My name is Ada Dieke. I am a first year MPH student in the Maternal and Child Health concentration and a first year Project EXPORT Fellow. When I first became a fellow, I was curious about the project that I would be working on. Would it be hands on? Will I have direct contact with the community? Will I gain more insight to existing health disparities? Are there children around? Am I able to put my “two cents” in? As these questions circled around in my head one of my mentors, Martha Monroy, the Southside Tucson Outreach Coordinator, introduced me to a program that fulfilled all my interests and answered all my questions. Challenger Middle School, a school in the Elvira Neighborhood, created a program that is designed to raise awareness about diabetes among its students. The program, “Defeating Diabetes Through Dance and Diet,” educates students about the diabetic condition and ways to manage it, such as, through improved nutrition and increased physical activity. Students meet after school one day a week and classes alternate between nutrition education and hip-hop dance instruction. I feel that the students get comprehensive tools; they not only learn about nutrition, but they get to cook healthy and culturally-appropriate foods and they participate in a physical activity that they all seem to love: hip-hop dance.
Diabetes disproportionately affects minorities. Younger and younger children are being diagnosed with Type II diabetes, a condition usually found among adults. That’s why this program is important. I am thrilled to play a role in helping to fight diabetes. This program was a great match for myself because it incorporated many of my own personal and professional interests. It deals with children, health disparities affecting minorities, dance, community interaction, and more.
I can remember meeting the wonderful counselors at Challenger Middle School, Sagrario Espinosa and Maritza Galant-Molin, to discuss my role in this program. At first my role was to be supportive, but interestingly enough, I have become very “hands on.” I plan and teach the mini-diabetes lessons/activities before the counselors teach about cooking and nutrition. The students have made shrimp ceviche (oh, so good), shish kebobs with brown rice, and gazpacho. Martha Monroy thought it would be a good idea to do a game for the kids so I created a Family Feud-like game to help reinforce what I taught them about diabetes. It’s funny how things work out, but the counselors also needed a hip-hop dance instructor, a role in which I immediately stepped into since I’ve taught this activity in the past. We are currently working on a dance routine that the kids may perform at the local school talent show.
It’s remarkable to work with children in the Tucson community; a community I’ve lived in for almost 11 years. Currently, we are looking for various funding opportunities to sustain the project and to expand it to other schools and communities. I thoroughly enjoy my interactions with the middle school students. The moments where I joke around with the kids and we call each other nicknames (i.e., my new nickname is A-Dizzle) are priceless. Another funny moment occurs when I join them in their Spanish conversations. It’s hilarious! Out of nowhere I ask them, “Que tú dices?” At first, they looked surprised since they don’t expect me to speak Spanish. Now, they readily help me with speaking Spanish when needed.
The wonderful thing about my project is that it seems to plant seeds in the students’ brains about diabetes prevention and management. I really hope that the program makes an impact and provides the students with the skills that they can continue to use for the rest of their lives.
By Ada Dieke, Fellow 2005 - 2007
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