UM-Dearborn student wins national scholarship from American Association for Health Education

UM-Dearborn student Kaylyn Stanton has always had a passion for women’s health and a desire to help those with fewer resources achieve a healthy lifestyle.

So, it’s fitting that Stanton is the 2011 recipient of the Bill Kane undergraduate scholarship, a national $1,000 award from the American Association for Health Education that is granted annually to an undergraduate health education major at an accredited college/university in the United States or a U.S. territory.

Stanton, who is a senior majoring in health policy studies with a focus on health education and a minor in Hispanic studies, received the award during a special ceremony in San Diego.

As part of the application process, Stanton wrote an essay detailing what she hoped to accomplish as a health educator in training and in the future.

“I focused on my personal and familial experience with women's health along with my desire for women to learn how to become healthy--both mentally and physically,” Stanton said of her essay. “I especially would like to work with young adult women in body acceptance, nutrition and stress management education.”

Stanton also said the presence of health disparities and lack of health resources within populations will shape her future career when she graduates after the Winter 2012 semester.

“I hope to work as a future health educator with individuals in communities lacking necessary health resources such as preventive care or adequate education about their illness,” she said. “After having witnessed family struggles that come along with living without essential resources, I hope to be an understanding voice for those who desperately need health education and better health care.”