Priscilla T. Mecklembourg
Priscilla Mecklembourg’s formal education did not start until she was 13 years old in a small village in Haiti.
“Growing up around poverty, death and diseases was hard but it greatly impacted how I view life,” she said. “Everything I endured growing up has made me strong and determined to achieve my goals.”
Now, she is a McNair scholar set to graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in basic medical sciences.
As an undergraduate at Washington State University, Mecklembourg worked in two laboratories and conducted research poster presentations. She also volunteered as a women’s transit driver and worked in hospital settings.
In March 2009, Mecklembourg traveled to Costa Rica to help set up clinics and screen patients for hypertension and diabetes. There she learned basic tropical medicine and performed patient interviews and triage.
Her passion is to help improve the quality and access to health care in developing countries. Mecklembourg hopes to raise awareness about healthy lifestyles as well as send more volunteer doctors to these countries.
She will attend Loma Linda University to pursue her master’s degree in public health with a major in global health. Mecklembourg will also serve as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Africa program. She plans to complete medical school after receiving her master’s degree.
Highlight Student
|
College: Sciences |
|
Degree: Bachelor of Science in basic medical sciences |
|
High School: Country Christian High School, Pasco, Wash., 2006 |
| High School: Columbia Basin College, associate degree, Pasco, Wash., 2007 |
|
Career Goal: To receive her master’s degree in public health and major in global health; after receiving the doctor of medicine degree, work in health policy and practice medicine in Haiti |
|
Parents: Gladys Mecklembourg of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Roland Mecklembourg of Elmont, N.Y. |