Dr. Amy Sidwell and a student team at Fairmont State University were among 10 project winners nationwide for the 2014 Ford Community College Challenge.
The Ford College Community Challenge is designed to empower student-led projects at higher education organizations to catalyze community-building projects that address pressing local needs around the theme ‘Building Sustainable Communities.’
“As a doctoral student in CPASS, I was so fortunate to have professors who encouraged students to recognize health problems are not simply solved by one approach. My doctoral chair, Dr. Sean Bulger, has been a strong advocate for multidisciplinary work to solve health problems related to physical inactivity and poor nutrition.” Sidwell stated.
I’ve carried those lessons with me into my own classes and into my service activities,” She added.
Sidwell and her students created the project titled Bridging the Gap: Sustainable Nutrition through Community Revitalization, which draws upon students’ knowledge of gardening and will help revitalize Oliver Park in Fairmont. The proposed project will install gardens over neglected tennis courts, build a bridge to connect Oliver Park to the City’s 5th Street Park that hosts a summer feeding program. This program will also provide fresh food donations to the student pantry.
Sidwell graduated with her Master’s from the WVU School of Medicine, Department of Community Medicine and received her PhD from WVU CPASS . She currently serves as assistant professor, Health & Physical Education at FSU.