Sukriti Raut, Colby-Sawyer College

Sukriti is passionate about her major, health care management and is active in putting what she is learning into immediate practice. Some examples are that she has interned at New London Hospital and has sponsored the community Wellness Connection survey on campus. She initiated and chairs a Wellness Team on campus. The Team is comprised of staff and faculty and is student led by Sukriti. The initial focus has been employee wellness. To date, she has facilitated the wellness survey, and developed a mission and branding with the team. Sukriti has interned at our on Campus Baird Health and Counseling Center and helped in wellness activity promotion such as alcohol and drug awareness; she has also been a peer mentor for student success. Sukriti leads the newly formed Medical Reserve Corp club on campus. This is a government accredited civilian emergency response team. Members complete specific training such as Incident Command Management to become certified and participate in the Greater Sullivan health area response network. The club has run health based community events such as walk New London for diabetes and the Let’s Move event that engaged campus and community members in wellness activities. All of the above mentioned activities led by Sukriti engage the community, seek long term benefits through wellness, address social issues, and engage others.
-Thomas Galligan, Jr., President

The Newman Civic Fellowship will mainly provide me an encouragement to continue on the path of community service. I have taken the initiative to address the issue of health and wellness at Colby-Sawyer College (CSC) and the New London community by successfully forming a wellness committee and facilitating measurable methods and action plans to fulfill the health needs and interests. I have learnt that any public health approach is time-consuming and needs public buy-in, which is why both patience and perseverance are important. I have also been one of the founding members of CSC’s first public health student club in collaboration with the Greater Sullivan Medical Reserve Corps Unit, which prepares student members as first emergency respondents and also involves them in organization of public health events. Lastly, through my involvement in the college’s student peer mentor group, I have been providing resources and one-to-one support in the areas of academics, social, emotional, and wellness needs, especially to the first-generation college students. From all these experiences, I have been able to garner problem solving, decision-making, critical thinking, and leadership skills, which have made me a more learned person with a sense of integrity and continuous responsibility.
-Sukriti Raut