Graduate students serving as Samaritan’s Purse interns overseas

Four Liberty University Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) students and a recent graduate are gaining experience overseas this semester through internships with Samaritan’s Purse, one of the largest Christian international aid organizations.

Graduate students Elisabeth Stump, Sean Bear, Rebecca Walsh, and Baraka Muvuka, as well as recent M.P.H. graduate Leighton Norvell, are Liberty’s first students from the M.P.H. program to be accepted as SP interns. They are working to educate residents of South Sudan, Haiti, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo on proper public health practice.

SP regularly sends representatives to campus to recruit students for jobs and internship opportunities.

“We like hiring Liberty students because we’ve found them to be strong in their faith and committed to the cause of spreading the Gospel,” said Stephen Rhoads, Samaritan’s Purse campus relations manager. “The students are also globally aware and eager to use their God-given talents to make a considerable impact on a hurting world for Jesus’ sake. I think that Liberty and Samaritan’s Purse share similar convictions about the fundamental challenges facing our world today.”

Dr. Richard Lane, director of the M.P.H. program, said acceptance into the internship program is an honor and that although the students each possessed an impressive academic record, it was their passion for Christ that made them a natural match.

Norvell, who earned her M.P.H. in 2014, is currently stationed in a small town in Uganda in a region filled with indigenous people groups and breathtaking mountain views. She has been assisting in the finalization of the Karamoja Integrated Maternal Child Health project (KIMCH), which aims to reduce mother and child morbidity and mortality through educating parents and children.

“Samaritan’s Purse, like Liberty, has a genuine vision to work for God’s Kingdom and serve in His name, which aligns with my own heart’s desire,” Norvell said. “My degree at Liberty provided biblical relevance that is more valuable than any textbook, and it equipped me with a spiritual perseverance that I am grateful for.”

Stump, who is specializing in global health, is stationed in a remote area of Haiti as a maternal and child health intern. The residents there lack access to basic necessities, such as shelter, food, and clean water. She is helping to gather baseline health statistics of mothers and children to develop programs and training manuals for residents. She has also been corresponding with community health promoters.

“As I sat in class, I always wondered how I would practically apply what I was learning to real life, and now here I am doing it,” Stump said. “This experience has allowed me to see what it looks like to put my degree into practice and will prepare me as I look to the future.”

Bear, whose specialization is in health promotion, is currently working at a refugee camp in war-torn South Sudan, a country that sees hundreds die each day from frequent bombings and lack of food. His responsibilities include general food distribution, working in a milling program, and warehouse maintenance for a food storage facility. He said the food supplies are often inadequate for the large demand, and, due to hostility in the region, truck deliveries are not reliable. Bear also aids a nutrition program that monitors malnutrition among children and pregnant or lactating mothers.

“What an amazing opportunity this is to be able to treat patients in the name of Jesus while developing policies and programs that have the power to affect great change and improve widespread community health,” Bear said. “Liberty University taught me a lot about the public health field and equipped me with the necessary tools to be a strong and influential man in the workforce.”

Walsh is also working in South Sudan, spending her time living among the locals near three large refugee camps and a hospital that serves the entire state. Walsh has already served in several areas of the hospital and is developing a pharmaceutical management intervention program. She is also training two residents in computer programming so that they can run the pharmacy when her internship ends.

“Even in my short time here, I have grown closer in my relationship to the Lord,” Walsh said. “I am not only applying what I have learned in public health at Liberty, but also the patience and faithfulness in prayer that I learned.”

Muvuka is stationed in her home country of the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is still suffering from decades of a brutal civil war.

“They are in great need of development projects, but in greatest need for spiritual care through God’s Word,” Muvuka said.

She is serving the area through three of SP’s maternal and child health projects: the Agriculture and Nutrition Transformation project (ANT), Nutrition and Maternal Education and Development project (NAMED), and a malaria prevention project. She assists the program manager with assessments, program implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.

“Everything I have learned from Liberty has and (continues to) enable me to excel during this internship since all of the concepts and issues taught in class are evidence-based, realistic, and currently being implemented by Samaritan’s Purse and other organizations in the community setting.”

The student interns will be returning to the United States in May.

• Liberty’s Master of Public Health program provides an educational foundation in epidemiology and biostatistics to prepare graduates for careers in health care delivery, public health, international relief, and more. The program is available both residentially and online and offers specializations in health promotion, global health, and nutrition.