From Madison to Chicago: Promoting Wellness on a Larger Scale

My name is Ellie Port and I recently graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) with a major in Neurobiology and a minor in Global Health. I am originally from St. Paul, Minnesota. At UW, I volunteered in the community at Meriter Hospital, teaching science to kids at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, and at the Children's Museum. I worked as a research assistant in the Educational Neuroscience Lab exploring the brain structures involved in dyscalculia and other math learning disabilities. I was also a peer advisor in the BioCommons in a library on campus, providing underclassmen with tools to help pursue their education in an integrated way. This past year, I got involved with Slow Food UW as a Teen Cooking Night intern. I lead teens from the Boys and Girls Club in preparing fun and healthy dinners to educate them about nutrition. This was an incredible experience and is one of the reasons I became interested in being a part of the National Health Corps. My hobbies are rock climbing, playing tennis, and cooking! I am always up for new adventures.

I am very excited to be a part of NHC Chicago as a Health Promoter at Heartland Health Centers- Uplift/Wilson. In my time at the Boys and Girls Club in Madison, I saw a lot of change in the teens I worked with. I am looking forward to using what I learned there to promote wellness on a larger scale in Chicago, with teens and adults. I am excited to be in a different and challenging environment and to meet a lot of new people. In my year of service with NHC Chicago, I am hoping to learn skills that will help me in my future as a healthcare professional, to explore the challenges facing the youth of Chicago, and to gain experience in a healthcare setting.

This blog post was written by NHC Chicago 2016-17 member Ellie Port.

Ellie serves Health Promoter at Heartland Health Centers - Uplift/Wilson.