Passing it on

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Total community service hours (as of 4/19/21): 40.75 hours

I have realized that at my core I really am meant to be an educator. I know this because any time I learn something, the first thing I want to do is share the information with someone else. Every time I've learned something interesting during this master's program, I have texted it out to some of my former students. The Environmental Signaling course in particular has taught me many things that I think are important for everyone to know. I have become so passionate about environmental justice after listening to many of the course's different lecturers. I get riled up just thinking about disparities in lead exposure, water pollution, and life expectancy across races and zip codes.

I reached out to a teacher at the school at which I used to teach and have arranged to give a lecture to four of her classes. I am so excited to have the opportunity to pass on some of the information that I have learned. I am going to teach my students about everything I learned about the landfill near the school while I was researching for my Environmental Signaling presentation. I am also going to teach them about lead, water pollution, and the importance of using water filters. I am going to pass on some of the information I learned in Medical Pharmacology including the link between blood clots and smoking while taking birth control, the effect on high salt diets on renal health, and the dangers of combining different CNS depressants. 

As much as I love learning, I love sharing what I've learned with others. I am grateful to have to opportunity to reach out to my former high school students. I have realized that it is paramount for my future role as a physician to include community outreach and education.

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