About Us...

Daniel Basco
Daniel is a junior at Northwestern University majoring in Social Policy with minors in Economics and Global Health. He is interested in health policy, bioethics, and emerging health technology.  After graduating from Northwestern, he plans on pursuing a graduate degree in health policy and working on domestic health policy initiatives. This is his first trip to Africa and he’s really excited to immerse himself in a new environment and culture. He was initially drawn to the Public Health in Uganda program because of the individual research projects the group is conducting.  He just finished a six-month internship researching specialized health policies at the state level and is now excited to focus on broader health concerns at the national level.  Hopefully, he will be working with Makerere University faculty and students to better understand the construction and influences of Ugandan bioethics.
Mark Birhanu
Mark is a sophomore at Northwestern University. As of now he is double majoring in Social Policy and African Studies, but he also wants to pick up a minor in History or Global Health. He is fascinated by African history and politics, but has a strong and growing interest in human rights. This will be his second trip to the continent; however he has never been to Uganda, so he does not know what to expect. There are two main reasons why he decided to go on this program: the first is that it provides the chance to learn in an African university, and the other is that it provides hands on experiences with public health issues. Mark wants to intern or do research on health issues for urban refugees in Kampala, but he knows anything can happen once he’s there. He anticipates a great trip.
Morgan Heller
Morgan is a junior at Northwestern University, majoring in anthropology with a minor in global health. She fell in love with Africa back in 7th grade when she traveled to Kenya with her social studies teacher, a Maasai warrior, after which she knew she wanted to go back in the future.  Her interests include African aid and development, medical anthropology, and global health policy.  She hopes to continue her studies with a Masters degree in Public Health and to pursue a career in international health policy, looking specifically at issues from an anthropological perspective.  While in Uganda, she is excited to work with an organization that provides counseling and support to families affected by HIV/AIDS. She hopes to use photographs to conduct research over the spring and summer on how individuals experience HIV/AIDS within their families.  She is looking forward to this opportunity to study and travel in Uganda!
Lily Ryzhkova
Lily Ryzhkova is a senior at Northwestern University, double majoring in English and International Studies with a Global Health minor.  Her interests are broad and her curiosity insatiable, ranging from medicine to international diplomacy to ghost stories.  For this reason she has a hard time deciding what to do after graduation. Lily loves to travel, but this will be her first time in Africa. While in Uganda, she plans on narrowing her interests for the time being to study traditional medicine and how it is integrated into the healthcare system, particularly primary care.  This interest in alternative medicine has been cultivated since childhood during which her family always favored the use of natural and herbal remedies over that of pharmaceuticals.  Lily is also very excited for the dance and drama component of the program. While she’s never had any formal training, she’s always harbored a secret desire to be part of a performance.  Lily’s non-academic interests include rowboats, hiking and peach cobbler.
Jessica Martinson
Jessica is a junior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Global Health Studies at Northwestern University.  While in Uganda, she hopes to combine her academic interests by researching pathways to treatment for mental illness and by working with a mental health-related NGO.   After graduation, she plans on attending graduate school to study public or global health and on joining the Peace Corps.  Overall, she is truly looking forward to experiencing a different culture in Uganda and observing and learning about public health systems abroad firsthand.  She is very excited and thankful to have this opportunity to live and learn in Uganda this spring and summer.
Tamon Oshimo
Tamon is junior at Northwestern, studying Anthropology and Global Health.  After graduation, he will most likely pursue a PhD in Anthropology and a Masters in Public Health, with a plan to eventually work in public health.  He is interested in how performance can be used to communicate health ideas and how this can be utilized as public health tool, as well as how performance can act as a means by which health experiences can be negotiated.  Consequently, his project in Uganda will focus on Hip hop performance, and will culminate in the production and distribution of a Hip hop album featuring local Hip hop artists, that will be both a public health tool to communicate ideas of HIV/AIDS, as well as a work of collective artistic expression.  Some of his personal interests include music, riding bicycles, blowing glass, and brewing really good beer.  He is very excited to go to Uganda to gain both perspective and an invaluable experience that he will be able to apply to the rest of his life.
Mary Poliwka
Mary is a junior at Northwestern University studying political science, international studies (with concentrations on Africa and National Security) as well as global health. Her main interest lies within international development, and for this reason she was in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil this past fall. In addition to this program in Africa, she plans on interning in India this summer. Ever since she was a little kid, she has wanted to travel to Africa- hence she is very excited to finally embark! While she is there, she hopes to learn not only the culture of Uganda, but also to immerse herself with the people themselves. She intends on volunteering at a baby orphanage to make that a reality. She cannot wait to not only study, but to experience life on this fascinating and unfamiliar continent.
Jay Shiao
Jay is currently a junior at Northwestern University studying Biomedical Engineering and Global Health Studies. He became very interested in this program due to the research opportunity offered. Having a very scientific research background, public health research allowed him to pursue something special and stimulating in a completely different field of interest. He has traveled extensively between East Asia and the States, but has never stopped in Africa before, and thus is very thrilled that this opportunity has come before him. He hopes to utilize what he has learned on this trip to assist his continuous yearn to become the best physician he can be. Due to his impeccable lack of ability to make decisions, he is currently looking at multiple possibilities after graduation, including Peace Corps, graduate studies, or furthering his studies in Public Health. Overall, he looks to broaden and understand the NGO educational and socioeconomic impact on HIV/AIDS in Africa, but knows nothing is ever set in stone. Jay is very thankful to Northwestern, Makerere, the IPD office, and everyone involved in making this experience a possibility.
Rachel Taylor
Rachel is a junior in the school of music majoring in violin performance with a minor in global health. She became interested in global health after reading the amazing course catalogue last fall, and she knew right then that she had to get involved in some way. Because she is a performance major, study abroad in Uganda seemed perfect for her. She is deeply fascinated and enthralled by African music and dance. She’s never been to Africa, so she is very excited and nervous. In Kampala, she hopes to work with the music school. Because HIV/AIDS is still an important issue, she would like to explore how the performing arts are used to create awareness of it all over the country. She can’t wait!