A spring break of serving, learning rather than sun and fun

Christopher Ndubuizu, graduate student in public health, interviewed adolescents and adults about alcohol in Grenada during his spring break. (Photo by Farnaz Malik)

In tropical Grenada, where bananas and mangoes grow and the sea meets gorgeous sands, all is not paradise.

Bianca Lawrence, a second-year School of Public Health master’s student, said that upon arriving, her group learned of a murder-suicide stemming from domestic violence. It had just happened near a local market.

“Grenadians recognize that it is a large issue and would like to have services available to help those who experience domestic violence,” she said. During spring break, Lawrence worked on a needs assessment with Cedars Home, the lone shelter for battered women on the island.

She was among hundreds of University of Michigan students who traded the traditional sun-fun spring break experience for service projects organized by schools and units. Students say they get valuable instruction in their field by learning outside the classroom.

Lawrence and other SPH volunteers interviewed members of the Grenada Ministry of Social Development, the shelter’s board of directors, staff and residents.

“Being able to go to Cedars Home, talk with the women and see them and their children is something that I will never forget,” she said. “To see women who have experienced domestic violence talk about wanting to get better and be independent and empowered was very moving.”

Farnaz Malik was also part of the SPH group. She and Ian Lang, another SPH master’s degree student, worked in the office of the Grenada Planned Parenthood Association. They also conducted informal interviews in the local market in St. Georges. The aim was to determine attitudes and perceptions toward reproductive and sexual health. The goal is to address the rising issue of unsafe terminations of pregnancies in Grenada and to inform future policy.

Ian Lang and Farnaz Malik, graduate students in public health, worked in the office of the Grenada Planned Parenthood Association during spring break. (Photo by Dana Thomas)

“My conversations with the locals definitely left a lasting memory. I realized that the best way to get to know a new country is by conversing with its people. I felt humbled by their stories and inspired by their positive and friendly attitudes,” Malik says.