DePauw Scholar Studies Public Health At Harvard

Peter Gorman, a senior at DePauw University, attended the prestigious Fostering Advancement & Careers through Enrichment Training in Science (FACETS) program at Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health this summer.

FACETS provides participants with exposure to the range and applicability of public health. Participants complete introductory coursework in epidemiology and biostatistics, attend lectures and embark on a group research project with an assigned Harvard faculty member as mentor.

Peter’s interest in public health began when he was in middle school and his mother was confronted with a physical disability. He watched her struggle without health insurance and became passionate about improving access to quality health care. As a teenager, Peter worked three jobs to help his family financially, all while serving as student council president of his high school.

On campus at DePauw, Peter has been chosen as a Bonner Scholar, receiving a community service scholarship which placed him at the local Putnam County Hospital as a volunteer. He has co-founded an organization on campus for first-generation college students.

“Helping people and mentorship are very important to me,” says Peter. “Setting up a space on campus for first-generation students to talk about issues that affect them was very exciting.”

Peter has traveled with DePauw to Ecuador, Cuba and the Dominican Republic to help set up rural health clinics. The group also met with doctors and health officials from the respective countries to learn more about their healthcare systems.

This past spring, Peter studied abroad in Geneva, Switzerland, and interned at the World Health Organization. He looks forward to all that senior year holds, and hopes to pursue medical school after graduation.