Advanced practice providers, as the name implies, make up a category of clinical providers with advanced degrees and training, giving them license to do many of the tasks physicians do, such as diagnosing and prescribing. Common examples of APPs include physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and nurse anesthetists. By some estimates APPs represent 40% of the diagnosing and prescribing providers in U.S. physician practices. At UConn Health, it’s about 23%.

UConn Health employs 230 advanced practice providers, in addition to a few dozen per diem staff. Many have been in UConn Health’s hospital units and outpatient practices for years, but in some areas it’s a new concept as demand for clinical services continues to grow.

One such area is interventional radiology, where, recognizing the need for expertise in a very specialized and competitive field, UConn Health started to add advanced practice providers to the roster.

Amy Blackmer is a physician assistant who joined the practice last year and has immediately made a difference.

“My background is in emergency medicine, and I’ve always enjoyed the procedural side of it, which is what initially piqued my interest in IR,” Blackmer says. “There’s always something new to learn — a different technique, a new procedure, upcoming treatments, etc. It keeps you on your toes and encourages you to be the best clinician possible.”

Dr. Michael Baldwin, former physician assistant himself, is interim chair of UConn Health’s Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Therapeutics.

“Our hospital has identified interventional radiology as an important part in terms of getting patients through,” Baldwin says. “Our hospital is much busier, with many more complex patients. Many cases are appropriate for APPs, and when they can handle them, it frees up our interventionalists.”

UConn Health’s interventionalists, Dr. Charan Singh, Dr. Abner Gershon, and Dr. Eric Cohen, are fellowship trained in interventional radiology.

“The radiology department here continues to grow and become busier every day,” Blackmer says. “Having an APP on the team helps to decompress the department and ensure thorough patient care.”

“Amy has really helped the department,” Baldwin says. “She came in and knocked it out of the park. She represents everything APPs put forward: she’s wonderful with patients, is a great person on the ground, does well with procedures, and she knows what she’s good at and what she needs to learn more about.”

In other areas, a longtime presence

APPs have been a fixture in many areas at UConn Health for years. Laura Granton has been a nurse practitioner for in the UConn John Dempsey Hospital Intensive Care Unit for nearly eight years.

“We have a spectrum of patient cases, from being very difficult due to extensive disease process to very positive patient cases with successful graduation out of the ICU,” Granton says. “I find great reward in helping families through those challenging times by being the point person they go to for questions and updates about their loved one’s care.”

Granton arrived at UConn Health as a registered nurse in 2013.

“Working on the medical/surgical floors, I would see our APP ICU group come to rapid responses/codes and was so impressed with the knowledge and professionalism the APPs had,” she recalls. “I was always very curious about disease processes and wanted to know the ‘why’ behind the things the medical teams ordered. I very quickly decided I would want to look into UConn’s acute care nurse practitioner program.”

UConn’s Elisabeth DeLuca School of Nursing has several master’s programs, such as tracks for family practice, primary care, psychiatry, and, as Granton did, acute care, which the nursing school introduced in 1993.

“It made me comfortable in the ICU setting and I quickly developed a great understanding of the demands ICU nurses have on a day-to-day basis,” Granton says.

Rosemary Swanke is a critical care nurse practitioner and program director for advanced practice staff, and also was part of the first group to graduate from the acute care nurse practitioner program three decades ago.

“Over the years, many of our current APPs started here as nurses or worked in other areas and went on to get their degrees as APPs,” Swanke says. “We have APRNs, CRNAs and PAs who worked at UConn before advancing their professional careers. All amazing providers!”

The week of Sept. 20 is National Advanced Practice Provider Week.

Expanded access to care

In interventional radiology, Baldwin says Blackmer has worked out so well that another PA is joining IR in the coming months.

“Most days we’ll have two PAs and at least one interventional radiologist on, and that will help with the workflow, getting patients in and through the hospital,” Baldwin says. “If you don’t have people doing procedures, people sit and wait in their beds.”

Blackmer says APPs allow for expanded medical access in the community, and in that way are essential parts of any healthcare team.

Granton agrees.

“The support for the APPs comes from the mutual respect that all of our healthcare colleagues have for one another,” Granton says. “No matter what role we hold, we are all key players in a patient’s care. Having open communication and understanding of one another is imperative to ensure the best experience for our patients.”

“All of the APPs at UConn Health bring a unique set of skills and experience based on different educational paths; but are all working together to provide the best care for our patients,” Swanke says. “They are the glue that holds us together! Always striving to be the best!”

“I think the best analogy for an APRN is a provider with the pathophysiologic knowledge of disease process with the added benefit of bedside skills,” Granton says. “We have the unique experience of submersing ourselves in patient care before and during our education toward our APRN. This strengthens our knowledge base and ability to care for our patients.”

Blackmer says the reward of being a PA is as basic as helping others.

“Whether it’s performing a joint injection and seeing the patient’s face when they have pain relief, or taking the extra minute to explain what I’m seeing or doing during a study to ensure we’re all on the same page,” Blackmer says. “Chatting during a case to keep people distracted and getting to know the patient a little more is a bonus.”

The students in the Military Interest Group participated in the 2026 Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs Stand Down event—a daylong event that connects Connecticut veterans with essential services and programs offered by federal, state, and local agencies, organizations, and nonprofits. Over 25 students and faculty were stationed at five locations: Bridgeport, Bristol, Danbury, Norwich, and Stamford.

This is the third year that the School of Dental Medicine has participated in the event. The students, alongside faculty, perform oral health screenings, give out educational resources, and provide toothbrushes, toothpaste, and floss.

“Personally, I can say that having done this event for three years in a row, it has been one of my best volunteer experiences. It really is a meaningful experience to see the people that sacrificed so much get so many necessary types of assistance in one place,” said Marley Esch, a third-year dental student.

Second-year student Jack Donlon noted that each location had about 50 veterans stop by for either screenings or to receive dental resources and oral health information. The dental school’s booth was “definitely one of the busiest booths.”

“It seemed the veterans were happy to gather in one place and share stories and memories. They were all very friendly, polite, and in high spirits,” Donlon said.

Danbury Mayor Roberto Alves spoke with the students at the Danbury location, and expressed gratitude for the students’ involvement.

“We are so excited that the UConn School of Dental Medicine is here helping dozens of veterans,” said Alves. “We are so grateful for the services they provide. There are veterans who come here and don’t even realize these services exist for them. You can imagine the cost savings, but also what it does for overall health. I look forward to the students coming back next year— excited to be here and serve those who served us.”

For students, the opportunity to attend Stand Down is an invaluable learning experience.

“Participating in the Veterans Stand Down Event gives our UConn dental students a meaningful opportunity to serve directly in the community,” said Dr. Sarita Arteaga, associate dean for students. “Through oral health screenings, resources, and education, students gain direct insight into the unique oral health needs of our veteran population while providing care and support to those who have made significant sacrifices for our country. These experiences also allow UConn dental students to represent the School of Dental Medicine and extend its mission of service and community engagement across the state in these various venues.”

A month-long installation of an interactive CPR kiosk in the Student Union at UConn Storrs is providing students with the opportunity to quickly learn hands-only CPR. The kiosk is provided by the American Heart Association (AHA), with the support of Hartford HealthCare.

There are more than 350,000 cardiac arrests outside of hospitals each year in the United States. On average, it takes emergency services seven to 11 minutes to arrive. In rural areas, the wait can be much longer. While CPR can double or even triple a person’s chance of survival, bystanders only perform CPR 46% of the time.

“The people that survive cardiac arrest have somebody who has done something for them before EMS gets there,” says Michael Zacchera, adjunct allied health sciences faculty and a licensed paramedic.

The installation, which lasts for the month of September, is the result of a collaboration between the AHA, Hartford HealthCare, the Department of Allied Health Sciences (AHS) in the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR), and UConn Rescue, a student organization that provides emergency medical services training and education.

“In my role I really want to bring as many training opportunities to our students [as possible], especially trainings that are on-site,” says Jill Skowrenski, Allied Health Science’s administrative lead for student placement and engagement. “The kiosk seemed like a great opportunity to quickly and centrally teach students the proper way to do CPR.”

The kiosk provides game-like training in which users first learn about the difference between cardiac arrest and a heart attack. Then, they watch a demonstration of how to perform CPR. Finally, users practice themselves to the tune of the Bee Gees’ “Stayin Alive.” They receive feedback from the system on their hand location, compression, compression rate, and recoil. The program is available in both English and Spanish and with subtitles.

“These CPR kiosks are one of the many ways the American Heart Association wants to make sure we close the gap in bystander CPR,” Lynette Coleman, AHA vice president for community impact for Connecticut, says. “The impetus was to bring it to Connecticut so we can help close that gap and the disparity of people understanding and having access to bystander CPR. We are thankful to Hartford HealthCare for supporting this important initiative.”

The kiosk had previously been installed at Quinnipiac University, the University of St. Joseph, UConn Avery Point, and UConn Waterbury. There are plans to bring the kiosk to UConn Hartford and Stamford next year.

So far, the kiosk has provided training to over 10,000 people in Connecticut.

Coleman says university campuses have proven especially receptive to the kiosk and provide access to a diverse group of people.

While UConn Rescue does offer full CPR classes, these can be expensive for students. The kiosk provides a free, easily accessible alternative.

“We saw the opportunity to bring CPR for free to college students who typically can’t afford the classes we offer,” UConn Rescue president Grace Gewirtz ’27 (CLAS) says. “For people who have never taken a [CPR] class, having the CPR kiosk, it breaks the ice a little bit and makes people more comfortable and more confident if there is an emergency.”

The kiosk will be in the Student Union through mid-October. On Wednesday, Sept. 30 from 12 to 3 p.m., there will be an event at the kiosk with representatives from UConn Rescue, AHA, and Allied Health Sciences.

Student clubs are also eligible to participate in a contest hosted by UConn Rescue. The club with the highest rate of participation will receive discounts for members to take CPR classes.

“[The kiosk] is to encourage people to move forward with the full certification when they can,” Coleman says. “Full certification is not just about CPR, but placing the value of CPR in the context of life-saving skills and first aid for adults, infants, and children.”

The kiosk may also serve as an introduction for students to realize they want to pursue a career in emergency medical services.

“The kiosk is the hook,” Zacchera says. “It sparks that interest. This is [students’] time to explore opportunities.”

This work relates to CAHNR’s Strategic Vision area focused on Enhancing Health and Well-Being Locally, Nationally, and Globally.

Follow UConn CAHNR on social media

“They were given a tough assignment,” to explain the significance of their research in four minutes or less, says Chris Heinen, director of postdoctoral affairs and molecular oncologist in the UConn School of Medicine. “And they all knocked it out of the park!”

As a professional science writer who has interviewed hundreds of scientists over a quarter century, your correspondent concurs: never before have so many researchers explained so many advanced medical topics so clearly in so short a period of time. Bladder confetti, craniometaphyseal dysplasia, and primordial oocytes all got their four minutes in the spotlight, along with 22 other areas of medical research.

All the Speak4Science talks were by postdoctoral researchers working at either UConn’s School of Medicine, School of Dental Medicine, or the Jackson Laboratories. Postdocs are Ph.D. scientists just beginning their careers as independent researchers. They work in a more established scientist’s lab, gaining experience and mentorship in preparation for starting their own. Learning how to communicate the importance of their research is another key part of being a scientist.

The three winners of the competition were:

First place winner Anna Truong, of the Mok lab in the School of Medicine, asked “how is Pseudomonas aeruginosa beating these double stranded DNA breaks” that would kill other bacteria? Her talk conveyed how amazing it is that P. aeruginosa, a bacteria that causes dangerous infections, is able to resist fluoroquinolone antibiotics.

Luke Trinity, who works in the Ucar lab at the Jackson Laboratories, said in his second place-winning speech that cytomegalovirus might have a lot to do with why older adults have reduced immune systems.

“But most past research doesn’t identify who is cytomegalovirus positive and negative,” he said. Trinity is working on a retrospective method to figure out who was infected with the virus, potentially opening up past data to new research.

Third place winner John Stout, who works in the Spellman lab in the School of Medicine, succinctly described the relationship between cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control in the brain, and the pathways for inhibitory control he was identifying in the brains of mice.

The event also included poster sessions in which attendees had the opportunity to visit the presenters and ask more detailed questions.

There was a keynote presentation by Bruce Spiegelman, a researcher at Harvard Medical School and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and member of the National Academy of Medicine and of Sciences.

As the event marked its 10th year, Postdoc Research Day continued its tradition of celebrating scientific excellence, collaboration, and communication. It had the largest attendance the organizers could recall and the most Speak4Science participants. And it offered a reminder that behind every breakthrough are researchers dedicated to not only advancing knowledge, but also to sharing it with the broader community.

The Regional Advising Excellence Award recognizes outstanding academic advising and celebrates a professional staff advisor whose work demonstrates a significant commitment to students and excellence in the advising profession.

Melissa will be recognized at the NACADA Region 1 Conference in Montreal, Canada in April 2027.

Melissa serves as Director of Advising at the UConn Hartford campus and has supported undergraduates at the University for more than a decade. She oversees advising operations, supports professional advisors and graduate students, leads orientation advising and registration efforts, and collaborates across programs and with campus leadership to strengthen the student experience. Her work is grounded in a commitment to building meaningful connections with students, removing barriers to academic success, and developing effective and student-centered advising practices.

In 2026, Manning was also named a co-recipient of UConn’s Outstanding Undergraduate Professional Staff Advisor Award, which recognizes the extraordinary contributions by undergraduate academic advisors to students’ academic success and development. In recognizing Melissa, UConn highlighted her empathy and determination, collaborative approach, leadership of Orientation efforts and advising events, and commitment to problem-solving.

Providing holistic, culturally competent advising is a priority of UConn’s 2024-2034 Strategic Plan. “We are honored to have one of UConn’s advising leaders and mentors recognized for their work by our national advising organization,” said Erin Ciarimboli, UConn’s Director of Undergraduate Advising. “Melissa’s recognition is long overdue and highlights the critical role that UConn’s advisors play every day in supporting student success.”

“Melissa is an excellent advisor. Although her professional responsibilities have expanded significantly, she still works very closely with students and staff to answer specific questions and work through challenging situations.” Christine Mosman, Associate Director, Office of Student Services, UConn Hartford.

Melissa’s advising philosophy reflects the importance she places on ensuring students feel a sense of support and belonging at UConn. “Students still want and need connection. Students want to feel heard, understood, and supported,” Melissa said. “I lead with genuine care and authenticity, and I want them to trust that I support them. I strive to create an environment where students feel empowered, supported, and confident in navigating higher education.”

About NACADA

Founded in 1979, NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising is the leading professional association dedicated to enhancing the field of academic advising in higher education. With a membership exceeding 14,000 individuals, NACADA serves a global community of advisors, faculty, administrators, and student support professionals. The association offers comprehensive professional development, cutting-edge research, consulting services, and a collaborative network, all aimed at promoting student success and institutional effectiveness. By championing the pivotal role of academic advising, NACADA empowers its members to elevate advising practices and enhance the student experience. Learn more at nacada.ksu.edu.

Radiation dermatitis can progress to more severe skin injury and may contribute to treatment disruptions and reduced quality of life. In its most extreme form, dermatitis can cause permanent changes in skin color, scarring, or even ulcers that appear months or years later.

Some 90 to 95% of patients undergoing radiation experience a skin reaction, and it can be more difficult to detect in people with darker skin.

“Not only is that side-effect causing long-term difficulty, but also considerable emotional distress. We wanted a simple, patient-centered innovation to combat that and offer early signs of a problem,’’ says Suma Dendi ’28 (CLAS).

Dendi and fellow students Charli Hughes ’28 (ENG) and Neha Shanavas ’28 (CLAS) have created ChromaShield, a medical-device startup. The company’s flagship innovation is a wearable skin patch to alert patients and their physicians of changes associated with radiation-induced skin inflammation.

“We can’t reverse all the skin damage, but we can enable earlier detection, allowing healthcare providers to mitigate the problem,” says Dendi, the startup’s Chief Product Officer.

The patch uses thermochromic technology that changes color in response to localized skin temperature. Users have the option to monitor the patch with the companion mobile app. Earlier identification could give clinicians additional information to evaluate a patient’s skin reaction and determine when an intervention is appropriate.

Team Already Won Westport Pitch Competition

ChromaShield is one of five UConn-affiliated startups competing in the Wolff New Venture Competition on Oct. 13 at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field in East Hartford. Now in its 11th year, the event is hosted by the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CCEI). The competition will award more than $150,000 in prize money, including $40,000 for the first-place finisher.

The ChromaShield team has already been recognized in other competitions, taking third place in the 2025 StartUp Westport Pitch Competition and the top spot in the Nursing and Engineering Center Innovate Health PitchFest at UConn.

Dendi, a junior, is studying biomedical engineering and human rights, and is also an EMT and clinical research volunteer. She met Hughes when they were interns at Medtronic, the summer before their first year at UConn.

For Hughes, the development of the patch is a personal challenge. One of her family members underwent successful radiation therapy, and Hughes is familiar with adverse effects. Hughes is the startup’s Chief Technology Officer. She is a junior and is majoring in computer science and cell biology. She is also a research assistant at UConn Health.

Shanavas, the company’s CEO, is a junior majoring in cellular and molecular biology and health policy informatics. She is also a UConn research intern exploring pharmaceutical development, and is a clinical intern at a community health clinic.

The three co-founders have spoken with radiation oncologists and nurses at community cancer centers and hospital systems, including UConn Health, to learn more about clinical challenges and how to address them.

Summer Accelerator Helped with Technology

This summer, ChromaShield leaders participated in CCEI’s Summer Accelerator, an eight-week business bootcamp for new companies. During the program, the entrepreneurs decided to change the design of their patch and improve their business plans.

“Summer Accelerator really ramped it up,’’ Dendi says. “We learned so much about business and grew so quickly. Being a med-tech startup is challenging, and it’s important to iron out a clear business strategy.”

“During Summer Accelerator, we were at a crossroads with tech decisions,’’ Hughes says. “The Accelerator really facilitated our growth, and having strong mentorship was helpful in finding the best path forward.’’

ChromaShield is now expanding its prototype testing and its intellectual property portfolio. The entrepreneurs hope to soon embark on a clinical study. If they win the top prize at the Wolff competition, they will use the money for clinical testing, guidance on FDA standards, and manufacturing.

“As undergrads, it feels good to be a finalist in this competition, but also surreal,’’ Dendi says. “Summer Accelerator helped us, and nine other startups, learn together and support each other. Our fellow founders in the cohort helped us find lawyers, improve our pitch deck, and support each other when problems occurred. I came to UConn knowing I wanted to be involved in entrepreneurship. I’m glad we have such a network of resources to support us.’’

“Yes, it takes a village, and we couldn’t do it without the mentors, engineers, academics, and alumni who have helped us,’’ Hughes says.

The Wolff New Venture Competition will be held on Oct. 13 at Pratt and Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field in East Hartford from 5 to 9 p.m. The event is free to attend and all are welcome. Pre-registration is required at https://luma.com/i2690pqa.

The Wolff New Venture Competition is supported by the generosity of the Wolff Family as well as wiggin(x), Fiondella, Milone & LaSaracina LLP, Sardilli Produce and Dairy Co., Prime Materials Recovery Inc., Big Bang, Baystate Financial, Webster Bank, Mark and Jamie Summers, Putnam Plastics, Eric Marziali, Bob and Linda Delisle, Dick and Carol Stewart and Event Resources.

She loves to paint, both on canvas and digitally. She enjoys nail art and dreams of becoming an artist or nail technician someday. At school, her friendly personality has earned her a special nickname.

“Everyone calls her a ray of sunshine,” said her mom, Kelly.

Marie also has dystonia, a movement disorder that causes muscles to tighten or move in ways a person can’t control. Over the years, dystonia has made it harder for Marie to walk, move her arms and speak clearly.

But a treatment called deep brain stimulation, or DBS, is helping Marie have more control over some of those movements—and do more on her own.

A Long Journey to Answers

Marie first came to Connecticut Children’s as a baby because she was having trouble gaining weight. Tests did not uncover a clear cause.

It wasn’t until kindergarten that her family began noticing something different about the way she moved.

At first, Kelly remembers thinking Marie’s unusual way of running was simply part of her personality. Then Marie’s teacher noticed that she was having trouble with her balance and falling at school.

“That was when we realized it was something more,” Kelly said.

Marie began seeing specialists at Connecticut Children’s. At first, her symptoms mostly affected her legs. Her muscles were tight, she dragged her feet and she wore leg braces for a time.

Doctors continued looking for answers as Marie grew. Eventually, genetic testing found a change in a gene called KMT2B, leading to a diagnosis of primary dystonia. “Primary” means that the dystonia is genetic or has no known cause, rather than being the result of another medical condition, medication or brain injury.

Marie began receiving care from William Yorns, DO, a neurologist at Connecticut Children’s who specializes in movement disorders.

How do genetic disorders affect movement?

Many genes, like KMT2B, play an important role in how the brain develops and functions. Certain changes in this gene can affect the brain’s ability to control movement, leading to a rare genetic condition called KMT2B-related dystonia. In Marie’s case, this led to twisting movements, unusual body positions, stiffness, tremor, or difficulty controlling movement. These symptoms can spread or become more noticeable over time.

Dr. Yorns shared, “Knowing Marie’s diagnosis provides us with a better roadmap for her care. It helps us anticipate potential problems rather than simply reacting to them, and it helps guide treatment decisions.”

As Marie got older, dystonia began affecting more of her body. The tightness and movements spread from her legs to her arms and also affected her speech. By middle school, she began using a walker and later a power wheelchair.

Through it all, Marie kept going to school, making friends and creating art.

A New Option for Marie

Dr. Yorns and Marie’s care team tried different ways to manage her symptoms, including medication and Botox injections. But the benefits were limited.

Around the same time, Connecticut Children’s pediatric neurosurgeon David Hersh, MD and UConn Health neurosurgeon Christopher Conner, MD were working together to bring deep brain stimulation (DBS) to pediatric patients at Connecticut Children’s.

After seeing the treatment used for children with epilepsy, Dr. Yorns and the team began discussing whether DBS could also be an option for Marie.

For some patients with KMT2B-related dystonia, DBS can significantly improve movement and function. Knowing Marie’s diagnosis helped the team determine that this was an important treatment option to consider.

Marie would become Connecticut Children’s first patient to receive DBS for dystonia.

She was interested from the beginning.

Marie and her family met with Dr. Hersh and Dr. Conner to learn more about what DBS would involve. Dr. Conner specializes in functional neurosurgery, including DBS. He’s the surgical version of an electrician.

“For DBS, we place thin wires called electrodes in parts of the brain involved in movement,” Dr. Conner explained. “The electrodes connect to a small device placed under the skin in the chest. This device sends carefully controlled electrical impulses to the brain to help regulate the brain signals that control movement.”

The two surgeons work together on each DBS procedure, combining Dr. Conner’s specialized experience with DBS with Dr. Hersh’s pediatric neurosurgical expertise.

“We’ve built a joint program where patients can have the pediatric expertise associated with being in a children’s healthcare system and stay with their primary neurology team,” said Dr. Hersh. “At the same time, we bring in the expertise of a neurosurgeon specifically trained in deep brain stimulation.”

For Marie’s procedure, the team carefully placed two electrodes, one on each side of the brain, in an area involved in controlling movement called the globus pallidus interna. Marie was asleep throughout the surgery, and went home the next day.

DBS Is a Process, Not Just a Surgery

The surgery was only the beginning.

After giving Marie time to heal, her care team turned on the device at a low setting. From there, they gradually adjusted the stimulation to find what worked best for her. This part of the process is painless and done during an office visit. It’s simple: a tablet links wirelessly to the generator to make adjustments.

Early on, Marie returned frequently for these adjustments. Now, those visits are much farther apart.

“You have to think of electricity like it’s your new medication,” said Dr. Conner. “It can take us a little while to really perfect it and get it dialed in. It’s not an overnight thing.”

Marie’s care continues to bring together experts from Connecticut Children’s Neurology, Neurosurgery and UConn Health. Together, they decide on changes to her settings to continue to get the best response.   Marie’s physical, occupational and speech therapy teams help track her progress.

“DBS isn’t a one-time treatment where we do the surgery and then walk away,” said Dr. Hersh. “The surgery is really the beginning of a long-term partnership. We continue to work closely with Marie, her family, Neurology and her therapy teams as her stimulation is adjusted and her needs change over time.”

Small Changes, Big Difference

DBS isn’t a cure for dystonia. The goal is to help improve movement, independence and quality of life. Dr. Yorns reassures, “Our goal is not simply to treat abnormal movements, but to preserve Marie’s comfort, mobility, communication, independence and participation.”

For Kelly, some of those changes have been easy to see.

Marie has less shaking in her arm. As her DBS settings have been adjusted, her muscles have become less tight, making some movements easier.

One change stands out: Marie can now use her arm to pick up a cup and drink on her own.

DBS hasn’t made every symptom disappear. But Dr. Hersh says her progress over the first year has been encouraging. “One of the strengths of DBS is that we can continue to fine-tune the stimulation over time based on how each patient responds,” said Dr. Hersh. “With Marie, we’ve been able to make adjustments that have gradually improved her movement on both sides of her body.”

For Marie and her family, those improvements matter.

“We’re really happy with our decision,” Kelly said. “No regrets. Marie is happy too.”

And Marie is looking ahead. At her paintings, nail designs and a whole cast of characters to meet along the way.

This story was originally written and published by Connecticut Children’s on its blog and is republished here with permission.

Now a second-year master’s student concentrating in Individuals, Groups, and Families, Excellent is preparing to offer that support to others as a future social worker. Along the way, he is finding guidance of his own through UConn’s new Black Male Mental Health Professional Mentoring Program.

A joint initiative of the UConn School of Social Work and the Neag School of Education, the program pairs graduate students with mental health professionals committed to supporting Black men and boys. Through mentorship, training, and professional development, it aims to help students establish lasting careers while strengthening a network of practitioners serving the Greater Hartford community.

For Excellent, the opportunity to learn from another Black man working in mental health is particularly meaningful.

“I know the mentorship will provide me with the knowledge, power, and sense of community that other Black men carry, whether they are my age or older,” he says.

Building a Network of Support
The pilot, formally titled Girding the Roots: A Mentorship Model for Practitioners and Student Trainees to Support Black Male Mental Health Wellbeing, is supported by Greater Hartford Gives Foundation and Beta lots Boule Foundation. The program is open to UConn master’s-level students currently enrolled in mental health training programs, such as counselor education, social work, psychology, or marriage and family therapy.

“Black men and boys can experience unique pressures and challenges, and as social workers, we need to understand how discrimination, economic inequities, family dynamics, and societal expectations around masculinity can affect their mental health,” says Milagros Marrero-Johnson, MSW, adjunct faculty and senior director of strategic initiatives and community engagement in the UConn School of Social Work.

Equally important, she says, is the need to demystify mental health by reducing stigma, fostering open dialogue, and challenging misconceptions that often prevent Black men and boys from seeking support. By increasing awareness and promoting culturally responsive approaches, “social workers can play a critical role in creating environments where Black men and boys feel empowered to prioritize their mental well-being and access needed resources.”

Marrero-Johnson(opens in new tab) and Latoya Haynes-Thoby(opens in new tab), project PI and assistant professor of counselor education in the Neag School of Education, oversee the program.

“This project aims to increase access to mental health services for Black men and boys through the development of concrete supports that aid in the retention of students enrolled in counseling, social work, psychology and marriage and family therapy programs, as well as the career longevity of practitioners that are committed to serving Black men and boys in the Greater Hartford area community.” Haynes-Thoby says. “Counselors understand the importance of not only celebrating all that Black men and boys contribute to our communities, but also the necessity of creating real avenues to support their long-term mental health and wellbeing.”

Learning through Experience
Excellent grew up in a single-mother household and lacked guidance of a father or other male figure in his life.

He attended a private school in Stratford, Connecticut, where he was the only Black person among the student body and faculty.

“I received wisdom from the women in my life, but I had my own journey in establishing who I was as a Black man,” Excellent says. “I was never taught our culture, only the pain and stereotypes we have to endure.”

His program mentor, Maurice Eastwood, LMSW, of Seek Therapy in Hartford(opens in new tab) and author of The 5 Bags: The Tools to Building a More Superior You, understands how their relationship offers an opportunity to help an emerging social worker recognize both his abilities and the impact he can have.

“Sean is a great young man,” Eastwood says. “He’s very prompt, he shows up, and he consistently overachieves. But beyond those qualities, it means a lot to me to be able to mentor another man of color, especially in a field where you still don’t see as many men of color represented.”

Mentorship, Eastwood says, extends beyond navigating coursework or choosing a career path.

“I want Sean to understand that his presence matters and that the work he does can open doors and create opportunities for the young men who come after him.”

That consistent connection is central to the program. Students and their mentors meet at least once a month, creating space for guidance and support throughout the year. Separate retreats for mentors and mentees help participants connect with their peers and build community.

Students also complete training in child sexual abuse prevention and trauma-informed counseling. Four professional development roundtables bring together experts from across the mental health field to share strategies and practical perspectives on supporting Black men and boys, while helping participants expand their professional networks.

Each student receives a $4,500 stipend to help offset the cost of education and participation.

I know the mentorship will provide me with the knowledge, power, and sense of community that other Black men carry, whether they are my age or older. — MSW student Sean Excellent

Preparing the Next Generation of Mentors
For Excellent, the experience is an opportunity to strengthen his advocacy and clarify where he wants to practice. He hopes to help young Black men recognize their value and possibilities, regardless of their upbringing or the expectations placed on them.

Eastwood hopes Excellent carries that sense of purpose into his work — and recognizes that the example he sets can matter even when he does not realize someone is watching.

“Ultimately, I hope he walks away from this experience with confidence, a stronger sense of purpose, and an understanding that being a man of color in social work isn’t just about having a seat at the table,” Eastwood says. “It’s about making sure there is room for the next person to sit down too.”

Excellent already envisions returning to the program as a mentor himself.

“I hope to become a stronger advocate and build community with those around me,” he says. “This will allow me to have a clearer focus on where exactly I want to practice and how to engage the conversation regarding Black male mental health, even if possible, reentering this program as a mentor to repay the favor!”

Applications are accepted until all program slots are filled. Eligible students must be entering the final year of a master’s program in counselor education, social work, psychology, or marriage and family therapy; reside, work, or attend school in Greater Hartford; and demonstrate a long-term commitment to supporting Black men and boys. Learn more about the program and how to apply.

The ranking also places UConn among the top undergraduate nursing programs in New England. Boston College, ranked No. 12 nationally, is the only New England school ranked ahead of UConn.

The school reached the new ranking as it welcomed its largest incoming undergraduate class to date. This fall, 297 students joined the Class of 2030, with 275 students at UConn Storrs and 22 at UConn Waterbury.

“Moving to No. 36 is a wonderful recognition for UConn Nursing,” says Victoria Vaughan Dickson, Ph.D., RN, FAHA, FHFSA, FAAN, Dean of the Elisabeth DeLuca School of Nursing. “We have an outstanding community of faculty, staff, students and alumni, and this ranking reflects the work happening across our School.”

Among this year’s incoming class are the first 22 students in the Waterbury-to-Storrs Nursing Pathway. Launched this fall, the pathway allows students to begin their UConn nursing education at the Waterbury campus before transitioning to Storrs to complete their Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing.

The school is also preparing for its move into DeLuca Hall, its new home on the Storrs campus. The building will bring nursing education, simulation, research and collaboration together in a space designed specifically for the school and its students.

“We are welcoming more students at a time when the need for nurses remains high,” Dickson says. “With our largest incoming class, the new Waterbury pathway and DeLuca Hall ahead of us, there is a lot happening at UConn Nursing.”

The latest ranking is part of a strong year for the school. Earlier this year, UConn’s online graduate nursing programs were ranked No. 4 nationally and No. 1 for veterans by U.S. News & World Report.

Dr. Seema Kurup, associate professor, division of oral medicine and orofacial pain at the UConn School of Dental Medicine, answers questions about orofacial pain in honor of the awareness month. 

Q: When people hear “orofacial pain” they usually think of TMD. Is that accurate? 

It’s fair, and honestly, it’s not a bad place to start — temoporomandibular disorder (TMD) is the condition most people have heard of. TMD is really just the entry point. Orofacial pain as a field covers a lot more territory than that, and some of it gets missed for years because nobody’s looking for it outside a dental lens. 

Q: You’ve mentioned ENT providers are getting better at recognizing TMD. What’s changed? 

It has been encouraging. More ear nose and throat (ENT) colleagues now understand that TMD can show up as ear pain, tinnitus, fullness, headaches, even pain radiating into the neck and shoulder. So, a patient walks into an ENT’s office convinced something is wrong with their ear, and increasingly, that provider knows to ask about jaw symptoms too. That kind of cross-specialty awareness is exactly what we need more of, just applied to a wider set of conditions. 

Q: What’s an example of a condition that gets missed because of that dental– versus– medical divide? 

Painful post-traumatic trigeminal neuropathy is a good one — or PTTN, for short. It can develop after something as routine as an extraction, an implant placement or even a root canal treatment. The procedure itself heals fine, but the nerve doesn’t, and the patient is left with burning or tingling pain or altered sensations that can show up inside the mouth or out on the face. Too often the patient ends up back in the dental chair for more treatment when what they actually need is neuropathic pain management. 

Q: What about conditions where there’s nothing visible on exam at all? 

That’s burning mouth syndrome, and it’s a tough one for patients. They’re describing this persistent burning, usually on the tongue, and the clinician looks in and sees nothing. No lesion, no infection, nothing to point to. It’s easy for that to get brushed off or bounced between providers because there’s no obvious culprit. But it’s a real, recognized diagnosis with real management options — it just requires knowing to name it rather than dismiss it. 

Q: You also mentioned migraines and dystonia showing up in the face and jaw. Can you explain? 

Orofacial migraine is exactly what it sounds like: migraine physiology, but the pain lands in the face, jaw, or even the teeth instead of the head. Patients sometimes go through multiple dental workups before anyone considers migraine as the actual source. Oromandibular dystonia is a bit different — that’s involuntary jaw muscle contractions sometimes very painful, and it’s often mistaken for a straightforward temporomandibular joint (TMJ) problem when it’s really a movement disorder. 

Q: If there’s one message, you’d want clinicians to take away this Pain Awareness Month, what would it be? 

Widen the lens. TMD awareness has genuinely improved, and that’s worth celebrating. But orofacial pain is a much bigger than TMD alone, and a lot of these patients are out there right now bouncing between providers without a diagnosis that fits. If a patient’s pain doesn’t add up with what you’re seeing on exam, that’s not a dead end — that’s usually the moment to think beyond the obvious and consider a neuropathic, idiopathic, or neurovascular cause instead. 

Q: Is there anything else you think gets overlooked when we talk about these conditions? 

Yes, and it’s important — most orofacial pain patients are chronic pain patients by the time they get to me. They’ve often been dealing with this for months or years, seeing provider after provider, and not getting real answers. That takes a toll. They are frustrated, their quality of life has taken a hit, and that frustration doesn’t stay contained to just the pain itself. It spills over into anxiety, depression and sleep issues. So, when I am treating someone with orofacial pain, I am rarely just treating a jaw or a nerve. I am treating a person whose whole life has been affected by living with pain that, in a lot of cases, took too long to even get named. 

Vicki DeLeo, UConn Extension’s Master Gardener coordinator in Tolland County, oversees the annual seed distribution program with support from numerous volunteers statewide, connecting the donated seeds with organizations that use them to strengthen their communities.

“This program is really about helping people grow,” says DeLeo. “The seeds support everything from food pantry gardens and youth programs to pollinator habitats and community beautification projects. Every packet has the potential to create learning opportunities, improve access to fresh food, and bring people together.”

In 2026, the program distributed thousands of seeds donated by Ocean State Job Lot, Hart Seeds, and the North Windham Home Depot. These generous donations make it possible for organizations across Connecticut to establish and expand gardening projects that serve local residents.

The ongoing commitment of the organizations is the foundation of the program’s success. “Hart Seeds is incredibly community-oriented and philanthropic,” DeLeo says. “Our partners are always interested in hearing how the seeds are being used and the impact they’re having in Connecticut communities.”

Feeding Communities

The seeds find their way into a wide variety of projects. Organizations receiving donations include senior centers, schools, municipal community garden programs, local food production initiatives, UConn 4-H clubs, and environmental projects focused on pollinator habitats and urban greenways. For many recipients, the seeds directly contribute to local food security efforts.

At the Enfield Rotary Garden, volunteers have donated more than 6,000 pounds of fresh produce to a local food pantry so far this year. Other community gardens across the state report similar impacts.

The Northwest Park Organic Demonstration Garden in Windsor uses the donated seeds to grow produce for the Windsor Food Bank while also serving as an educational resource for the community.

“We are so appreciative when there are offerings of free seeds,” says Kathy Beaty of the Northwest Park Demonstration Garden. “The UConn Master Gardeners volunteer with the planning, sowing, maintaining, harvesting, and distributing the produce to the Windsor Food Bank. We also offer monthly evening Summer Garden Gatherings to share our experiences, both triumphs and challenges, while enjoying the company of like-minded garden enthusiasts.”

The garden also serves as a hands-on educational site where Master Gardener interns learn about soil management, sustainability, integrated pest management, composting, and seed saving.

At the Tolland Youth Garden in Crandall Park, donated seeds help young gardeners learn while supporting local hunger relief efforts.

“The seeds donated by the UConn Master Gardener Seed Program to the Tolland Youth Garden have generated pounds and pounds of fresh produce given weekly throughout the growing season to the Cornerstone Kitchen in Vernon,” says Susan Mundy. “From leafy greens in the spring to beans, onions, squash, cucumbers, and tomatoes throughout the summer, we have donated more than 100 pounds of produce this season.”

Cornerstone Kitchen purchased a dehydrator to preserve fresh herbs because the garden herb production is so successful. Municipal community gardens are another beneficiary of the initiative. In East Windsor, seed packets are distributed to community gardeners and shared with residents during the town’s annual plowing event.

“I want to thank the UConn Master Gardener program for providing these seeds for our community,” says Anna Wasik of the East Windsor Agricultural Commission. “They are always very much appreciated by everyone we share them with.”

Wasik notes that children particularly enjoy receiving sunflower, carrot, and melon seeds, while gardeners frequently grow enough produce to share with the Five Corner Cupboard food pantry.

Environmental Impact

While many of the donated seeds help grow food, others support projects focused on environmental stewardship, pollinator conservation, and community beautification. Schools including Mansfield Elementary School and Hall High School in West Hartford use the seeds for educational gardens. UConn 4-H groups receive seeds to introduce young people to gardening and agriculture. Projects include establishing pollinator-friendly plantings and urban greening projects that support wildlife and improve local ecosystems.

Organizations such as the Kellogg Environmental Center in Derby, Pardee Rose Garden and Greenhouse in Hamden, the Leetes Island Garden Club in Guilford, and the Walsh Intermediate School Green Scene Club in Branford use seeds to establish pollinator-friendly plantings and educational gardens. The New Haven Free Public Library has incorporated the program into community outreach efforts, including a Pollinator Celebration Day that connects residents with resources for creating pollinator habitat at home. Through pollinator pathways, urban greenways, school gardens, and public demonstration sites, these projects provide vital habitat for bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects while helping Connecticut residents learn about the important role pollinators play in healthy ecosystems.

The Hebron Interfaith Food Pantry utilizes donated seeds in multiple ways. Some seeds are grown in raised beds maintained by Master Gardener volunteers, with the harvest distributed through the pantry. Others are provided directly to food pantry clients for home gardens.

“The clients greatly appreciate the seed donation as well as the produce and herbs,” Diane Blume, a Master Gardener volunteer and pantry representative, shares. “They are encouraged to pick their own herbs and often comment on the positive impact this has on their health and how much they appreciate knowing that others care about them.”

For DeLeo, these stories and others demonstrate the true value of the program.

“When people think about seeds, they often think about what’s growing in the garden. But these seeds are also growing skills, confidence, healthier communities, and connections between neighbors. That’s the real impact.”

Through partnerships with seed donors, dedicated Master Gardener volunteers, and community organizations across Connecticut, the annual seed distribution program continues to transform simple seed packets into thousands of pounds of fresh food, hands-on educational experiences, and greener, healthier communities statewide.

In addition, UConn’s global visibility jumped significantly over the past year, quantified in a ranking that found notable increases in website visitors, mainstream media mentions, social media followers, and online video viewership.

The rankings are the latest in a series of assessments which originate from unrelated entities, but reach the same positive conclusions about UConn’s academic strength, lasting impacts on students, and global reputation.

The rankings are valuable not only to help potential students and their families as they select where to apply, but also for UConn’s 300,000 alumni whose degrees continue to gain prestige as the University’s reputation grows.

UConn is increasingly getting noticed worldwide, according to the 2026-27 Global University Visibility (GUV) Rankings. Those rankings, compiled by higher ed market research firm American Caldwell, placed UConn at No. 83 in global visibility – up 48 spots in the past year – out of more than 1,200 institutions in 193 countries.

The rankings use objective measures to determine the “reach” of a university’s brand and reputation around the globe: numbers of website visitors, news mentions, public interest and online engagement, social media reach, YouTube viewership, and related factors.

The GUV ranking, when combined with assessments of research and academic performance, help to provide a holistic view of growing interest in UConn that helps drive student applications, faculty recruiting, philanthropy, and public engagement.

Time magazine also recently released new rankings, compiled in conjunction with Statista and released in August, that place UConn at No. 57 nationwide among the 500 institutions that rose to inclusion in its list.

When filtered to only compare against other public colleges and universities, UConn ranked No. 19 – comfortably ahead of most of those against whom it competes for student enrollment and faculty hires.

UConn performed particularly well in Time’s ranking this year in student outcomes, as measured through graduates’ earnings, graduation rates, and return on investment (ROI).

Those factors are areas of strategic focus for the University, which has positioned its academic support programs, financial aid, and career services to maximize the student success journey.

In fact, surveys of graduates who received their degrees in December 2024 and May 2025 showed them earning an average starting salary of $67,500, according to the most recent annual Undergraduate First Destination report.

That’s an increase of about $7,500 over two years earlier, despite the tightening national job market. In high-demand fields such as nursing and engineering, some entered their first jobs right out of UConn earning more than $80,000 yearly.

UConn’s return on investment and value for families also helped it earn strong showings in recent rankings by Money magazine, which included UConn among its America’s Best Colleges for 2026 ranking with 4.5 out of 5 stars.

As with the Time ranking, Money’s analysis gives significant weight to affordability, graduation rates, alumni earnings, and related factors that help to quantify ROI. Based on those indicators, it lists UConn among the best public institutions nationwide that provide excellent value for students in their home states.

Forbes also came to similar conclusions about UConn’s quality: It recently ranked UConn as No. 38 among public institutions in the United States, and No. 99 among the 500 public and private entities it assessed. It also included UConn among the top 10 employers in Connecticut.

In the annual U.S. News & World Report rankings released Tuesday, UConn showed particular strength in graduation rate and retention of first-year students, both of which are key indicators of a strong holistic learning environment.

Currently, 91% of first-year UConn students return for their freshman year, and 83% graduate in six years or less. By comparison, about 69% of first-year students nationwide return in their second year to the institution where they started, and about 61% earn their degrees in six years or less.

Overall, the U.S. News rankings released Tuesday place UConn at No. 32 nationwide among public institutions, the same position as last year. Its learning communities program ranked No. 24 nationwide, recognizing the strength of that initiative to help students transition to a university setting by connecting them with faculty, staff, and student leaders of various affinities and identities.

The recent rankings are among many positive assessments of UConn over the past year, including:

• Several of UConn’s graduate and professional programs earned high marks from U.S. News & World Report, along with a separate but related ranking that gave stellar assessments for fully online graduate programs offered by the Elisabeth DeLuca School of Nursing, the School of Business, and others.

• UConn saw a notable increase in its reputation as an entrepreneurship academic powerhouse, as reflected in rankings by The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur. The results were based on 40 data points including academic offerings, faculty credentials, experiential learning, mentorship, and more.

UConn’s overall ranking was No. 29 for graduates, up from No. 34 in the previous year; and No. 31 for undergraduates, up from No. 45. The rankings primarily included U.S. colleges and universities, but some international schools were also included.

• For five years in a row, UConn is one of the top 10 most sustainable universities in the world, as assessed by UI GreenMetric in its ranking of more than 1,700 institutions in 105 countries on their sustainability performance. UConn ranks at No. 8, two spots higher than its previous 10th place ranking.

• UConn John Dempsey Hospital is a World’s Best Hospital for the fifth year in a row, receiving the prestigious designation from Newsweek and Statista based on their assessments of quality metrics, recommendations from medical experts, and results from patient surveys. It also was specifically recognized for excellence in infection prevention and patient experience.

• Newsweek also named UConn John Dempsey Hospital among the nation’s best maternity hospitals, making it the only hospital in Hartford County to earn the publication’s highest honor of five ribbons. The recognition highlights hospitals that excel in providing high-quality care for mothers and babies, including patient experience, safety measures, and clinical outcomes.

Electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure is not yet widespread enough and not everyone has access due to spatial and social disparities. Using Connecticut as a case study, UConn College of Engineering researchers – including Ph.D. student Omar Bustami, postdoctoral researcher Francesco Rouhana, associate professor Timothy Vadas, and professor Amvrossios Bagtzoglou – have developed a planning framework to help determine where there is great need for EV charging infrastructure, and where this infrastructure will help increase resilience and deliver energy justice. Their research is published in the Journal of Cleaner Production.

“EV infrastructure planning is much more complicated than just asking where do we have chargers. It goes beyond that,” says Rouhana. “A community may have limited charging access but also may also be dealing with flooding issues, high levels of pollution, they may not have transportation alternatives, or they may have other socio-economic vulnerabilities. Those issues interact and they must be viewed together, otherwise we risk missing the big picture”

This big picture approach aligns with calls from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for tailored, comprehensive policies to ensure the deployment of low-emission technologies works to overcome distributional, energy, and social injustices. Additionally, demand-side mitigation strategies like building EV charging capacity is a powerful way to encourage sustainable choices, as long as the efforts are intentional and well-planned, otherwise they risk re-enforcing existing disparities.

Rouhana says there are many existing tools available for identifying aspects such as vulnerability, environmental justice concerns, flood risk, or infrastructure gaps, but those analyses often consider the elements in isolation. The researchers considered these dimensions as four categories including EV infrastructure and transportation burden, flood risk, environmental burden, and socioeconomic vulnerability, to create the Electric Vehicle Viability Score (EVVS). Indicators for each category were assessed to yield an EVVS for each of Connecticut’s towns to show which communities experience the greatest intersecting burden, and which factors contribute to the burden.

Connecticut served as an excellent case study for the development and testing of the framework. Rouhana says unique qualities, including the state’s size, dense urban centers, affluent suburbs, rural communities, coastal areas, and variations in environmental and socioeconomic conditions across 169 different towns, meant many important insights were revealed, including distinct patterns of burden from location to location.

“We know that Connecticut is actively pursuing transportation electrification, but we have at the same time some inequity problems, for example, access to incentives is uneven. Usually, we see urban centers have stronger charging infrastructure while some rural and lower income communities remain underserved,” says Rouhana.

To illustrate how transportation electrification can reduce a community’s climate risk, consider that besides reducing emissions, EVs can act like mobile energy storage systems that add resilience to the grid, including by providing electricity during power outages. Rouhana says this is a vital quality to consider for building resilient communities, for example EVs can power emergency shelters or medical facilities where electricity is needed 24/7. This capacity is becoming increasingly important as climate change-driven extreme weather events become more frequent.

In terms of different geographic concerns, coastal communities face flooding and sea-level rise and while more affluent communities may have financial safety nets, that is not the case in low-income or marginalized communities, says Rouhana.

“We know that certain regions are underserved,” says Rouhana. “In our research, we saw a clear distinction between Windham and Litchfield versus Fairfield, where Fairfield had lower urgencies because of stronger existing infrastructure and socioeconomic advantages. Where infrastructure is needed most is not always where infrastructure is easiest to build, and equitable planning must consider both.”

Rouhana says the goal of this framework was not to just create a map or score, but to be the beginning of the planning process. With areas of need and possibility identified, this shows where funding should be prioritized to ensure EV infrastructure projects can provide the greatest benefits for underserved communities while reducing climate risk.

The researchers are planning to integrate a temporal dimension into the framework, says Rouhana, because communities, infrastructure, and climate will continue to change over time and considering these changes is important to track evolving needs in adoption of the technology, and behavior. The researchers are also working to make the framework scalable, down to neighborhood-scale, up so that other states can adapt the framework for their needs.

Rouhana says another important aspect they are developing is a way to integrate community feedback and involvement into the framework. Communities understand their needs best and they can give feedback through an iterative, collaborative process, that enhances the benefits of infrastructure development.

“It is important to ask whether the model reflects the real local needs, because unfortunately, most projects are implemented without the knowledge of the local community or the neighborhood,” says Rouhana. “We are trying to move from vulnerability to viability, from identifying who is burdened to helping decision makers understand where investment can begin to address those burdens. EV infrastructure is not just a charging location problem; it’s a community and resilience planning problem.”

They were skeptical at first, but Maxie says she assured them that, yes, she was happy to snap a pic to document their trip. Thankful, the Nigerian couple told her they were visiting Europe for the first time and enjoying every minute.

“It was good to talk to them and get their experience,” Maxie ’27 (SFA) says. “The African American and the African experience are two completely different things, and they experience very different types of racism, so it was good for me to hear that they feel safe and they’re feeling welcome as well.”

Maxie was solo on her journey in London that day and at other stops along the way including Dublin, Paris, Amsterdam, and Berlin, as the recipient of a scholarship from the BOLD Women’s Leadership Network at UConn who was overseas from late June until late July.

Her travel is the first part of a larger project to document the experience of a young Black woman navigating and living alone in European countries with Caucasian histories and cultures built around white people.

In addition to seeing the major sites at each locale, she sought to visit everyday places to measure how effortlessly and comfortably a Black woman could live abroad, for instance pharmacies to survey the aisles for products designed for Black hair care.

Her experiences will be the subject of an interactive magazine the digital media and design student is creating this academic year for other Black women thinking of studying abroad or following in her travel footprint. She hopes for it to eventually be distributed to high school and college-age students.

Connections to Africa

Maxie says many of her friends who’ve traveled outside the United States have gone to places in the Caribbean or Africa, not Europe because they didn’t feel like it was a place for them. But she was eager to cross the proverbial pond.

“I found that Ireland was one of the nicest places to be, just the hospitality and the way people serve you and talk to you,” she says. “Even when I went out to restaurants by myself, the bartender or the server would always talk to me, asking questions.”

At the Collins Barracks, which houses the National Museum of Ireland, she learned about the struggles involving Ireland and Northern Ireland and about their support for the African country of Rwanda during its genocide in the mid-1990s.

Throughout her travel, she learned a lot about European influence in Africa.

The AfricaMuseum just outside Brussels in Belgium featured an exhibition about the country’s dark history with Congo, during which a government-supported propaganda campaign attempted to rally favor for Belgium’s continued rule over the central African nation during a time when public support waned.

“The Belgians were exporting Congo’s resources and using the people as slaves, so they doctored pictures of it being a lively place, showing animals, their culture, and their dances, and they displayed them near the World Fair, so people could come in and see how Belgium was transforming and using Congo,” Maxie says. “Flash forward, once they realized this is an evil part of their history, they didn’t shy away from devoting a museum to it.”

She saw pictures of the murals used as propaganda versus the actual images that are devoid of trees and animals and show shackles on people’s legs, she says, adding, “That was one of my favorite museums of the whole trip. It’s very rare for people to accept their history.”

People Who Look Like Her

When Maxie stepped off the train in Edinburgh, Scotland, the beauty of the small, touristy town couldn’t be missed. But for the first few days she was there, there was one thing noticeably absent.

“I didn’t see anyone who looked like me,” she says. “It was the third day I was there, and I was walking in the city center when I saw a group of Black women and children. They were singing to get other people to come to their church. A lot of the places I went had Black people advertising their religion, ‘Come to church with us, come to this church music festival.’”

Those three days were the first time in her life, she supposes, during which she truly was the only Black person around. High school would have been the closest example, when she was one of the only Black students in her honors courses.

In Amsterdam, the Netherlands, where there’s a comparatively small population of Black people, Maxie says she felt heartened after visiting Rijksmuseum, where she saw the work of an illustrator who drew outlines of children on a background, sketches of younglings doing child-like things.

“Even without color, the children looked different enough to know they were from different backgrounds,” she says. “You could see the curly hair and the straight hair or the waves. I really enjoyed that because it’s important for children to see that people look different from them but they’re all together in the same space.”

Feeling a Bit Unwelcome

Of course, a month of travel doesn’t come without letdowns.

“Berlin, I don’t think I gave it my best shot personally,” Maxie says, reflecting on the trip. “I didn’t see a lot of other Black people and when I went to their museums, there wasn’t a lot of Black art. They had the bust of Nefertiti, which is from Egypt, in a building with Greco-Roman art. It wasn’t showcased in the way it should have been.”

And Paris, even with its magnificent sites, Maxie says she didn’t feel wholly welcome.

To be fair, she admits, she doesn’t speak French, which is known to irritate native speakers, and she’s American, also known to be grating on other cultures. Getting around and mixing with everyday people was doubly difficult – triple that when she met up with a white friend from UConn, who also was overseas, and had dinner with her.

“It’s important to see that side-to-side treatment because sometimes I just think it’s me,” she says. “To have that comparison, it’s like whoa, I didn’t know you could be treated this well until there was someone else being treated this well next to me. The rudeness was heavier toward me.”

She continues, “Sometimes I get scared to call something racist because it feels like such a buzzword almost, people trying to make every little thing about race. I don’t want to do that and have people think of me that way. But at the same time, you’re treating me poorly, and she’s not being treated as poorly. It was a big wake-up call.”

Places on the ‘Go-Back-To’ List

Still, the trip came with some big highs. Take London, England, for example. It’s where she met that couple from Nigeria and took their picture. It’s also where she says she felt most free.

“When I got up and went somewhere, I didn’t have to actively think about it or think that I would feel odd or look out of place. I didn’t have to spend so much time getting myself together. I felt like I could just exist there and not get a look or a stare. It was the place I felt most comfortable in immediately, and it was one of the most diverse places,” she says.

Madrid, Spain, the last place on her itinerary before coming back home, also was a highlight.

Excited by the culmination of a successful trip and the prospect of reuniting with family in just a couple days, Maxie’s excitement grew as the country welcomed home the national soccer team after its historic win over Argentina in the World Cup.

Her arrival to the city was delayed after being held up on the tarmac to allow the team to deplane just ahead of hers, and when she stepped onto her hotel balcony on Grand Via the next morning and saw masses of people lining up for the celebratory parade, she knew what she needed to do.

“I put on my red shirt, I put on my shorts, and I went,” she says. “It was people on people – I looked the next day and there were 2 million people – but it was beautiful. Being able to go there and see other people who looked like me celebrating their sport was amazing. A lot of the Black people I saw were wearing the names of Black players on their jerseys, so it was nice to see that solidarity with each other.”

I put so much into this trip, and I feel like everyone was expecting me to have a revelation or transformation, like I went to Europe and found myself. But I came back, and I’m still me. I didn’t know that I’d still be me, that I’d know so much more about myself and the world and still be me. — Yvonna Maxie ’27 (SFA)

Expected – and Unexpected – Takeaways

Emily Schwab, director of the BOLD program at UConn, says Maxie’s travel abroad was the capstone experience for her time in the program.

“Important to her, and the goals of our program, is a focus on self and career development, alongside social impact in carrying out their summer leadership projects,” she says. “By reading travel writing by Black authors, researching the trends of where Black Americans typically travel, and working with mentors in digital media and design and Experiential Global Learning, Yvonna developed a project plan to generate data through her own travels by chronicling her own experience and connecting with Black expats and travelers abroad.

“She methodically documented her learnings about her experiences traveling through Europe in the hope she could share her insights with other young women through an engaging, accessible, and creative final product, informed by her expertise honed as a DMD major,” Schwab adds. “She also thought intentionally about how the project could be used to boost her portfolio as a DMD major and future professional, utilizing those storytelling skills to elevate narratives that don’t always break through to the mainstream.”

But there’s something, Maxie says, that she got from the experience and never expected.

“I put so much into this trip, and I feel like everyone was expecting me to have a revelation or transformation, like I went to Europe and found myself,” she says. “But I came back, and I’m still me. I didn’t know that I’d still be me, that I’d know so much more about myself and the world and still be me.”

It’s something she’d tell anyone considering applying for a BOLD scholarship through UConn’s Office of Undergraduate Research – along with the advice to dream big.

“I never thought I’d go to this many countries and do this many things,” she says. “When I first applied, I thought I could do to one or two places, and then I set the expectations bigger for myself. It’s important to find something that you really care about and just find a way to make it work for yourself.”

Researchers at the UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health and the Hispanic Health Council (HHC) believe engaging youth in the design and delivery of a program to improve their food environment is a path to impactful and lasting change. 

This belief was at the center of a two-year community-based participatory research project supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Throughout the project, the UConn and HHC team trained two cohorts of students from Hartford Public High School to be Adolescent Citizen Scientists (ACS) with the goal to identify, prioritize, and co-design a program to address the unhealthy food environment they experience. Topics covered in the training program developed by the researchers included nutrition, health equity, food marketing, research, program co-design, and communications.

The ACS applied their newly-developed skills to assist in designing and implementing focus group research to identify barriers to healthy eating that their peers experience. Based on the research findings and consultation with the program’s Community Advisory Board, they identified a feasible and potentially impactful program for co-design: Food Resource Guides to address food insecurity among students and families in the Hartford Public High School community and throughout Connecticut, which were widely disseminated in May 2026.

“The Adolescent Citizen Scientists were our collaborators at every stage of this project,” says Fran Fleming-Milici, Ph.D., director of food marketing initiatives at the UConn Rudd Center and a principal investigator for the ACS program. “They utilized their training to identify the problem they wanted to tackle and were instrumental in designing a final project they were passionate about.”

In addition to Fleming-Milici, key collaborators on this project included Sofia Segura-Pérez and Ashley Hernandez at HHC; Jennifer Harris, Ph.D., at the UConn Rudd Center; and Rafael Pérez-Escamilla, Ph.D., at the Yale School of Public Health.

Now, the research team is sharing the resources they developed and the lessons they learned from this project to help community partners and researchers who wish to engage high school students in the design and delivery of community-engaged programs to improve their food environment. Specific materials the team developed include:

• Training modules to teach students about nutrition, food marketing, health equity, research methods, program co-design, and how to design a communication plan. 
• Suggested procedures for conducting focus groups with high school students to identify barriers and opportunities for improving their food environment. 
• A case study of the design and implementation of the students’ final project: Food Resource Guides for families experiencing food insecurity 

These resources can be adapted for use in different environments and may be of interest to high school and middle school teachers, counselors, and staff who conduct programs with youth; youth organizations and community groups; and researchers conducting community-based participatory research. 

“We are grateful for the support we received from community groups and school staff throughout the project and are incredibly proud of the adolescent citizen scientists’ work,” says Fleming-Milici. “We’re excited to share the lessons we learned and the resources we created with the hope that others can develop programs in their own communities.” 

To stay connected with the UConn Rudd Center’s work, you can follow them on social media(opens in new tab) and subscribe to their mailing list(opens in new tab). 

Perhaps his strongest message centered around the importance of culture in the success of any business.

Diamond told the audience he had worked at organizations that demanded every employee give their best each day, and at organizations that were so cut-throat that no one trusted anyone. His experience at both shaped his expectations as a leader.

“When I was in the unbelievably privileged position of being the CEO [who was] building Barclays Capital and Barclays Global Investors, and we talked about culture, I actually knew what I meant by it. Culture is simply defined as how people behave when no one’s watching,’’ he said.

“The more you get to know your partners, and trust the people you work with, the more one understands it. I think talent and culture are the two most important parts of building a successful organization,’’ said Diamond, who led the organization for about 18 months starting in 2011. Today he is the CEO of Atlas Merchant Capital.

‘For Knuckleheads Like Me, That Was Nirvana’

Diamond was the keynote speaker at the School of Business’ Rosenberg-McVay Business Leadership Series, which brings leading executives to UConn to discuss important topics in business.

Some 125 students, alumni, and faculty attended the program on Wednesday, Sept. 16, at President Radenka Maric’s home. The program was moderated by Debra Hess ’86 (BUS), the retired CFO of NorthStar Asset Management.

Diamond regaled the audience with insight, advice and even tales of business operations before the advent of cell phones and email. But he also spoke excitedly about how the financial industry will change in the next five years.

Diamond earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from Colby College and came to UConn to pursue an MBA. After graduation he and three friends lived in an apartment in Willimantic and had a door papered with rejection letters from prominent companies.

He was offered two jobs, one with IBM and the second with U.S. Surgical, a pioneering surgical stapling and medical device company, now part of Medtronic. He accepted that job, earning less than $11,000 a year, because the management was driven.

“They had a ‘move up or move out’ philosophy, with pay-based performance bonuses,’’ he recalled. “For knuckleheads like me, that was nirvana.’’

He encouraged the students in the audience to seek a job with bosses they respect and colleagues who are motivated and thriving. That doesn’t mean that there won’t be hardships, he said, recalling a two-year period when he anticipated promotions that didn’t come. But eventually it will pay off.

Advice to Students: Be Smart, Work Hard, Have a Good Attitude

His next career stop was in information technology at Morgan Stanley. Instead of working in company’s plush New York City offices, he was stuck in a cavernous, windowless building. But Diamond says he tried to exceed expectations and if someone needed help, he’d hop on the subway and arrive at their door. His commitment to excellence and the reputation he developed led to prestigious promotions.

“At Morgan Stanley there was never a ‘behavioral training program,’” he said. “There was just an expectation that you do a first-class job in a first-class way.’’ That expectation created a workplace of support, partnership, and success.

After 13 years, he took a job with greater responsibility at Credit Suisse (later acquired by UBS), and he describes the culture at that time as secretive and cutthroat. “In some ways, I needed a taste of both cultures to know what I wanted,’’ Diamond said.

He developed a leadership mantra in which two things were imperative: never hire anyone with a title they haven’t yet achieved; and never hire any jerks (though he may have used a stronger term). “We all agreed that if you can’t get along with partners, you have to leave,’’ he said.

Diamond, who had taught multiple UConn classes as a graduate student, seemed eager to encourage the students before him. He said the financial industry is welcoming to smart and hard-working students. He encouraged them to excel academically, to develop real-world experience through internships and experiential opportunities, to keep a good attitude and never compromise their reputation.

The 2008 Financial Collapse and the Future of Banking

During the 2008 financial crisis, Diamond had “a front-row seat’’ to the disruption in the financial the industry. After Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in September, Barclays agreed to acquire its North American investment-banking and capital-markets businesses, as well as 10,000 employees.

It was a bold decision that Diamond and other executives had anticipated. By hashing out possible scenarios beforehand, the leadership team was able to move quickly and decisively. The acquisition of Lehman’s North American investment-banking and capital-markets operations, allowed Barclays to expand its presence in the U.S.

Diamond lauded praise on Henry Paulson, US treasury secretary at the time, and Bob Steel, under-secretary of the treasury then, for their emergency negotiations and wisdom.

“We need a financial system that’s safe and sound, but that also supports job creation and the economy,’’ Diamond said. He saidhe’s proud of America and our government for its role in supporting financial institutions but also offering safeguards and clear expectations.

“As a result, U.S. banks today are strong and growing. The U.S. has the deepest and most diverse financial services companies in the world. No other country can compare at all,’’ he said.

He anticipates that the financial services industry will change in the coming years. Today there are some 4,000 regional and community banks. He predicts that through mergers in coming years that number will drop to about 1,500.

The nation is at an inflection point between traditional financial services and crypto/digital ones. Blockchain offers many advantages, including 24/7 service, permanent transaction records, speed, and cost savings. Within three to five years, he predicts blockchain will be integrated into traditional banking in this country.

“All we’re doing is digitizing banks,’’ he says. “In the Middle East, everyone is using stablecoin. It’s coming here too.’’

Her grandmother experienced substance use and mental health conditions but could not afford care that addressed all her needs. Days also saw how those experiences eroded her grandmother’s trust in health care providers.

“She often complained about feeling like her medical concerns were not considered, which developed a level of mistrust between her and the providers,” says Days, a UConn School of Social Work MSW student and Behavioral Health Scholar. “Witnessing her struggles inspired me to become a social worker who serves underprivileged populations to bridge the gap between healthcare providers and clients.”

Days is now putting that commitment into practice as one of nine Urban Service Track/Area Health Education Center (UST/AHEC) Scholars(opens in new tab) from the UConn School of Social Work(opens in new tab). She is learning alongside approximately 60 students from UConn’s Schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, Dental Medicine, and Nursing and Quinnipiac University’s Physician Assistant program to help address the health needs of marginalized communities.

“Social work students bring an important perspective to health care because they are trained to look beyond a person’s immediate needs and consider the social, economic, family, and community factors that shape their health,” says Rachel Schwartz, MSW program director and associate professor-in-residence at the UConn School of Social Work. “The Urban Service Track allows our students to put that perspective into practice while learning from other health professions.”

Beginning at Bootcamp 

Focused on primary care, interprofessional education, and service to urban underserved populations, UST/AHEC has helped prepare more than 1,000 graduates since its founding. Scholars participate in community engagement and experiential learning that connect their professional education with the realities faced by patients and communities that have historically encountered barriers to health care.

All UST/AHEC Scholars complete the curriculum over two years. The program includes didactic and clinical training, including two clinical skills boot camps, two enhanced trainings, and six learning retreats focused on topics such as caring for veterans, urban youth, people experiencing homelessness, older adults, and patients of diverse national origins. Other topics include advocacy, caregiver burnout, patient safety, and improving communication.

During her first year in UST/AHEC, Days participated in a clinical boot camp where she learned how to do blood glucose tests, oral exams, and blood pressure checks. UST/AHEC students and alumni from previous years facilitated each station and supported the new cohort throughout the class.

“As a social worker, I’m not expected to know how to screen patients for high blood pressure, periodontal disease, or diabetes; however, since my participation in UST/AHEC, I can recognize the symptoms and refer clients to a specialist,” Days says. “That is also helpful because clients may not be able to visit their primary care often enough to be screened for health conditions.”

Commitment to Service

Service is another required component of the program, with each scholar participating in at least two UST service activities each fall and spring.

Days, who is concentrating in Individual, Groups, and Families, currently works for a non-profit behavioral healthcare provider as a support staff member. In the past, she’s coached a group of high school students for a biomedical hydraulic arm event; educated community members about the importance of nutrition, dental hygiene, blood pressure, and blood glucose at a wellness fair.

Social work students bring an important perspective to health care because they are trained to look beyond a person’s immediate needs and consider the social, economic, family, and community factors that shape their health. The Urban Service Track allows our students to put that perspective into practice. — Rachel Schwartz, UConn SSW MSW program director

Both Days and UST/AHEC Scholar and MSW student Margaret Waweru participated in UST’s Home and Community Care Project, working alongside UST/AHEC mentor Dr. Kiran Lorick, assistant professor of family medicine at UConn Health and a physician at the Family Medicine Center at Asylum Hill in Hartford. Waweru teamed up with a student from the School of Medicine; and Days collaborated with a student from the School of Pharmacy. They each conducted a home health care visit with a client in the community to address social determinants of health.

“Each experience has helped me gain new skills and strengthen my ability to provide culturally sensitive care in urban communities,” Days says.

Waweru developed a strong interest in participating in the Urban Service Track after learning about its mission and impact in Connecticut.

“The program’s commitment to preparing interprofessional health providers to serve underserved families and individuals in both urban and rural settings resonated deeply with me,” she says. “Collaborating with peers and professionals across disciplines contributes to improved health outcomes.”

Additionally, Waweru attended the National AHEC Organization (NAO) 2026 Leadership Forum(opens in new tab) in Washington, D.C. in July, where she engaged with legislators and advocated for the critical need for sustained funding for workforce pathway programs. Without such support, “the health of vulnerable populations would be significantly compromised,” she says.

Waweru says participating in the leadership forum gave her an opportunity to learn from AHEC professionals from around the country and to see how workforce development, community health, and advocacy intersect.

That intersection is increasingly important as Connecticut confronts shortages across multiple areas of health care. CT AHEC reported in August that the state has 177 federally designated Health Professional Shortage Areas, including shortages in primary care, dental health, and mental health.

“We need more professionals who are passionate and knowledgeable about providing culturally sensitive care, and this program is the perfect place to do so,” Days says.

Expanding the Social Work Perspective

For Desiree Pickard(opens in new tab), an AHEC Scholar and MSW student concentrating in IGFP, the Urban Service Track offered an opportunity to expand the way she thinks about social work and community health.

When Pickard first learned about the program, she “immediately thought about working within communities and expanding what [she] could bring to social work.”

“What initially drew me to the Urban Service Track was curiosity about the experience and the opportunity to be part of something with a bigger purpose,” she says.

Pickard is particularly interested in understanding the social and environmental factors that affect the health of adolescents and women and how social workers can provide support, resources, and advocacy to these populations.

“So far, UST has helped me strengthen my understanding of how to support clients and community members beyond simply connecting them to a resource. I have also become more comfortable networking and learning from other professionals. Being able to talk with other social workers and professionals about our shared goals has helped me recognize how important collaboration is when addressing the needs of a community.”

Other 2026–27 AHEC Scholars at the UConn School of Social Work are Terrina Copeland and Genesis Rosario. Joining the program this year are Jai’Mice Toney, Lisa Viti, Emily Brezina, and Ace Carter.

Waweru, Pickard, and Days recommend the UST Program to students interested in working with underserved populations and learning alongside professionals from other health care disciplines.

Pickard encourages participants to “be open to learning, exploring, and stepping outside of what they already know.”

“We all come from different backgrounds and may not have firsthand experience with every community we will eventually serve,” she says. “UST provides opportunities to learn about those differences while developing both practical and professional skills. Come into UST ready to learn, connect, and discover new possibilities within yourself and your future career.”

Future Paths

The Connecticut Area Health Education Center Program was established at UConn Health in 1995 with an appropriation from the Connecticut General Assembly. Today, the U.S. Bureau of Health Workforce supports the program, which is implemented through four regional centers serving the Hartford, Norwich, Waterbury, and Bridgeport areas.

For the nine social work students participating in the 2026–27 UST/AHEC cohort, the program is helping shape how they will approach their careers after graduation.

Waweru plans to work in urban health. Days is considering medical social work. Pickard hopes to stay at the nonprofit organization in Hartford where she is completing her practicum placement and possibly pursue opportunities within juvenile justice.

“One thing I especially appreciate is the interdisciplinary aspect of UST. Although our career paths may look different, we are gaining knowledge together that can help us better support people in urban, rural, and suburban communities,” Pickard says.

Although their paths may ultimately take them to different settings, Schwartz says the experiences they gain through UST/AHEC have prepared them to approach health care with the a broader perspective — “one that recognizes that improving health means understanding communities, collaborating across professions, and meeting people where they are.”

“I’ve learned a lot,” Marchak says. “I really like their mission that ‘food is health.’ I believe that nutrition really does give the body the building blocks that it needs to heal, rebuild, and recover to perform its best.”

NourishedRx is a platform that offers users personalized, data-driven nutritional plans that support overall health. The company works with individuals, food suppliers, health plans and providers, and government agencies.

This paid internship was offered through a collaboration between NourishedRx and the CAHNR Dean’s Advisory Board, of which NourishedRx founder and CEO Lauren Driscoll is a member.

“Kate was a great intern at NourishedRx,” Driscoll says. “The team really enjoyed working with her and the other interns from CAHNR.”

For the first five weeks of her remote internship, Marchak worked on outreach.

“[I’ve been] getting people enrolled, really getting people to learn more about what our mission is and what we’d love for them to be a part of,” Marchak says.

She also worked on reaching out to “silent members” who are already on the platform but not communicating with the NourishedRx team.

“Within the second week, I had learned enough to be given [that] second responsibility,” Marchak says.

For the second half of the summer, Marchak shadowed NourishedRx’s health coaches during consultations and joined meetings with registered dieticians.

“Kate quickly mastered our systems and workflows, and made a real impact on our largest outreach program,” Driscoll says. “She also joined our clinical team, where she helped to revamp our maternal health education materials – bringing creativity and real attention to detail.”

Marchak says this internship has given her a valuable perspective on how nutrition influences people’s health outcomes.

“Nourished Rx has shown me that health outcomes are influenced by much more than just medical care,” Marchak says. “Factors like nutrition, food access, and social support can determine whether a patient is able to follow through with their treatment plan…Good healthcare starts with understanding a person outside of the clinic.”

This work relates to CAHNR’s Strategic Vision area focused on Enhancing Health and Well-Being Locally, Nationally, and Globally.

Follow UConn CAHNR on social media

After ending the call, LaMark walked over to his dining room table to organize some paperwork. Without warning, he became sweaty and clammy.

“It happened immediately,” LaMark recalls. “I just knew something wasn’t right.”

At first, he wondered whether he was coming down with the flu. But as he walked to another room to check his blood pressure, he developed intense pain in his jaw. LaMark remembered learning years earlier that pain in the jaw, chest or arm could signal a serious heart problem.

That memory prompted him to call 911.

Emergency medical responders arrived at his home within minutes and transported him to UConn John Dempsey Hospital’s Emergency Department. Tests revealed that LaMark was experiencing an aortic dissection, a life-threatening emergency caused by a tear in the inner layer of the aorta, the body’s largest artery.

He needed surgery immediately.

“The aorta is normally about the size of a garden hose and carries high-pressure, oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the rest of the body,” explains Dr. Michael Siegenthaler, cardiothoracic surgeon at UConn Health’s Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center.

The wall of the aorta is made up of several layers. When a tear develops in its inner layer, blood can force its way between those layers and separate them.

“You can think of the wall as having layers similar to an onion skin,” Siegenthaler says. “Once the innermost layer tears, the blood can shear those layers apart along the aorta.”

The resulting separation can interfere with blood flow to the heart, brain, intestines and other vital organs. Depending on the location and extent of the dissection, it can cause a heart attack, stroke, organ damage or sudden death. When the portion of the aorta closest to the heart is involved, emergency open-heart surgery is generally needed.

“As soon as we see these patients in the emergency department, we go directly to the operating room,” Siegenthaler says. “There is no time to wait.”

LaMark arrived at UConn Health just as Siegenthaler was beginning his cardiac surgery practice there. He was called to the hospital that evening to perform the emergency operation.

LaMark became his first patient at UConn Health.

“Everything aligned,” LaMark says. “Thank God he was there, because he saved my life.”

The operation required stopping LaMark’s heart temporarily and lowering his body temperature while the damaged portion of his aorta was repaired. Following surgery, he remained in the intensive care unit until Siegenthaler determined that he was ready to return home.

LaMark remembers Siegenthaler as compassionate, attentive and exceptionally thorough.

“He is such a wonderful person,” LaMark says. “He is very kind and very detailed. From the time I was discharged, he made sure that everything was followed closely.”

LaMark’s recovery was complicated by the fact that he had undergone back surgery only three weeks before his aortic emergency. After spending time in the hospital and undergoing major heart surgery, he was surprised by how quickly he had lost strength.

“When I got home, I was incredibly weak,” he says. “It was hard for me to walk, and I needed to use a walker.”

Home nursing and therapy helped him begin rebuilding his strength. Siegenthaler and his team continued to monitor him closely through follow-up appointments and imaging, including MRI, CT and ultrasound examinations.

LaMark experienced additional setbacks that required two brief returns to the hospital. Despite those challenges, he continued to improve. Today, his aortic repair is doing well, and his follow-up visits have become less frequent.

Aortic dissection is not the same as an aortic aneurysm, although the two conditions can be related. An aneurysm occurs when an area of the aorta becomes enlarged or weakened. A dissection occurs when a tear develops within the artery’s wall.

Some people with an enlarged aorta can be monitored and treated before a dissection occurs. However, many patients do not know their aorta is enlarged because it may not cause symptoms and is sometimes discovered incidentally during imaging for another condition.

High blood pressure is among the most common risk factors for aortic dissection, according to Siegenthaler. Certain inherited or genetic conditions can also weaken the aortic wall and increase a person’s risk.

Symptoms can vary. Some people experience sudden, severe pain in the chest or back, but others may have less dramatic discomfort. Symptoms can also include shortness of breath, sweating, weakness, fainting, stroke-like symptoms or pain that travels to the neck or jaw.

Siegenthaler emphasizes that new or unexplained chest discomfort should never be ignored, even when it seems bearable.

“People often seek help when the pain is severe, but some patients have symptoms that are less intense and may be easier to dismiss,” he says. “If you experience new chest pain or discomfort, it is important to have it evaluated.”

Regular primary care visits, good blood pressure control and appropriate monitoring for those known to have an enlarged aorta can all help reduce risk. Patients diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm should be followed by a specialist who can determine how frequently imaging is needed and whether medical or surgical treatment is appropriate.

LaMark credits his survival to recognizing that his symptoms were unusual and seeking emergency care without delay. His jaw pain was the warning sign that convinced him not to wait.

“That was the trigger for me to call,” he says. “I knew something was wrong.”

LaMark hopes sharing his experience will encourage others to listen to their bodies and take unfamiliar symptoms seriously.

“If something doesn’t feel right, get it checked,” he says. “It’s better to find out that it’s nothing than to wait.”

For Siegenthaler, LaMark’s story demonstrates what can happen when a patient recognizes a warning sign, emergency responders act quickly and an experienced cardiac surgery team is ready.

For LaMark, it is much more personal.

“Dr. Siegenthaler saved my life,” he says.

As the years have passed, FYBS continues to grow into something more — something not just for kids to use, but also something the adults in their lives could experience alongside them. Work in elementary schools extended into community events for the whole family, and adaptations brought new materials to resonate across developmental ages and caregiving settings. With each new request to create new tools, the team wrestled with the seemingly simple question: What could an expanded Feel Your Best Self world look like?

“When we first launched FYBS, we had a clear picture of the people we were creating it for — elementary-aged kids and their caregivers,” says Emily Wicks, co-founder of FYBS. “What we didn’t anticipate was how many different ways people would want to use these tools. That’s pushed us to think beyond the original tool kit and imagine how FYBS can grow to meet people where they are, at different ages and in different settings.”

Adapting for Early Childhood

The first path for expansion came through requests from early childhood educators. The team worked to adapt the original puppet videos into a series of animated shorts.

The work on creating the FYBS animated shorts was recognized this year through the 47th Annual Telly Awards, which honor excellence in video and television across all screens. They won three Telly Awards: Silver Telly Awards in Animated Film & Shorts – Kids & Family and in Online – Education & Discovery, and a Bronze Telly Award in Online – Education & Discovery.

At the same time, FYBS songs and new activities were added to build foundations of emotion vocabulary and recognition. The collection of resources for young learners and their caregivers continues to grow. For example, the team is currently working to curate and expand FYBS early childhood materials. With funding provided through a UConn Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP) Poverty and Health Seed Grant, Jessica Koslouski, assistant research professor in educational psychology, is leading a team (along with FYBS co-founder Sandra Chafouleas and Kim Gans, professor in human development and family sciences) to test usability in family childcare homes.

The need for tools to navigate big feelings doesn’t disappear as children grow. — Sandra Chafouleas, co-founder of Feel Your Best Self and Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor

Expanding to Adolescents

Although Feel Your Best Self was initially developed for an audience of kindergarten through second grade, the team has increasingly seen its strategies resonate with adolescent populations. The team has collaborated with Connecticut school counselors to deliver workshops to middle and high school students. Students may receive an introduction to FYBS strategies as part of wellness initiatives, where they take ownership of those tools, building and creating skits to show strategy use in their own lives or developing lessons they can later share with younger students in their school district.   

As one example, Wicks and implementation coordinator Molly Ferreira presented to a group of high school students at The NAN Project’s annual Empowering Youth Voices Summit. Students had the opportunity to explore FYBS strategies, discuss ways to adapt them into their own settings, and get creative with some fun, hands-on puppet-making.

For the FYBS team, working with high school students has been exciting, but a little nerve-racking.

“Initially, we thought we’d be laughed off the stage,” Ferreira says. “We were nervous that these students would take one look at these strategies and immediately tune out. Instead, what we got were thoughtful conversations about where and how they could use these strategies in their own lives — even ways they could use the strategies quietly in the middle of class, without anyone else knowing.”

The experience offered an important reminder: “Although the way a strategy is introduced may look different across ages, the need for tools to navigate big feelings doesn’t disappear as children grow,” Chafouleas says.

And middle and high school students aren’t the only new audience finding their way to FYBS; so are the adults raising and teaching them. As FYBS reached more caregivers across different settings, the team saw that adults wanted something built just for them.

From Puppets to Podcasts for Grown-Ups

As the audience for FYBS has rapidly expanded around the globe, the need to scale dissemination became evident. Additional resources to help caregivers across school, family, and community settings have been added to make it easy to understand the what, the why, and the how of FYBS. The team also saw an opportunity to create something specifically for adults as caregivers tasked with supporting children through big feelings.

The result? The FYBS Playbook: Big Feelings, Real Caregiving—Toddlers to Teens, a podcast created and hosted by psychologist Chafouleas and special educator Koslouski.

Both moms, Chafouleas and Koslouski bring decades of real-life caregiving experience to the podcast. It brings together the research that has shaped their careers with the realities of everyday caregiving, offering science-backed tools, honest conversations, and practical support for navigating big feelings across developmental stages.

“The FYBS Playbook podcast gives us space to connect directly with adults, not just about supporting the kids they’re caring for,” Chafouleas says. “We have clearly seen how FYBS resonates with caregivers on its own terms, so we are leaning into that.”

Season 1 of The FYBS Playbook is available through the Feel Your Best Self Facilitator YouTube channel and on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and on other podcast-playing platforms.

From puppets and animated shorts to songs, community events, and a podcast for caregivers, FYBS continues to find new ways to meet people where they are.

“What began as a toolkit for helping elementary-aged children navigate big feelings has grown into a collection of resources that adapt across ages, settings, and stages of life,” Chafouleas says. “And this is just the beginning.”

Feel Your Best Self is currently made possible through the generous support of the Neag Foundation, with previous support provided by Principal Foundation and others. To learn more about Feel Your Best Self, visit feelyourbestself.org.