Health, Wellness and Occupational Studies students certified as Peer Health Educators

Five undergraduate UNE students certified as Peer Health Educators
Five undergraduate UNE students certified as Peer Health Educators

Through a Health, Wellness, & Occupational Studies (HWOS) internship experience, five undergraduate University of New England students recently completed training and received certification to serve as Peer Health Educators (PHE) to their classmates on the Biddeford Campus. 

“I always knew I had a passion for helping others, but wasn't quite sure how I wanted to do it,” said Laurie Pearson ’20, about the experience. “This internship made me realize I want to work on preventing illness and injury from happening in the first place."

Pearson and fellow HWOS students Loren Beale ‘19, Paige Mason '21, Meghan Rogers '21, and Camden Tillinghast '21, each earned their PHE certification after completing a series of eight online education models, and accompanying group discussions and reflective exercises. 

Rogers commented, "The conversations we had as a group were a highlight for me because I heard many perspectives on how to approach different situations."

"My other Peer Health Educators, our instructors, and I have formed a team and a sense of community, and I am excited to collaborate with everybody to create effective wellness programs," stated Tillinghast.

Throughout the training, the students gained knowledge and skills in a variety of areas, including behavior change, effective listening, responding to crises, bystander interventions, group dynamics, program development, and more. "Each week when we completed a new module, I felt as though I gained new knowledge about myself,” said Mason.

The PHE certification training is administered through NASPA, Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. The internship experience was co-taught by Eryn Neptune, M.S., UNE health and wellness educator, and Assistant Clinical Professor Collyn J. Baeder, M.P.H.

The Peer Health Educators also recently completed a community assessment of the UNE student population and they are using their training and the assessment findings to begin crafting tailored educational programs for UNE students to be offered throughout the Spring 2019 Semester. 

"I know that deep down every person has the capacity to care and evoke compassion,” Beale remarked. “As a Peer Health Educator, I choose to act upon these feelings and utilize them to inspire change in others."

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.