Ep 36: Sista, Sista! Graduate School Years - The Work

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The good conversations just keep coming! In this episode we meet Dr. Ijeoma Kola, a historian of public health with an emphasis on race and medicine; her current research focuses on the evolution of the understanding of asthma in Black urban communities in the 20th century. In short, she is a storyteller—pulling together the full narrative, or history, of medical and health innovations and their impacts on broader communities. In addition to looking at the broad impacts of health and medicine, Ijeoma also has a specific interest in understanding how individuals and communities view their own health and their relationship within the larger medical institution. As a researcher and historian, Ijeoma has several publications and she is now in the process of writing a book on the history of the rise of asthma in the Black community. The book will cover the early perception of asthma as a predominantly White, elite illness to the present day, with asthma mostly impacting Black urban communities. When she is not writing and researching, Ijeoma is the founder and executive director of Cohort Sistas, a mentoring organization that supports black women and non-binary doctoral students through building community and providing resources to help individuals succeed and thrive through their graduate education. Her own experience as a doctoral student was isolating, stressful, and even miserable in some instances, and she wants to change this for the next generation, especially for underrepresented scholars. “The entire goal and vision is to be able to provide folks with the resources, mentorship, and community I wish I had when I was getting my Ph.D.,” she explains. Ultimately, she hopes to grow the Cohort Sistas community to 10,000 scholars to capture individuals at many stages of their training.

Tune into this episode to hear Ijeoma’s thoughts on:

• Starting your own nonprofit to support students
• Finding community during your graduate school journey
• What it means to be a public health historian and how this research impacts our understanding of current health issues
• How to join Cohort Sistas or become involved in the growing community

Reach out to Ijeoma: [e-mail]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ijeomakola/
And be on the lookout for her book!
More about Cohort Sistas: https://www.cohortsistas.org
To join Cohort Sistas: https://community.cohortsistas.org

Other Great Episodes:

Ep 17: Mentors of Incalculable Worth - Anthology
Ep 13: Estrogen Heals Both Sexes - The Work
Ep 20:

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