intimate partner violence (IPV) for patients at Erie Family Health Center, a federally qualified health center. She will implement a clinical screening questionnaire to initiate dialogue about IPV among patients and providers and lead educational sessions and support groups for people who have survived IPV.

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Hussein Salem, University of Illinois at Chicago, Dentistry

Hussein plans to partner with the Yemeni American community’s Aden Center to conduct dental education workshops for the community’s adults and youth. These interactive sessions will cover crucial topics like proper dental care practices, oral hygiene, the importance of regular check-ups, and valuable nutrition advice to promote overall oral and general health within the Yemeni community.

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Nicole Safran, Rush University, Nursing

Nicole proposes to initiate a project to improve the mental health and well-being of formerly incarcerated individuals. Nicole will facilitate community-building by coordinating milestone celebrations like birthdays, holidays, and celebrations for those completing current programs.

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Ismihan Uddin, Midwestern University, Medicine

Ismihan plans to address the healthcare disparities prevalent among immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in the Chicagoland area by prioritizing educational initiatives and facilitating access to proper healthcare.

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Suvitha Viswanathan, Loyola University, Medicine

In planned collaboration with Gilda’s Club and the Loyola Medicine Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, Suvitha proposes to design patient-centered educational resources and workshops on sexual health for female-identifying people living with cancer.  She works to address the unique sexual health-related survivorship needs that patients face throughout their cancer journey.

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Nicole Walkowiak, Rush University, Nursing

Nicole plans to provide wound care education to people with intravenous drug injection wounds. She will work closely with staff and volunteers on outreach teams to enhance their knowledge of wound care and help them identify when to direct patrons to seek medical treatment. The education she offers focuses on harm reduction, wound infection reduction, and sepsis prevention.