Meet the 2024 Flint Spartan Scholars
September 23, 2024
Sydnie Wiederman (left) is a public health nurse specializing in family planning and sexual health for the Genesee County Health Department. Working as an ICU nurse during the COVID-19 pandemic made Wiederman realize the necessity of public health and inspired her to pursue a career in the field.
“I was able to see the health disparities that were present in the community and how the traditional health care model was not a one size fits all solution, and I wanted to make meaningful change in the community with what I have seen and experienced.”
As a Flint native, continuing to work in the community has been a driving force for her passion for public health. Her position as a public health nurse allows her to work with residents directly in the community or in a clinic setting, providing free sexual health testing, family planning services, and resources for the LGBTQIA+ community. “I feel that I am promoting and protecting the community’s health, and doing so through education, policy development, patient care, and advocating for the community and their wellbeing,” she said.
Wiederman looks forward to gaining insight from public health experts and engaging in research projects that have the potential to positively impact the greater Flint community. “I’m also looking forward to networking with classmates and being able to connect with others who share a passion for improving public health,” she said. “And of course I’m looking forward to finally calling myself a Spartan!”
“I feel so incredibly honored to have been selected and I am incredibly grateful to represent and impact the Flint community with the Flint Spartan Scholarship.”
April LaGrone (center) is a Flint native, first generation graduate student, and self-described lifelong learner. “My education has always been a top priority for me, and I am so excited for the opportunity to dive deeper into public health,” she said. Experiencing inequities that exist in the healthcare system as a child and witnessing the Flint water crisis sparked her passion for public health.
“It’s not lost on me that there’s an immense need for an increase in health equity and accessible care. Like Flint, many communities of color unfortunately suffer the consequences when sufficient public health measures are put on the back burner,” she said.
LaGrone’s interests center around the intervention and utilization of health technology within chronic disease patients of color and hopes to have a career in public health research.
“MSU has such a broad, interconnected network that stretches worldwide, and I feel so blessed to be a part of this cohort of future public health professionals that are also making strides for lasting change.”
Candace Whitfield (right) always knew she wanted to people in socioeconomic and medically underserved communities. “I’m a Black female born and raised in Saginaw and I knew I wanted to do meaningful work that would change the landscape and health outcomes for people living in communities that look like mine,” she said.
Whitfield initially believed that the only way to achieve her goals was to become a physician. But after working in Flint and attending a presentation on social determinants of health given by Associate Professor Kent Key, Whitfield sparked an interest in public health. She aspires to reconstruct health systems and reduce the likelihood of a person’s zip code being a critical factor in their health outcomes.
After working multiple jobs to pursue her education in the past, Whitfield is grateful for financial support that will allow for a more balanced academic experience.
“Knowing that the university I chose to grow professionally and academically sees value in me gives me confidence and motivation to continue striving to be a true change-maker in public health.”
The Flint Spartan Master of Public Health Scholarship was created to offer financial support to deserving students from the greater Flint community to pursue a graduate-level degree in public health. Thanks to generous support from the Michigan State University Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health, the scholarship covers tuition and fees for our online, 43-credit MPH program.
By Claudia Price