Since matriculating into Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Meaghan Mormann ’16 has held leadership positions in the American Medical Association, the American Medical Student Association, and the Latino and Native American Medical Association. She has also volunteered with the Care Free Clinic pharmacy assistance program and with Cristo Rey Community Health Center in Lansing providing translation services in their primary care clinic. Her fluency in Spanish and work with underserved, immigrant patient populations led Meaghan to join the College’s Leadership in Medicine for the Underserved certificate program. Through this program she has worked intimately with Flint’s Pediatric Public Health Initiative, engaging with many of the issues left in the wake of the Flint Water Crisis. She has aided in the distribution of food and water to members of the community and assisted on a project to teach children about several health-related topics including physical activity, use of the internet, mental and sexual health. Meaghan has also worked with Flint Public Schools to bring HIV/AIDS and Hands-Only CPR training to those middle-schools and high-school students. She has also helped to develop a curriculum to promote self-efficacy skills to residents of a transitional living residence for runaway youth. Meaghan has also participated in several research projects investigating barriers to reproductive health care amongst Latina patients and surveying the Hispanic/Latino communities in Flint related to their experiences with the Flint Water Crisis. She presented this first project at the 41st Annual Family Medicine Research Day. Meaghan earned Honors in her Surgery I, Surgery II, Psychiatry, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine and Pediatrics clerkships. Meaghan was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society Gamma Chapter on November 15, 2019. Meaghan earned her MD and will be completing her residency in pediatrics at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and hopes to build a career working within a critical care environment with patients who are underserved.

Thank-A-Giver Day (TAG Day) is Monday, February 10. This day provides the IWU campus community with the opportunity to thank donors who support Illinois Wesleyan. IWU celebrates each year in mid-February because it marks the symbolic point during the academic year – about 70% of the way through – when we rely on support from alumni and friends, our endowment, and external grants.  

If you would like to be celebrated as a donor today, you can make a gift at iwu.edu/give. 

Amanda Macuiba ’16 qualified for the Olympic Trials in the marathon, set to take place in February. Amanda ran the California International Marathon in 2:44:29, beating the qualifying time of 2:45:00. Click here to read more about Amanda’s accomplishment.

Good luck, Amanda! We are rooting for you!

Thank you to Moyo Ajayi ’16 for participating in the Hart Career Center luncheon with students on November 13th, which included alumni of finance, accounting, business, and computer science backgrounds.

Lia Gewargis (Analitis) ‘16 and Raymond Gewargis were wed on July 27, 2019 in Atheras, Kefalonia, Greece.

Congratulations to the happy couple!

Mrs. Lia Gewargis ’16 and Mr. Raymond Gewargis

Bridesmaids included Lauren (Estes) Del Ciello ’16 (sixth from left), Kacie Graves ’16, Allie Handzel ’16 (first from left), Anna Lowenthal ’16 (tenth from left) and Lizzy Sanders ’16 (third from left) and children of Bob Gulino ’97 and Mollie Thompson Gulino ’97 twelfth, thirteenth and fifteenth from left)

Zack Talbert ’16 has won the Morrison Swine Innovator Prize for his design to improve the efficiency of fumigating rooms in the pork industry. To read more about his accomplishment, click here.

University of Minnesota veterinary professor Perle Zhitnitskiy, DVM, MSpVM, congratulates Morrison Swine Innovator Prize winner Zack Talbert, a University of Illinois veterinary student

Congratulations, Zack!!