Over the past few years my interests have changed greatly. When I was a high schooler until my freshman year in college, my long term goal was to become a researcher and work with GMOs. My interest in GMOs occurred during 9th grade when my I learned that friend would have allergic reactions when she ate apples. I wanted to created a genetically modified apple that would still be nutrient dense but would not cause my friend's throat to itch. Then in my freshman year in college I learned about biotechnology and the development of orange rice. Seeing how food could be made to help needy populations inspired me to want to create another modified food product that could serve a similar purpose.
However, my goals changed the summer before my sophomore year in college. I had signed up as a volunteer at my local food pantry because I wanted to gain some experience in food management. Although I did help with the storing and packing of a variety of foodstuffs ranging from cans, frozen meats, and fresh fruits and vegetables, I spent most of my time in the "distribution" section because my Spanish skills allowed me to best communicate with the clients.
During my first year there, I witnessed the disparity in my own town that I had not noticed before. Additionally, I saw that many of the clients would choose unhealthy options that were offered at the distribution shelf such as cookies and cakes instead of the other options that were available such as boxed rice or low sodium broth. Even with the fresh fruits and vegetables that arrived from local farms, some clients would refuse produce such as Swiss chard because they did not know how to prepare/use it in their recipes.
From my experiences at the food pantry and with NJ SNAP-Ed, my passion shifted from research to community outreach and promotion. My long term goal is to become a nutrition educator. I want to be able to reach out to at risk populations and help them make feasible changes in their diet in order to prevent chronic diseases. Ideally I would like to work in a range of different locations such as schools, wellness programs in hospitals, and hosting cooking demos in food pantries. I also want to obtain my Master's in Public Health after I complete my dietetic internship.