Fellows & Projects 2023-2024
Congratulations to the 2023 – 2024 Cohort of the Schweitzer Fellowship Program!
Thank you for your dedication to serving your community.
“I don’t know what your destiny will be, but I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve.”
Albert Schweitzer
Riya Albert
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Riya Albert is addressing the obstacles survivors of interpersonal violence encounter in accessing community resources by creating an accessible online database. This database is designed with a user-friendly interface and provides information about community organizations, how to contact them, and what is needed to apply for services. The goal of the database is to empower survivors to self-identify unmet needs and connect with community resources that can offer support. Beyond enhancing accessibility, the database serves as a dynamic resource, seamlessly integrated with Genesis Women’s Shelter, ensuring it stays current with the latest information and new services available in the community.
Luke Coffman
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Parminder Deo
Burnett School of Medicine at Texas Christian University
Parminder Deo is addressing cardiovascular disease in the South Asian Community across Dallas-Fort Worth. By leveraging community collaboration, culturally competent care, and empathetic communications, Deo aims to develop effective prevention strategies, raise awareness, and reduce the devastating effects of heart disease among South Asians. With a strong commitment to health equity, Deo's initiative strives to promote cardiovascular health, enhance access to quality care, and create lasting positive change in the lives of patients, families, and the community as a whole.
Community Site:
Jennifer Foster
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Kelly Franklin
Texas Christian University
Kelly Franklin is a doctoral student in English Rhetoric and Composition at TCU. A UCLA graduate with a degree in American Literature, Kelly later earned a master’s degree in English Literature from Boise State University. Her current work is centered around Black Feminism and Black Girlhood Studies. Her STILE Project, Storytelling thru Inquiry and Literacy Expression, is being launched at Southwest High School in Fort Worth.
Thuy-Tien Ho
Texas Woman's University
Attending the TWU School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology, Thuy-Tien Ho is developting and implementing a mindfulness health promotion and chronic disease prevention program tailored to the needs of women living in West Dallas. The program specifically serves to educate women about healthy eating, increased physical activities, and awareness of health and mental well-being while considering the individual's socioeconomic status and social determinants of health. Ultimately, the aim of the program is to empower participants to build confidence and perseverance in setting and attaining healthy living goals that can lead to sustainable behavior change.
Community Site:
Tanvi Ingle
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Lea Lester
Texas Christian University
Victoria Peters
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Victoria Peters is addressing food insecurity and other drivers of poverty for the population of Dallas, Texas. She has partnered with Harmony CDC, a nonprofit organization located in South Dallas that strives to strengthen families and revitalize neighborhoods through community-driven and solution-oriented approaches. The project focuses on attending and partnering with local events such as Dallas ISD Fam Jams and back-to-school events as well as apartment complexes to offer free, nutritious food boxes to individuals and families in need. During this process, the individual or family also becomes informed about the other services Harmony CDC offers such as free counseling services for individuals, families, and youth. Harmony CDC also provides a food pantry available every 30 to 90 days depending on the individual's zip code and rent assistance dependent upon current funding, both of which Victoria has assisted with and hopes to connect families with as needed during her current project. Ultimately, this project aims to address the immediate barrier to stability of food insecurity for many individuals and families in Dallas while fostering connections between the residents of Dallas and Harmony CDC.
Bilal Rehman
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Bilal Rehman is developing a health screening and education program at Ma'ruf Dallas, a local non-profit that assists refugees, unhoused community members, and other vulnerable populations through their social assistance programs, job trainings, rental and food assistance, and more.
Through on-site health screenings and one-on-one health counseling, Bilal's program aims to identify clients whose health has gone neglected amidst migration and other stressors. Importantly, this program also seeks to connect these clients to local primary care providers.
Yukta Sunkara
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Thomas Troia
Burnett School of Medicine at Texas Christian University
Third-year medical student Thomas Troia is addressing the need for increased prostate cancer screening among the medically underserved male population in Tarrant County. In addition to providing screening services, the program will incorporate health awareness by providing information on cancer risk factors, healthy living and wellness, and preventative education. Ultimately, this program seeks to reduce the number of individuals diagnosed with late-stage prostate cancer by offering increased and accessible screening.
Community Site:
Chandra Tummala
Southern Methodist University
Megan Ungerman
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Ungerman is addressing social and emotional health among transgender and non-binary youth in North Texas by developing a sustained curriculum for the Resource Center's Gender Identity Night. The curriculum explores healthy relationship building between one's self, family, peers, partners, and the greater community. Ultimately, the program strives to grow youth's support system, increase self-esteem and confidence, and develop positive skills that participants can take into their everyday lives.
Community Site: