FIU alumnus Andres Arnavat was recently honored with the Dean’s Community Service Award. The award, which is given to students who have exceeded their community service requirement in the Honors College was presented to Arnavat by Dean Juan Espinosa.
In 2016, Arnavat began volunteering at Remote Area Medical (RAM), a non-profit organization that operates mobile clinics delivering free, high-quality vision, dental and medical care to those who do not have access or cannot afford a doctor.
“I felt it was a unique opportunity to go to an underserved community and try to get as much experience through volunteering, observing and shadowing,” said Arnavat.
Last year, Arnavat worked as a research assistant for the STEM Transformation Institute under the mentorship of Melissa McCartney. As a research assistant, he helped implement a qualitative analysis tool in collecting data to utilize the NVivo software on future research projects in the lab. He now works as a STEM academic advisor at Miami Dade College.
“Ever since my experience in STEM education, I sought to work or conduct research in that area,” said Arnavat. “I will be applying to medical school this application cycle. In the meantime, I want to continue the work and research that I am a part of. In terms of volunteering, nothing would make me more proud than to return to Remote Area Medical.”
