Michigan State University is excited to congratulate Vorice Patterson as the second recipient of the Flint Spartan Master of Public Health Scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to an incoming Master of Public Health student.
Patterson has demonstrated a commitment to implementing the knowledge obtained by completing the Master of Public Health program.
Patterson graduated from University of Michigan – Flint with a degree in Health Sciences and has been working toward her goal of becoming an obstetrician and gynecologist. She hopes to continue her journey at Michigan State University by applying for the dual MPH/DO program.
Originally from Ypsilanti, Michigan, Patterson has lived and worked in Flint for the past 5 years. She has volunteered for many Flint organizations including Carriage Town Ministries, YWCA of Greater Flint, and Boys and Girls Club. She recently finished a community garden project with Flint Urban Health and Safety Corps with the intent of lowering crime rates through environmental design. “I love the Flint community. I see a lot of creativity in the city, I see changemakers, and people that band together to make changes - and you can see the impact of your work in the community as well,” Patterson said. “I think community-driven efforts are very important because you can never do anything alone. People that have different disciplines come together to be able to create plans and contribute different perspectives in order to advance the community.”
Witnessing community members’ lack of access to health resources helped inspire Patterson to pursue her Master of Public Health degree. During her time as a certified nurse assistant at McLaren Hospital, she experienced what it’s like interacting with patients from all backgrounds - and realized one size does not fit all when it comes to healthcare. “The discontent in what I was seeing in the medical field made me want to make changes. I believe everyone should have access to quality care,” she said.
“There are certain assumptions when it comes to healthcare and learning more about public health helped me see that things like social determinants contribute to our wellbeing.”
She is looking forward to making connections with her professors and applying public health concepts in the real world during her time in the MPH program. “Being able to come away with concrete ideas that I can implement to improve the healthcare within the communities here is important to me.”
Flint Spartan Master of Public Health Scholarship
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 the generous support from the Michigan State University Division of Public Health, the scholarship covers tuition and fees for our online, 43-credit MPH program. During the COVID-19 pandemic, MSU’s public health experts have played a critical role in working with the Flint community to relay credible information to the public. The Division of Public Health’s aim is to invest in the community and future generations of local master’s degree-prepared public health professionals.
October 3, 2022
