Alumni Spotlight

In late June, 2007 Kristen Lessl landed at Boston’s Logan Airport to participate in the Four Directions Summer Research Program (FDSRP).  Although she was only 19 at the time, Kristen’s bright green eyes sparkled with ambition.  She had just finished her first year at the University of Michigan on a full scholarship, where she would eventually earn a degree in Anthropology & Zoology.

However, it was not until she began the program that she discovered her passion for public health.  Kristen admitted that “I did not even know it existed until I found out one of the coordinators had an MPH…when we volunteered at the Indian Health Services, I knew public health was what I wanted to do with my life.”  In September 2009, Kristen will continue to towards this goal when she begins studying at Harvard University’s School of Public Health.  She describes her acceptance to the prestigious institution as her greatest accomplishment, but one that would not have been possible without the influence of the Four Directions Summer Research Program.  “It [the FDSRP] made me re-evaluate and gave me the confidence I needed to make my decision…if I had not had this experience I would have never had the courage to apply to Harvard for graduate school.”

Since her time with the FDSRP, Kirsten’s zeal and drive for medical education has earned her a summer internship with the National Institute of Health at the National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases; in addition to a fellowship through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.  After graduating with her MPH from Harvard, Kristen wants to be in a position where she can help alleviate the pain and suffering of Native American people, in addition to other disadvantaged and underprivileged communities where disparity in health care is often the norm.  “If I can prevent one person from needlessly suffering,” she says, “I will have accomplished my goals.”