Brianna McMichael, 2008

During my education at Lewis and Clark College I was involved with the Gender Studies program as a committee planning member, a Symposium panelist and a co-chair. The knowledge I gained from other students, professors and community members still impacts me today.

After graduation I moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota where I spent two years working in an emergency domestic violence shelter for women and children. I believe the education I gained as a member of the Gender Studies program is essential when working in complex systems. Some of the most basic concepts we discussed have yet to be understood or incorporated into practice by systems that affect the everyday life of many people in our communities.

In the fall of 2010, I entered a master’s program in Public Health at the University of Minnesota. I will receive a degree in Community Health Education and Public Policy. My interests are predominately focused on how public policy can be used to prevent health disparities. I hope that this program will continue to push me to grow, as the gender studies program did, so that I may be an asset to my community.