Student Profile: Carrie Gaudard
When Carrie Gaudard came to Alma College, she had one goal in mind: to get out of her hometown and see the world!
When the Mt. Pleasant senior received a Posey Global Fellowship, not only was she able to spend a month volunteering in Africa, she also got to apply her interests in integrative physiology and health science and public health in a new and unfamiliar setting.
“Being in Ghana made me more passionate about health care in the United States,” she says. “I want to find policies that work for everybody and ensure we don’t fall subject to population crowding, water diseases, or other major health issues.”
Whether she was spending time with children in an orphanage or helping patients in the HIV/AIDS ward, Gaudard was constantly reaping the rewards of serving others while working in Ghana.
“I learned more in those few months than in 19 years,” she says. “Really, it’s not about what material things you have. Some of the happiest people I met in Ghana were born with nothing. What is important in life is who you are and what you’re doing to help others.”
On campus, Gaudard is a member of United Health Professionals of Alma College and a biology tutor. She also works for the academic and career planning office.
After Alma, she plans to become either an occupational or physical therapist.
