Public Health & Community Health Education

Daniel Sambu, Geography & Environmental Science; John Grider, History; Gary Gilmore, Public Health & Community Health Education; and Paul Gardner, Luther College; contributed to a Fulbright Presentation & Panel on Nov. 21 in La Crosse. Thank you for sharing your Fulbright experiences at this year's Fulbright chapter meeting of Seven Rivers Region Chapter during International Education Week. Gary Gilmore provided a warm welcome and then we moved into the three main presentation for the evening featuring John Grider's presentation, "Research Abroad: Navigating Maritime Archival Collections in Cape Town, South Africa"; Daniel Sambu's presentation, "Community Conservation and Resilience Amid Global Challenges: Harnessing the Power of Collaboration"; and Paul Gardner's presentation, "Teaching About the 2024 American Presidential Election in Romania." Following the three presentations, we rounded out the evening with a delightful panel Q&A and finally closing provided by Gary Gilmore. Thank you much for sharing your experiences with our in-person and virtual audiences!

Submitted on: Dec. 2

Anders Cedergren and Keely Rees, both Public Health & Community Health Education; and Brittney Chang , Health Resources in Action; presented "Master Your Monday: Prepare for Effective Conversations with Legislators and/or their Staff " at the Society for Public Health Education Advocacy Summit on Oct. 20 in Washington, DC.

Submitted on: Nov. 22

Anders Cedergren and Abbi Stafslien-Dumale, both Public Health & Community Health Education, presented " Mobilizing Future Leaders: Strategies for Engaging Public Health Students in Advocacy Learning from Failure: How to Best Plan and Recruit for Student State Advocacy" at the Society for Public Health Education Advocacy Summit on Oct. 19 in Washington, DC.

Submitted on: Nov. 22

Patrick Barlow, Institutional Research, Assessment & Planning; and Michele Pettit and Karen Skemp, both Public Health & Community Health Education; presented "Exploring the nexus of mental health, spirituality, and social media" at American Public Health Association 2024 Annual Meeting & Expo: on Oct. 27 in Minneapolis, MN. Spirituality includes a sense of connection to something bigger than oneself and may become prominent when an individual confronts adversity. Resilience refers to the ability to bounce back from challenging situations. This study examined spiritual coping and resilience in relation to social media use, anxiety, depression, and stress among a campus community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Faculty, staff, and students from a mid-sized Midwestern public university completed an online survey consisting of items from the Spiritual Coping Strategies Scale, a revised version of the Facebook Intensity Scale, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale, and the Brief Resilience Scale. Age may be a protective factor in offsetting adverse mental health effects of social media. Similarly, religious spiritual coping may be a protective factor against anxiety.

Submitted on: Nov. 20

Casey Tobin, Psychology and Keely Rees, Public Health & Community Health Education, presented "Flowing with Power and Celebrating Cycles" at Sex Ed Lecture Series on July 10 online. "Celebrating Cycles" offers educators and practitioners helpful information to reshape societal perceptions of menstruation. The lecture explored historical and cultural insights across diverse backgrounds and helped participants explore their approach to addressing these understandings to suit their audience, emphasizing the natural aspects of menstruation and embracing cultural diversity.

Submitted on: July 15