Congratulations to Associate Professor Natalia Villegas Rodriguez, PhD, MSN, RN, IBCLC, FAAN, who was recently named a member of the ninth class of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholars.
The Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholars program brings together selected faculty from across campus to engage in a two-year competency-based experience designed to advance their engaged scholarship. Natalia and her fellow scholars will engage in community settings, fostering new interdisciplinary collaborations, refining their individual projects, and benefiting from the guidance of both experienced faculty mentors and community partners.
With her sights set on meaningful contributions, Natalia shares her aspirations over the course of this program, “My goal during the 2 years of this program is to enhance my current partnerships and expand my connections with other community organizations as well as the NC Department of Health to reduce HIV related disparities among vulnerable populations in NC, specifically the Latino population.”
Natalia understands the significance of community collaboration, emphasizing, “I see the need to improve our partnerships with the community. I know that improving these partnerships we will have the opportunity to educate the community about health promotion and prevention, and to also provide valuable information that can improve their quality of life.”
The Carolina Center for Public Service leads the Faculty Engaged Scholars project, from the selection of members to programming to staying engaged with the growing network of scholars. The project is supported through the Chancellor Holden Thorp Endowment Fund. Since its inception in 2007, a total of 83 faculty members have been selected for the program, with representatives from all of Carolina’s professional schools and the College of Arts and Science.