I am Leonardo Tjahjono from Dallas, Texas. I was born in Indonesia and am able to speak its native language fluently. I moved to America when I was fifteen to pursue higher level of education which my native country lacks. I am currently attending Wake Forest University as a freshman. I am intending to major in Chemistry with concentration in biochemistry. Interested to attend Medical school in the future. I am interested to learn more about chronic disease, especially cancer, because my family has been greatly affected by it. It is from natural intuition that I want to dwell deeper into the medical field and advances that will be progressing in the world of science.
Category: Health Equity Ambassadors
The Health Equity Scholars program has facilitated the training of over 30 scholars: pre-college, college, post-bac, and post-doctorate trainees. The health equity scholars program was formerly named the Health Disparities training program between 2003 and 2005 when Dr. David Mount was then a post-doc fellow at the University of Missouri. Renamed and redefined, the health equity scholars program launched in 2007 through a grant from the American Psychological Foundation, and then further supplemented in 2009 through a Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) grant from the Piedmont Triad Partnership and the U.S. Department of Labor. Both grants awarded to Dr. Mount focused on growing a critical mass of diverse health professionals. Program goals include efforts to:
• Implement a multi-university partnership in the Triad Area to address the problem of health care disparities across the Piedmont Triad.
• Recruit and retain a population of students who are seeking graduate and professional training in the health professions and committed to remedying health care disparities in underserved populations.
• Augment the preparation of students who are committed to a career in the health professions with enhanced research skills and policy sensitivity to issues of healthcare disparities, and health equity.
• Address health equity concerns related to workforce strength in the health professions, health professions diversity, providing a culturally rich and diverse environment that is recognized for providing encouragement, support, and resources to people from all backgrounds.
Cassandra Hardy: Student Intern Fall 2011
Cassie Hardy, from Cary, NC is currently a junior at Salem College majoring in biology and minoring in chemistry. She is an honors student and full tuition scholarship recipient. She is the editor-in-chief of Salem College’s yearbook, a junior marshal, fundraiser chairman of Beta Beta Beta, orientation leader, tutor, and biology lab assistant. After graduating from Salem College she hopes to go to medical school. As a new intern at the Maya Angelou Center for Health Equity with Dr. Mount she hopes to learn as much as possible about health disparities and to use the knowledge she gains to create change in the Winston-Salem community and beyond.
Jasmine Furnace: Student Intern Fall 2011
From the minute town of Mount Airy, North Carolina, Jasmine Furnace is a transfer student from East Carolina University and is now attending Salem College. She is currently a senior and will be graduating spring 2012 with a B.S. in Biology. She aspires to become a physician assistant in hopes to have a specialty in surgery. Jasmine has been involved in various activities ranging from leadership training and mentoring to intramural basketball. Furthermore, she is currently employed as a certified nursing assistant in a nursing facility where she gives compassionate care to the elderly. Jasmine is enthusiastic about the opportunity to be a student intern under the guidance of Dr. Mount. The internship will help further her knowledge of research methodology while investigating and even promoting change to the various health disparities that effect disadvantaged populations within the community.
Tameshia Blackwell
First of her family to attend and graduate from college, Miss Tameshia Blackwell, was born and raised here in Winston Salem, North Carolina. In May 2011, she graduated Cum Laude from Shaw University in Raleigh North Carolina with a Bachelors of Science in Biology. While attending Shaw University, she was granted many opportunities that lead to her success in the Math and Science field. She participated in three Emerging Researchers Conferences held in various destinations and was selected to study overseas in a prostate cancer research internship in Jamaica for two summers. She is a lifetime member of the Alpha Chi National College Honors Society, Beta Kappa Chi Scientific Honor Society and a member of Shaw University branch of the Minority Association for Pre Health Students (MAPS). Currently, she is continuing her efforts to serve the community as a Health Equity Ambassador under the mentorship of Dr. David Mount in the Maya Angelou Center for Health Equity until she starts graduate school in the spring of 2013.
Carmen Caruthers: Student Intern Summer 2011
“Overall, my experience as a summer intern with Dr. Mount at the Maya Angelou Center for Health Equity was enlightening, educational, and beneficial to my development as a student and future professional. Not only did I have the opportunity to work under a very knowledgeable neuropsychologist, I was exposed to the different facets of the field of psychology. I witnessed group therapy sessions, listened to panels, and last but not least, had the opportunity to actively participate in the beginning phases of a research project. In addition to these experiences I developed a CV that will continue to grow as well as picked up a few skills that are necessary for a psychologist to have, such as working with SPSS and scoring a variety of personality tests. In the end, working in the Maya Angelou Center for Health Equity thoroughly enhanced my knowledge of and interest in the field of psychology.”
Anna Queen
A native of the South, Anna Queen is a 2011 graduate from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke’s Esther G. Maynor Honor’s College. While obtaining a dual bachelor’s degree in biology and chemistry, Anna worked as a RISE Fellow for three years in the Microbiology Department. Anna has also had internships at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. In the fall of 2010, Anna spent three months in Tanzania, East Africa working on a public health initiative involving HIV. Since 2008, Anna has presented her various projects at ten different regional and national conferences. In her most recent conference, she won the second place John Dereiux Excellence in Research Award. Anna aspires to obtain an MD/PhD degree in the interest of health disparities among minorities. Her work in Dr. David Mount’s lab involves promoting healthcare educational outreach, long-term statistical studies, and relating chronic health issues to the patient’s citywide environment. Her intent and motivation for the work in Dr. Mount’s lab is to improve minority health and promote training and health disparities research. Anna is particularly interested in Neurology, specifically the pathology of movement disorders such as Parkinson Disease.
Michelle Wright: Student Intern Spring 2011
Michelle Wright is currently a sophomore at Winston-Salem State University majoring in psychology with the neuroscience as her intended minor. She was raised in Clarkton, NC and graduated from West Bladen High School. Michelle is a member of the Honors Program and is a Chancellor’s Scholar. She is also a member of the Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC) program as well as the Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE), and the WSSU Psychology Club. Michelle serves her class as a student senator for the Sophomore Class Council and student representative for the Honors Program. Upon her graduation from WSSU, Michelle plans to attend graduate school to obtain her Masters in Clinical Psychology and then continue with her education to receive a PhD in Neuropsychology. As of now Michelle is returning to the Maya Angelou Center for Health Equity for her second semester as an intern with Dr. Mount. She hopes to learn more about health disparities, the role of neuropsychology in the community, and the correct pathway to achieve her goals.
Maria Isabel Rego
Maria Isabel Rego, a native from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, graduated from Salem College in North Carolina with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and a minor in Psychology in 2010. During her undergraduate and current training with Dr. David Mount, Maria Isabel gained insightful knowledge and experience in the research field of minority health and health disparities. This experience greatly increased her awareness on minority health issues and the importance of diversity in any setting. After graduation she was hired into Dr. Mount’s team as a data coordinator II/research assistant, a position which she continues to exert today. In 2011, she presented at Winston Salem State University’s 1st Health Disparities Conference and co-authored with Dr. Mount and other colleagues a journal article called “Preliminary Findings Exploring the Social Determinants of Black Males Lay-Health Perspectives” and a book chapter called “Addressing Risk Factors for Neurocognitive Decline and Alzheimer’s disease Among African Americans in the Era of Health Disparities.” In the near future Maria Isabel plans on attending graduate school and helping to reduce the gaps in health disparities while also empowering and educating her patients to take on preventive measures for their health. Her interests range from chronic diseases, health equity, oral health, mental health, psychology, human behavior, leadership, health care management, health education, health promotion, mind-body relationships, quality and equal access to healthcare, among many others.
Alethea Amponsah
Originally hailing from Ghana West Africa, Alethea Amponsah was raised in Providence, RI and graduated from Tufts University with a Bachelor of Science in Clinical Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Child Development. After a brief internship with Dr. David L. Mount in the fall of 2010, she relocated from RI and turned her attention to developing the appropriate research skills necessary to aid in closing the many gaps evident in minority healthcare. Alethea now serves as a Health Equity Ambassador, Data Coordinator and trainee within Dr. Mount’s lab, investigating the many aspects of health care suffering from persistent inconsistencies in quality, accessibility and beyond. As an avid advocate for the promotion of overall mind and body wellness, she has dedicated her endeavors under Dr. Mount’s guidance to spreading this message to all communities. Alethea’s academic interests include abnormal psychology, neuropathology and phrenology and will begin pursuing her PhD in Clinical Neuropsychology while continuing to lend to the mission of eliminating health disparities and promoting awareness around the importance of mind-body wellness.
Erica Sickelbaugh
Erica Sickelbaugh, a native of North Carolina, is currently pursuing her Master’s in Public Health at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro with an anticipated graduation in May 2012. She is a 2010 graduate from North Carolina State University with a dual degree in microbiology and biology with a minor in Spanish. During her time at NC State she had opportunities to serve in public health facets in El Salvador and the Dominican Republic. It was these trips abroad that helped to spark her interest in health disparities and healthcare education outreach. During her graduate studies, Erica has served as a graduate research assistant with a statewide initiative to reduce teen pregnancies and provide support for pregnant and parenting teens and young women. She has also spent time in Zambia working on a public health initiative involving home health care and HIV/AIDS. Erica is also a Certified Nursing Assistant I working at the Emergency Room of Wake Forest Baptist Health – Lexington Medical Center. Her career aspirations include going to physician assistant school in order to better serve those domestically and globally that face health care disparities.