For my interview I chose to meet with Brynne Presser, an employee at Columbus Public Health. I was able to get in contact with Brynne through my STEP advisor, Nicholas Funderburg. I had mentioned to my advisor that I am extremely interested in public health and I would like to know more about the different occupations that I could do with having public health as my major. Luckily, his wife (Brynne) just graduated from the Master’s of Public Health program at the Ohio State University and had recently gotten a job at CPH. I met with her at Stauf’s coffeehouse in German Village and talked to her about her work at CPH and how she ended up there. I first asked her questions about her undergraduate work and if she was involved with any clubs on campus or participated in any internships. Like me, she was involved in Greek Life and loves to travel. After her undergraduate work she talked to me about her travels to Israel, Europe, Australia, and more. After I graduate, I hope to take a year off and travel the world before going back to continue my education in a Master’s program. I asked her how she was able to afford everything without having a full-time job and I learned many tricks and tips on how to do it. I also talked about how she found her job at CPH. She explained to me that she was very interested in sexual health (as am I), and that she wanted to work in a program that allowed her to do outreach work to teens that wouldn’t normally have the access to health clinics, birth control, etc. Right now, she is working on a program that brings mobile clinics to Columbus city schools, and provides the students with resources that they can use if they are too afraid to go to their parents with their sexual health questions and needs. In the near future, I hope to do similar work and educate people on the importance of knowing and understanding your own sexual health. I was also able to talk to Brynne about her contacts at CPH in hopes of finding an internship that summer. She put me in contact with someone who is in charge of interviewing and hiring student interns. I am proud to say that I now have an internship with Columbus Public Health this summer working as a student intern for their Camp Public Health program. Additionally, she provided me with a lot of information and resources that I was interested in learning more about, and I was even able to use some of them for my class project in my intro to public health class. Meeting with Brynne and having the opportunity to interview her opened up many doors for me, and I am incredibly happy that I was able to have this experience.
2nd Year Service Project
For my 40 hour service project, I decided to work with LifeTown and Friendship Circle. LifeTown is a realistic indoor city designed specifically for children with special needs to have fun while practicing important life skills through role-play. I, along with my friend Melissa and her service dog Oskar, would volunteer every Friday morning from 9:30-12:00. For the first half hour we helped set up the city and get everything going before the kids arrived at 10:00. Once the kids arrived, I choose to volunteer in the pet store. The pet store has real live turtles, snakes, rabbits, guinea pigs, and fish. My job was to introduce the kids to the pets and teach them how to properly hold and pet them. I absolutely loved doing this job because I grew up with many animals, so I believe that every child deserves to play with animals and learn how to take care of them. At the pet store I would also work with Melissa by introducing the kids to her service dog, Oskar. He is a very calm and caring dog, so his presence made a huge impact on the kids. At first, some of the kids were a little afraid to touch and pet him, but by showing them the proper way to handle dogs, they gained more confidence and didn’t want to leave his side. Overall, volunteering with LifeTown was in incredibly positive experience. I believe that everyone deserves the chance to learn real life skills, and understand how to effectively navigate daily tasks and activities. I am proud to say that I volunteered with this organization and hope to come back often in the future.
The second organization that I volunteered with was Friendship Circle. Friendship Circle is a nonprofit organization that pairs teen and college-aged volunteers with an individual with special needs. My job at FC was to recruit volunteers from Ohio State’s campus and plan information sessions to allow them to learn more about FC and how to sign-up. I loved doing this job because I was able to meet new people and talk to them about a passion of mine- volunteering with children. I also worked with the head of FC Columbus, Esther Kaltmann. She and I worked very hard to try and volunteer many students from different organizations. These organizations include scholar’s programs, greek life, and Hillel OSU. Like LifeTown, Friendship Circle is aimed towards children with special needs and strives to give them lasting friendships with volunteers that truly care about them. What is so important about FC is that they build lasting relationships in addition to hosting weekly/monthly activities for everyone to come together and have a good time.
Do.
For the Do. portion of the Eat. Go. Do. project I went to a fitness class at the RPAC. I have always wanted to go to one, mostly because they are free. I find it very important to take time out of my schedule to focus on my health and overall well-being. I decided to go to a yoga class because I am very interested in learning more about it, and I love how yoga has the power to transform the body and mind. I went on a Sunday with my friend Lilly (in the picture). The specific class I went to is “Yoga Foundations.” In this class I learned some of the basics of yoga- focussing on the balancing aspect of it. I really enjoyed this class because of how relaxing it was. I have a lot of stress from classes and midterms so it was really nice to take time out of my day to focus on myself and my body.
Go.
For the Go. portion of the Eat. Go. Do. project I went to the Short North with two of my friends. I have heard that there are so many amazing places to go here such as restaurants and art galleries and cool little shops, so I was really excited to finally be able to go! One of my friends that came with me was visiting from out of town so I thought it would be a fun place for all of us to go. Even though it was pretty cold outside and snowing, we walked around a bit and went to dinner at Basil. At Basil we ate some amazing Thai food and got to sit together to talk and catch up. We also got a little dressed up, which is always fun to do with friends. I haven’t had a lot of time lately to go out and do fun things around Columbus because of homework and studying for exams, so this past weekend was a really special time for me because I was able to do something fun with people that I really enjoy.
Eat.
For the Eat. portion of my Eat. Go. Do. project I have decided to go to Hang Over Easy for a breakfast date with one of my friends. I live about 2 minutes (walking) from this restaurant yet I had never been there before, so I thought that I had to check it out. Also, I absolutely love breakfast/brunch food so I thought this would be a great place for it. I went with one of my friends, Lilly, who also has a passion for brunch. I ordered the “Whole Lotta Goodness.” It has french toast, sausage, cheese, eggs, and potatoes all on one plate. It was extremely tasty to say the least. One of the things that I like about myself is my ability to eat absolutely anything. I love trying new things, and the different foods on the menu were definitely not your typical breakfast foods. I can’t wait to go back with more of my friends and eat some more great food!
Final Strategic Life Plan
Throughout my short time here at Ohio State, I have come to an understanding of my strategic life plan and where I would like it to go. First of all, I am confident in my choice of major, public health, as well as the planning that I have done for this specific major. I also have a plan B in case this major does not work out the way I would like. I have an increased awareness of the resources here at OSU, and I have used a decent amount of them, including faculty office hours, libraries, and extra help with some of my course work. I am very happy to know that I go to a school that genuinely cares about me and my academic success. One of the major challenges I have faced is trying to stay healthy and well while also keeping up with my studies and classes. I am not able to say that I have fully solved this problem, but I understand what I need to do in order to maintain my health. I am focusing on going to the gym on a regular basis, as well as trying to find healthy foods around campus. I am trying to motivate myself to do these things because I know how important they are for my health and success here at OSU. I am also trying to make sure that I do a good amount of extracurricular activities. I have been having a hard time trying to make time for myself and not just for studying. I am working on becoming more active in the groups that I am currently in, and trying to find more activities that I would genuinely be interested in. I rely heavily on my friends and upperclassmen to help me figure out what I want to do here, while also paying attention to what I personally enjoy. They help answer the numerous questions that I have about this campus. Overall, I am looking forward to next semester and learning even more about this amazing university and all that it has to offer.
The amazing friends I have made so far
Moving in
Go Bucks!
Year in Review
Over this past summer, I definitely felt ready for college life, but I had no idea what exactly to expect. I was very excited that I was accepted into the HSS program, but was unsure of what exactly was expected of me for it. Coming from a very small school, I was extremely nervous and overwhelmed by how big OSU’s campus is and how many people go here. I didn’t know what it was like to attend a school with people that I did not know. After meeting the people on my floor and around the building, I felt comfortable and even more excited for my new college experience. Of course, classes were extremely challenging, but I feel as though I did a good job of managing my time and doing what was expected of me. I feel like the same person that I started the year as, but I have also matured quite a bit. I have learned that it is not enough to simply do what is expected of you. You must surpass people’s expectations and do work that you can be genuinely proud of. I am proud of myself for doing my best and making sure that I take advantage of the numerous opportunities that this university has to offer. Looking back on my time in HSS this year, I feel as though my expectations were met in the fact that I have a better understanding of what I would like to do after college and beyond. I have gained so many new resources that I use to better myself and my knowledge of the community and world around me. I look forward to continuing my learning experience as a 2nd year. I hope to complete all of the requirements, but I also hope to actually find something that I genuinely like doing in addition to them. I understand that HSS has certain requirements for a reason. It is important to understand that they are supposed to be meaningful and enjoyable. So, for next year I plan on doing things that really resonate with me, and not only do them because it is easy and convenient.
My most memorable service experience, which happened during my first semester of college, was donating blood with the American Red Cross. Although it may not be typically seen as an impactful service experience, I 100% believe it is one. I have always been nervous to donate blood, and never really knew how important it was or what it impact it held. I have a very distinct memory of when my mom decided to donate blood for the first time. She has always been very scared of needles and blood, so donating blood was never seen as an option for her. However, there was one specific time when she decided to overcome her fear and donate blood because she believed in the importance that it had on health care. Because of this, I started to understand that donating blood is an extremely important service. If my mother- a women that I greatly look up to, felt the need to donate even though it is incredibly uncomfortable for her, then I felt that I should also go through the same experience in order to help others in need. So, I donated blood. To be completely honest, it was an extremely uncomfortable and even painful experience. I don’t have a problem with needles, shots or blood, but having a needle digging in my arm for an extended amount of time was not the highlight of my week, especially because they had to poke both my arms before a vein worked. After the experience, I felt very proud of myself that I was able to donate my blood for others to use. Because I want to go into health care, I have a strong passion for helping others in this field in any way possible, and I felt that donating blood was a great way to do this. I look forward to my next donation, which will hopefully be very soon!
Resume
Jessica Lee Cohen
EDUCATION
The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH Expected Graduation Date: May 2019
B.S. Biochemistry
Oakwood High School, Dayton, OH – Graduated May 2015, GPA: 3.8
WORK EXPERIENCE
Firehouse Subs, Kettering, OH
Team Member (October 2014- January 2015)
- Greet customers, take orders, and serve food
- Gained customer service skills and worked with other crew members to create an energetic and fun-filled environment
Camp Wise, Chardon, OH
Counselor (June – August 2014) and (June – August 2015)
- Lived in a cabin with three other staff members and 14 campers
- Helped to facilitate a variety of camp activities
- Learned how to take on different leadership roles and work cohesively with other co-staff
VOLUNTEER WORK
Camp Wise, Chardon, OH
Staff in Training (June – August 2014)
- Learned how to become an outstanding staff member and worked on service projects for about 37 hours a week, 150 hours total for the summer
Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, Washington, DC
- Wrote essays on important and relevant topics and gave speeches to senators and congressman about these topics
HONORS & ACTIVITIES
College:
- Health Sciences Scholars (HSS) Program (August 2015 – Present)
- Block “O” South (August 2015 – Present)
- Rlead (August 2015)
- Buckeyes for Israel (September 2015 – Present)
High School:
- BBYO, president of Dayton chapter in addition to several other leadership positions (January 2011- May 2015)
- Women’s Tennis and Softball Team (August – November 2012, 2013) and (March – May 2012, 2013, 2014) respectively
- National Honors Society (August 2013 – May 2015)
- Ohio Model United Nations, team leader (December 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014)
QUALIFICATIONS
- CPR certified
- Responsible and works well with children
About Me
My name is Jessica Cohen and I am from Dayton, Ohio. I have lived in four different states during my childhood. Each neighborhood that I lived in provided me with all of the resources and tools to becoming the person that I am now. I am a person that loves to learn and travel. I believe that it is my responsibility as a human being to learn as much as I possibly can about life and other important topics that interest me. Throughout my life I have found that traveling is a great way to do so. During my senior year of high school I had the incredible opportunity of living in Israel for four months. During this time I went to classes on a day-to-day basis, while also going on many trips to explore the country. I learned about the history of the people, the land, and culture. I was able to learn by seeing and exploring. Going through high school I have been able to understand and explore different learning techniques and found that I love hands-on learning. I like to be able to see and feel what I am doing, which allows me to better understand and grasp key concepts. This type of learning has allowed me to discover my passion for science, and the math that comes along with it. I love that science has specific answers to questions, while also leaving room for exploration and discovery. With this passion of mine I hope to pursue a career in medicine. I want to research and discover the ways that our bodies work, and how to keep them healthy. I hope that my next four years here at OSU allow me to further my passions, and I plan on utilizing every resource that I can find.