SC Connecticut News

Awa Cisse's life has been guided by the word téranga, a term from her native Senegal that embodies values of selflessness and generosity. This principle has steered her journey from Senegal to the United States, leading her to a life dedicated to healthcare.

As a child, frequent hospital visits sparked in Cisse an appreciation for those who provide care - not just doctors and nurses but also those whose contributions often go unrecognized. "There is this whole ecosystem of care, from the people who greet you at the front door to those who assist you when you’re leaving," said Cisse, a member of Trumbull College. "Every single piece of the puzzle is important, and it all helps make everything work. This is what inspired me to pursue a life in health care."

Cisse's path took her from nursing school in Dakar, Senegal to clinics and hospitals in Diembering, a remote village in southern Senegal. Eventually, she returned to Dakar as head nurse at a clinic. In 2018, she moved to Georgia where she was reunited with her father who had migrated earlier.

This move meant a temporary pause in her healthcare career as she worked at a call center for a year - an experience that provided both financial support and an opportunity to practice English. A year later, she resumed her studies at Georgia State University’s Perimeter College where she discovered that healthcare encompassed more than she had previously understood.

At Perimeter College, mentors helped Cisse discover new opportunities and provided transformative support. As she built up what her advisor described as a “ladder of knowledge” in the sciences, she began to appreciate the link between scientific research and clinical healthcare delivery.

While completing her associate’s degree, Cisse learned about the Eli Whitney Student Program (EWSP) which offers students with non-traditional backgrounds an opportunity for Yale College education. Despite initial skepticism about being accepted, she applied and was admitted.

In 2021, Cisse moved to New Haven and immersed herself in her new community. She enrolled in various courses, discussed school projects with classmates over pizza, and spent hours conversing with friends about school and life in Yale’s dining halls.

She continued to explore the science underpinning potential public health solutions in the lab of Amy Bei, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health. Here, researchers use pathogen genomics and field epidemiology to test the role of genetic diversity in combatting malaria. This experience allowed Cisse to conduct fieldwork in Senegal, reconnecting her with rural communities.

"I returned to these places where I’d first learned to challenge myself and to learn about health care," Cisse said. "But this time I was returning to my country as an apprentice scientist."