My name is Hayley Kwasniewski and I am beyond happy to share what service means to me and how I became the service-oriented person I am today. I know you may be thinking, "What can a 22-year-old say about experience?" Well, I hope to answer that question for you and, while doing so, explain why the non-profits I have worked for, GlobalMindED and Montezuma School to Farm Project, either aided in propelling me out of subpar circumstances or gave me the opportunity to help others overcome dis-privileged environments.

Growing up, I experienced situational poverty, which occurs when one or more unfortunate, unforeseeable circumstances takes hold of a household's economics temporarily (for my specific situation, it was about thirteen years, but this differs greatly among the US population). Divorce, health issues, and unemployment contributed to the economic hardships of my household. This cycle began when I was about four years old and continued throughout my formative years. Research shows that poverty during formative years leads to shorter attention spans, increased school absences, stunted emotional maturity, etc. I experienced this firsthand and read the research later.

Luckily for me, I had two incredible teachers in high school identify my circumstances, encourage me to overcome them, challenge myself, and see through to me being accepted into college. Experiencing another round of luck, I discovered an opening for a Business Research internship at GlobalMindED after my sophomore year of college. All I knew was that they aided First Generation to college and at-risk youth in education and career opportunities. I figured, "well, that sounds like something I know about." After going to my first week, I found that I knew practically nothing about the intricacies of serving communities. What was a non-profit? Grant writing? A Board of Directors? What am I doing? How does a non-profit model succeed in serving communities? Through guidance and classes from the staff, I managed to figure it out and learn exponentially from the experience. I attended the 2017 GlobalMindED Conference, which expanded my network greatly and exposed me to numerous fields and ideas.

The next two years of college included studying privilege, poverty, and intersectionality. I was curious from a statistics and research standpoint. I had lived some of it, but there was a lot left to learn, especially pertaining to some intersectional issues with which I had little experience. Throughout my time at Indiana University, I knew one thing: I wanted to serve and help others like the teachers and the staff at GlobalMindED aided me in my journey.

This service-oriented pursuit led me to Americorps VISTA, which is a year-long position that focuses on building the capacity of non-profits in impoverished communities across the country. My assignment for the 2019-2020 term is with the amazing organization Montezuma School to Farm Project within the Mancos Conservation District in Southwestern Colorado. The organization focuses on educating underserved populations by placing gardens on school grounds and teaching students about conservation efforts, sustainable agriculture, healthy nutrition, and water preservation through experiential learning. This hands-on learning environment allows students to flourish in excitement and learn Colorado State Core Curriculum while observing the outdoors, the natural world. This experience has allowed me to expand my non-profit capabilities and serve children in Montezuma County, furthering the connection between service and helpful deliverables.

I have seen numerous sides of the poverty cycle, but still have much to learn. Everyone experiences it differently, with intersectional distinctions creating diverse socioeconomic dynamics within our country, our states, our counties, our towns, and even a single street. But I have clearly learned that to break the cycle, we need champions like GlobalMindED and Montezuma School to Farm Project continuing the fight to provide a more advantageous system for all, from kindergarten to employment and beyond. That is why I serve. 

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Each session is based on how things get done, key stakeholders, measurements and ability to bring about change at scale. Participants do not spend time talking about their background; time should be devoted to unique, innovative work and what it has achieved. Sessions will be selected based on the following criteria: 

The National Academy of Medicine defines "gender" as a person's self-representation as male or female based on social interactions and "sex" as based on one's genes. The environment can impact gene expression which is known as "epigenetics."

Gender/sex impacts every aspect of our daily lives. The same dosage of medication, for example, has different effects on men compared to women, resulting in a need for us to understand these differential effects in the research and development process before doctors can effectively dose their patients. Similarly, although some products (such as shoes, sports equipment, or cars) seem to have separate designs for men and women, it is important to distinguish between a simple change in aesthetics and a design that actually addresses the biological factors (ie, body composition, bone structure, metabolism) that cause men and women to experience these products differently. Each small detail and seemingly insignificant change in design can heavily impact how we perform at work, school, or in our leisurely activities.

GUIDELINES

Participants:

The challenge is open to all students

Design Requirements:

The design elements can include:

Programs (ex: an educational symposium);

Policies (ex: a policy on inclusion);

Protocols (ex: athletic training protocols or medical guidelines); or

Products (ex: sports equipment, clothing, tools, hardware and machine-human interfaces).

Solution Requirements:

The solution should:

Demonstrate the impact of gender/sex on a design element.

The concept for the design element needs to be clear, concise and actionable.

Submissions (approximately 1-2 pages in length) are due November 7 to contact@globalminded.org. We look forward to your ideas!

  2019 Excellence in Global Health Award

The purpose of this award is to recognize and publicly honor those individuals, institutions or organizations based in the state of Colorado that have made a significant and exemplary contribution to the sustained improvement of the health of multiple populations over an extended period of time in a global health setting. 

Do you know someone who you would like to nominate? Learn more  here.

DEADLINE: September 6, 2019 (midnight)