Serving New Orleans

Although my hours for the semester have been completed, I wanted to finish out the semester by volunteering with the organization that I committed to throughout my time in New Orleans.  And what better way to finish out with the same people I started with – my fellow classmates. We visited KIPP and helped to organize the computer station that the students will be using to take their upcoming state exams. Although there was not much work for us to tackle this time around, any amount of work that can be done to help the efficiency of the school for the betterment of the students is well worth it. After just sitting for the NBME shelf exam, I understand the need to have functional operating computers to make testing day go as smoothly as possible. March hours: 3 Total hours: 27

The month of February, I utilized my days studying for our last two Med Pharm modules prior to the Shelf Exam. Its unbelievable that we have made it this close to the end of the academic year already.  The last two modules were neurology and psychopharmacology. Neurology studies the various disorders of the brain that are usually caused by a deficiency or lack of function in neurotransmitters such as Parkinson’s disease, seizures, etc. Psychology studies how the mind works; our lectures focused on how neurotransmitters were defected in psych conditions like schizophrenia, major depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, etc.  From a pharmacological standpoint, targeting the majority of the disorders require agonizing or antagonizing a particular receptor at the synapse. The vast selectivity of the drugs are due to the different types of receptors within different neurons that only respond to particular neurotransmitters. I had the pleasure to discuss the manifestation of obsessi

  During the Christmas break, I had the pleasure to help with my home church's 8th annual Give Back mission. Each year members of the kitchen committee get together over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays to help serve the homeless communities. Hours were spent grocery shopping, prepping and preparing the food for it to be set up and served early Christmas morning. Not only was I overwhelmed with joy to be back home in Alabama, but I was also thrilled to be amongst my family members participating in a selfless act. Seeing the smiles and hearing the many “Thank you” and “God bless you” coming from the population we were serving made me see that every little effort is meaningful to someone. This made me grateful for the little things in life such as laughter with important people in my life and being able to fellowship with them. December hours: 7   After making my way back to New Orleans, I had a wonderful opportunity to assist Second Harvest Food Bank

KIPP During my ongoing service with KIPP, I continue to be of assistance with helping to keep the school functioning smoothly in any area needed. Several of my classmates and I distributed the boxes of imported textbooks to each teacher’s classroom and stocked the school supplies in the school’s storage closets. We also updated the schools fire drill and natural disaster protocols and posted them in each classroom. KIPP hours: 9 Old Oak Grove Missionary Baptist Church Over the Thanksgiving break, I went back home where I helped with my church’s annual “Give Back” service. It is done during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays to feed and clothe those in need. Food was prepared the night before Thanksgiving by various members of the church. The morning of plates was prepared and handed out to anyone in need of a meal. Hours: 6 November’s Total: 15 hours Semester's Total: 24 hours

I signed up to be apart of KIPP, the Knowledge is Power Program which is a public school system that serves New Orleans (along with other states). One of the main goals for KIPP New Orleans is setting their students up for success by exposing the students early on to college-prep which is why they target college students to set the bar for such an expectation. I favored this idea because I personally understand the impact a school and a strong support system can have on a child’s perspective toward education. Over the last month, my classmates and I helped to make the school more efficient by redoing bulletin boards and making them more presentable after damage during hallway commotion. We helped stock supplies and reorganize utility storages. Lastly, and my most favorite part was the interaction with the children. I was able to participate with them during recess and get to know them better. I personally feel like this is fulfilling of the schools mission. Octob

My transition into the great city of New Orleans has been a tasteful one. Each visit prior to moving here, I always looked forward to the food. Now that I have easy access to it, I have been taste-testing a variety of the Cajun and sea food options NOLA has to offer. Uber eats has become a savior for me now that I have been consumed with my studies. Crawfish is one tap away, and I have become very grateful for it. On the other hand, the “happy weight” I intended to gain will be obsolete because of the absurd amount of walking this city requires. Having a car here is useless and expensive. On a more serious note, I wanted to assess the ins and outs of The Big Easy before diving into charity work. The next several months will be dedicated to meaningful volunteering which I look forward to doing for the post-Katrina New Orleans.