USA Medical Students Attend 'Raise 251' Exhibit

USA medical students attend the 'Raise 251' exhibit at the Alabama Contemporary Art Museum.

Students from the University of South Alabama College of Medicine recently attended "Raise 251" at the Alabama Contemporary Art Museum. In partnership with the USA Center for Healthy Communities, the museum hosted the exhibit focused on community health and highlighting food deserts in the Mobile area using the photovoice technique, evidence-based sculptures and paintings.

The students represented USA's Public Health Interest Group, a student-led organization established in fall 2018 to explore topics pertaining to public health.

“We hope to expose students and faculty to the broad scope of public health through lectures and events, integrate workshops and hands-on experiences, and then translate their interest into practice within the community,” said Gisella Mancarella Ward, a second-year medical student and president of USA's Public Health Interest Group.

Amanda Solley, executive director of the Alabama Contemporary Art Center, said, “It is important for medical students and medical health professionals to be familiar with the unique health needs of the communities in which they work, and it has been an honor for Alabama Contemporary to help connect the arts to this initiative.”

The Alabama Contemporary Art Museum will host a second iteration of the exhibit Feb. 8 through March 29, focusing on the Cambodian and Laotian communities seeded in Bayou La Batre, Ala. Learn more about "Raise 251.2: Cambodian and Laotian Culture in Bayou La Batre."