Ambassador Spotlight: Emily Bartlett, MPH Program

Emily Bartlett, MPH Student

UNE Online Ambassadors have been recognized by the College of Graduate and Professional Studies for being exemplary students and enthusiastic members of the UNE Online community. UNE Online Ambassadors serve as liaisons between our extended community and UNE Online, setting a precedent and standard for what it means to be a UNE Online student and community member.Can you tell me a little about your background, and why you chose to earn your MPH at UNE Online? I’m from Maine, so I’ve known about UNE for a long time now. I got my undergraduate degree at The University of King’s College in Nova Scotia, majoring in International Development with a minor in Health. After graduation I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but I knew that I wanted to continue my education in the health field. During my undergrad I took a course in epidemiology, which ended up being my favorite class. I loved the material potential, so I looked… Read More >

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Reflections of an Online Student: My First Grad Course

Crystal Dee, MSAN Applied Nutrition Student

For a while now I have known that {for me} going back to school was absolutely necessary. It took some time to get to the point where I was comfortable pulling the trigger and picking a program. It also took a lot of soul searching. I looked at topics everywhere from Psychology/Counseling to an MBA. Nothing really seemed to fit. That is until my love for health and nutrition seeped into my work life. From scratch, I started our company’s first step challenge. We did a trial run in our office and it really took off. There were “walking meetings” and “walking lunch breaks” taking place. All so their team could achieve the most steps and so that they had an excuse to get up from their desks! After the step challenge was over, I received so many wonderful emails telling me how it positively affected their lives. One woman even lost 20 pounds. My heart was full and I was… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Greg Murphy, MSEd – Education Program

Greg Murphy, MSEd Student

Can you tell me a little about your background? Sure thing. I grew up in Andover, Massachusetts. As a kid my interests revolved around art, tinkering with electronics and making music. Music eventually became a serious pursuit. In my 20’s I moved to Boston to play in bands, something I continued while studying art at universities in Brooklyn, and Portland, Oregon. Oregon is where I eventually earned my Bachelors in art history and design. As part of the program, I interned as an art teacher in various schools, getting experience in the field of education that led to a move abroad. I spent three years teaching English in Korea and Eastern Europe. I’m at a public school in Taiwan now. Along the way, I made a lot of artwork with a focus on interactive sculpture that I adapt for the classroom. How did you discover UNE Online? While in Korea I came across a discussion of UNE’s Master’s program in… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Stephanie N. Brown, Ed.D. Program

Stephanie Brown

Can you tell me a little bit about your background? My name is Stephanie Brown and I am an adjunct English as a Second Language (ESL) professor. I honestly love what I do. There is nothing like teaching, especially teaching English learners. I learn so much from my students, probably more than they learn from me. Every day my students open my eyes to the world – not just in terms of content, but with their lived experiences. I am honored to know, work, and support these amazing people. They work so hard and give so much. Their passion and dedication are what keeps me alive: as a human and as a teacher. Outside of teaching, I have also taken on different leadership roles within the field of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). I am the President-Elect of NNETESOL and the Reviews Editor for MATSOL. I am also an active member of my three unions (NEA, MTA,… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Vandna Bhambri, Health Informatics Program

Vadna Bhambri, MSIN Student

Vandna Bhambri is a Master of Science in Health Informatics (MSIN) student from Boston, Massachusetts. With a desire to help people within the healthcare field and a passion for technology, health informatics was a natural career choice. “I knew that there was a demand for Health Informatics and a limitless world of possibilities for what I could do with an advanced degree.” After growing up in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, Vandna earned a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from the University of Illinois-Chicago. She’s currently working in a role that ties into the health informatics field. Her job is focused on training hospital staff, super users and end users on how to use Epic software at a top medical facility in Massachusetts. In this role, Vandna trains the staff to “get acclimated to the interface” and helps them “navigate around the system so that they can perform their jobs efficiently.” In addition to working by day and studying by… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Carley Anderson, MPH – Public Health Program

Carley Anderson MPH Student

I came to the field of public health nearly by happenstance. I had just finished my undergraduate degree in music which, while fulfilling, didn’t equip me with tangible ways to make a meaningful, practical difference in my community. After graduation, I began working as an administrator in a medical clinic at a military installation, and a year later was assigned to work in the public health program despite no previous experience. I quickly saw public health was a field with unending opportunities – constant opportunities to learn, to benefit the community, and to make a lasting difference in the lives of others. I began networking with other public health staff in similar roles, and soon developed a strong relationship with a mentor that remains to this day. With her guidance, I embarked on a quest to learn as much as I could about U.S. Air Force public health program management, but I knew it was not enough. I needed more… Read More >

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Alumni Spotlight: Dr. Vicki Rusbult, Ed.D. – Education Program

Dr. Vicki Rusbult, Ed.D.

UNE Online Alumna Dr. Vicki Rusbult fulfilled a lifelong dream last May and graduated from the College of Graduate and Professional Studies with her Ed.D. And it turns out that her dissertation wasn’t only interesting to her faculty advisor… The ‘National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) Rural Transportation National Newsletter’ recently published a link to her full dissertation in their national newsletter. We’re so thrilled for Dr. Rusbult and her impressive national exposure! We spoke with Dr. Rusbult to talk about her professional career, and how her Ed.D. from UNE Online is opening doors and helping further her work. Here’s a little more about how she is putting her Ed.D. to good use: What was your experience like, getting your Ed.D. online? Not being in a classroom was initially a concern of mine, but the thing is, with technology now you’re able to have valuable interactions. You still have group work, but instead of in-person, you communicate on the telephone… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Jackson Long – Applied Nutrition Program

Jackson Long, Student in the Master of Science in Applied Nutrition program

Jackson Long, a Master of Science in Applied Nutrition student from Boulder, Colorado, is passionate about plant-based eating and living a healthy lifestyle. Jackson’s interest in nutrition was piqued during his time as a competitive cyclist, as he sought out the optimal diet for his athletic performance. His initial interest in nutrition gradually grew into a passion for helping others on their own health journeys, which ultimately led him to UNE. From Competitive Cycling to Nutrition Growing up in Sun Valley, Idaho, Jackson participated in and loved outdoor sports from a young age. He spent much of his free time skiing and then later got into cycling. This passion for physical fitness led Jackson to study integrated physiology at the University of Colorado in Boulder. While finishing up his undergraduate degree, Jackson became curious about how his diet affected his overall health. With a particular interest in the vegan diet, he enrolled in the Plant-based Nutrition Certificate program offered by… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Tyler Blankenship – Applied Nutrition Program

Tyler Blankenship, Master of Science in Applied Nutrition Student

Tyler Blankenship, Dietetic Technician, Registered (DTR), from Orlando, Florida, is a student in the Master of Science in Applied Nutrition program. Tyler’s background includes working as a chef at Walt Disney World, as a restaurant nutritionist at Sea World and also in nutrition management at a long term care facility. From Chef to Dietary Management Prior to beginning his master’s degree with UNE, Tyler flexed his culinary chops working as both a sous chef and nutritionist at Walt Disney World in Orlando. Armed with degrees in culinary arts and culinary nutrition from Johnson & Wales University, Tyler cooked at Four Star, Five Diamond restaurants at Disney. With a developing interest in nutrition, he moved on to a nutritionist position for the restaurants at Sea World. In this role, he provided nutritional and allergy analysis for each recipe offered on the property, as well as developed training materials on how staff could respond to and address concerns about allergies. After that,… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Laura Rosales – Applied Nutrition Program

Laura Rosales, RN - Master's in Applied Nutrition Student

Laura Rosales, R.D. is a Master of Science in Applied Nutrition (MSAN) student from El Paso, Texas. She’s a busy working mother who enjoys the academic challenge of pursuing her master’s degree while managing her daily schedule. Prior to beginning her degree with UNE, Laura gained extensive experience in many areas related to the field of nutrition. Pursuing a master’s degree in nutrition had been a goal of Laura’s for a long time and she is thrilled to be taking this next step online with the University of New England. A diverse career Currently Laura works as a nutrition consultant educating families, caregivers and individuals with special needs on dietary requirements, conducting dietary assessments and developing eating plans. Laura believes her diverse background puts her in the unique position to work as a consultant. “Working with different populations with varying nutritional needs showed me where the needs in the market were.” Before branching out as a consultant, Laura opened a… Read More >

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Student Spotlight: Thomas Troelstrup, MPH Program

Thomas Troelstrup, MPH

“Thanks to this terrific program, I was just offered my dream job on Tuesday as a Foodborne Disease Outbreak Epidemiologist for the Tennessee Department of Health in Nashville! I never thought I would land it by the age of 28!” MPH student Thomas Troelstrup reached out to us with some exciting news about his career this week, so we wanted to connect with him to talk about his new opportunity and his experience with UNE! Like so many MPH students, Thomas came to study Public Health in a somewhat roundabout way. After high school, he attended community college, playing college baseball and majoring in History. Shortly thereafter, he was offered the opportunity to transfer to UNC Greensboro, to play ball, but History was not available to him as a major due to an issue with transfer credits. He was offered the choice between Public Health, Economics, and Communications as the best potential fits for the amount and type of credits… Read More >

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