Connie Ni is a College of Arts and Sciences student planning on majoring in Health and Societies and double minoring in Chemistry and Consumer Psychology. She is excited to combine her interests in health, policy, and human rights as an SNF Paideia Fellow to explore how dialogue, citizenship, wellness, and service intersect to influence socioeconomic determinants of health to ultimately determine quality of life. Connie hopes to improve her ability to discuss polarizing issues and cultivate necessary conversations to apply those skills towards a career in medicine and policy to further healthcare equity. In her future career, she desires to build a society where all human dignity is equally respected, and all people can access care.
In high school, Connie helped pilot a free, virtual healthcare summer camp for elementary and middle school students across the United States during the original COVID-19 quarantine and saw firsthand the necessity of starting conversations around dialogue and wellness even with students at a young age. She also interned on a local political campaign for Senate and was Vice-President of Model U.N. for her school’s Debate Club, where she discovered the importance of having productive conversation, especially across the political divide in a conservative state. In helping start a student health council at her high school, she also served as Director of Social Outreach in implementing and promoting school initiatives around wellness in a divisive time on COVID-19 and vaccines.
At Penn, Connie is involved with Shelter Health Outreach Program, where she is also on the Policy and Outcomes Committee helping pilot a network of pop-up health clinics in Philadelphia. She serves as Communications Manager for Wharton Undergraduate Healthcare Club’s Incubator Program, where the committee helps develop healthcare entrepreneurship startups to solve healthcare needs and inequities. Connie also dances with CityStep to teach dance to elementary and middle school students in West Philadelphia. She was also a Fall 2022 Medical Humanities Fellow with the Collegium Institute, where they discussed patient-physicians relationship, core values of medical practice, wellness, and end-of-life care.