Nicaragua, January 2009

The Nicaragua Community Partnership was fortunate to receive support from Alumni Giving for a winter field experience trip which focused on food security in the rural province of Madriz.  MPH students performed formative research into how skyrocketing food prices has affected four areas: health, school feeding programs, agriculture and non-govermental/international organizations.  The health category looked into the health status of pregnant women and children under 2 years of age, working with the local Ministry of Health to collect data.  Research into school feeding programs was highlighted by a visit to the program's headquarters at the Ministry of Education in the Nicaraguan capital of Managua, where they were hosted by the national coordinator for the program.  The agriculture investigators conducted semi-structured interviews with the Ministry of Agriculture and various non-governmental organizations. 

The 10 MPH students participating in this field experience were Dana Burshell, Daniel Miller, Dawn Flandermeyer, Heather Awsumb, Ifelayo Ojo, Sarah Lewis, Stacey Schultz, Tara Hardiman, Emily Burr, and Laura Goodman.  These students were provided the opportunity to look into the significant challenges of food insecurity, while obtaining a better understanding of the rich culture of Nicaragua.