This fall, Project Life Movement (PLM) partnered with Bendict College professor, Dr. Tami Ashford-Carroll, and her freshman public health class for their 3rd annual service-learning project. Project Life Movement Campus Coordinator, Meghan Berglund, spoke to these students about the importance of the global stem cell/marrow registry and how they can make an impact for blood cancer patients. The students then devised strategies on how to encourage members of the student body to sign up at their upcoming campus event.
As a HBCU campus, these students understand the urgency of diversifying the registry. Blood cancer patients match with donors who have similar genetic makeups, meaning they are likely to match with an individual of the same ethnicity. Currently, African American/Black patients have a 29% chance of finding their match on the registry, as ethnic minorities are desperately underrepresented. The public health students at Benedict look to their community to help battle these disparities on the registry.
Over the three-day event on BC’s campus, our student volunteers were able to break a campus record and add 142 new individuals to the global registry. Through their tireless efforts and encouragement, they are hoping to find someone who may match with and donate to a patient in need. Since partnering with PLM in the fall of 2023, Dr. Ashford-Carroll’s public health class has signed up over 300 individuals on the registry, continuing to make a difference for the community.