From Classroom to Community: Recent Fairhaven grad explores public health in the Dominican Republic
Iris Seiwerath graduated from Western’s Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies in June with a self-designed interdisciplinary bachelor’s degree in public health. In particular, Seiwerath focused on the interconnectedness of food justice and reproductive justice and how that can lead to collective healing in communities.
In winter quarter of her third year, under Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies Professor Hilary Schwandt, Seiwerath had the opportunity to put her community health knowledge to work during a transformative study abroad program in the Dominican Republic, where they focused on local Dominican and Haitian immigrant communities.
Schwandt not only directed the study abroad program, she worked alongside the students.
“Iris and I engaged in public health work around one of our shared passions of reproductive health in the two communities we were engaged with,” Schwandt said. “I appreciated Iris’s thoughtful approach to the work, presence with the community members and reflections on the process for community members and themself.”
This study abroad program is an academically rigorous, language and public health program facilitated by local Dominican community health leaders and language teachers. Western students who participate in this program are placed with local host families up in the hills of Bella Vista near Sosua, a small beach town.
“I lived with my host-mom for the whole winter quarter. I felt like I was really part of the family, and one of the biggest highlights is that I developed really special connections with my host-mom’s granddaughters — they’re like a second family to me. I’ve been texting with my host mom a lot and plan to visit her in the next year,” said Seiwerath.
Seiwerath and fellow WWU students trained in Spanish for three hours a day, and Schwandt learned with them.
“Learning Spanish from our Dominican language instructors alongside Iris for eight weeks in the Dominican Republic was one of the most fun and invigorating learning experiences of my life,” said Schwandt.
They had Spanish class early each morning for a few hours — with one teacher to every four students — then they’d do Spanish homework before lunch. After lunch, the students participated in scheduled activities like touring nearby Santiago De Los Caballeros or digging into their various public health projects.
During the program, Schwandt’s students were involved with Dr. Reginald Kerolle’s community health initiative in and around Sosua. Its goal is to end health disparities between Dominicans and Haitian immigrants, who often live in overcrowded, low-income, temporary housing.
To that end, Seiwerath and her WWU colleagues were trained to conduct community health surveys and interactive workshops in Spanish, with a Haitian Creole translator when needed, in both populations. The surveys were designed to better understand participant household needs when it comes to income, health concerns and access to food, water and contraceptives.
“This trip really made me realize — especially when volunteering for Dr. Kerolle — how important public health is, how broad of a field it is and how so much of it is environmental,” Seiwerath said.
For her work in reproductive health and justice, Seiwerath led workshops about family planning and contraceptives. She said she enjoyed the opportunity to do body mapping with the local communities and talk about various methods of birth control.
“A lot of women said that they understand contraceptives well, but their husbands don’t get it because they don’t have to deal with it. The women were able to connect with each other — and sometimes laugh and joke about it,” said Seiwerath. “It was such a good opportunity to lead these public health workshops and speak in real medical Spanish, which I’ll be using when I go into public health work as a professional.”
Seiwerath said the program offered a variety of projects students could get involved with, like painting houses and garden work. Because of Seiwerath’s focus on food justice, she helped expand a sustainable community garden on a large plot of land where they planted sunflowers, potatoes, radishes and other foods.
“All our host families were living together in the hills and forest. Everything they ate already came from a sustainable farm and coffee farm they were building — cows and chickens, everything. My stomach felt incredible the whole time I was there, and I learned a lot about Dominican sustainable farming practices,” said Seiwerath.
Through surveying, Western’s study abroad students collected and coded the necessary data, put it into excel documents and shared with Dr. Kerolle. Then he was able to roll out a new community health initiative and facilitate access to IUDs, condoms and further education about family planning based on the needs of the community.
“People we spoke to were really grateful for these services, so they were really open about their answers about their health issues and needs, which was really cool. Some people didn’t have running water. A lot of people used charcoal or gas stoves, so we were trying to replace them with electric stoves for their health and the environment,” Seiwerath said.
Seiwerath said she benefitted from excellent mentorship during her time as an undergrad and while studying abroad.
“Hilary was amazing on the trip. I got to know her really well, and she became my undergrad advisor when we got back. She’s awesome and did a great job of organizing and leading the study abroad,” said Seiwerath. “I was feeling very lost before this trip, and I wasn’t sure what to do next. Going to the Dominican Republic was a transformative experience, and I wouldn’t be on this same track without it. It helped me realize what my passions are and allowed me to connect deeply to the people around me.”
Professor Schwandt is still recruiting students to join a new cohort of undergraduates in Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies to study abroad in the Dominican Republic with Schwandt in January 2026.
Allie Spikes covers the WWU Graduate School and Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies for University Communications. Reach out to her with story ideas at spikesa@wwu.edu.