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A Flurry of Fulbright Work Part 1- Teaching and Training

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Shortly after my January post about the ebb and flow of my Fulbright work in Uganda, we took a  unforgettable trip in February to the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania and Zanzibar. Upon return, the days of my leisurely professional navel gazing and fulfilling the often overlooked goal of rest in an academic sabbatical gave way to a flurry of work activity over the past 3 months. This blog highlights the diverse and wonderful teaching and training activities since March that have spanned both Uganda and South Africa.  March and April brought opportunities to teach graduate and undergraduate public health students at Makerere School of Public Health (MakSPH). I taught Master of Public Health (MPH) students qualitative research methods as part of a Research Module. This was taught virtually, which can be challenging at times due to cuts in electricity or gaps in internet access. Nonetheless, it was a wonderful opportunity both to engage and learn more about nearly 100 students acros...
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The Ebb and Flow of My Fulbright Work in Uganda

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My work life as a Fulbright here in Uganda has ebbed and flowed over the past 4 months. On one hand, I strive to be mindful and savor the benefit of sabbatical from much of my WMU work (see prior post on professional navel gazing). The past three academic years spanning 2019-2022 were incredibly intense. They included a season of expected career milestones such as applying for tenure and promotion as well self-driven pursuit of sabbatical and the Fulbright. However, they occurred with added stress and exhaustion within the context of uncontrollable, external factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, societal and political turmoil, and the precarious and uncertain state of the higher education sector. There has been an intensity and pace that I cannot maintain moving forward without burning out, so I am working hard to embrace this time to reflect, reset, and establish- or at least aim to establish- a healthier routine for work. And then, on the other hand, I am constantly aware that the 9...
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Professional Identity Reflections as Procrastination (The Art of Navel Gazing)

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I have been mulling over how to approach writing a "professional" blog during my time in Uganda for quite a while now. Part of the reason for the delay my long-held professional identity that leans away from traditional, more biomedical approaches to "public health".  This has been the case for much of my nearly 25-year career (What??? How can it be that long?).  My first professional experience post-MPH was working in Uganda on health in the context of international development. Then, I eventually landed on an Interdisciplinary Ph.D. program as opposed to public health. However, as I have had the great privilege of engaging in interdisciplinary research with a political scientist and IR expert over the past decade, my focus on delving more deeply into the social, cultural, and political aspects affecting public health has sharpened substantially. Additionally, as I have honed love, commitment to, and experience with community-centered, qualitative research that I s...
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