Augustana College students were among those who answered the call when United Way Quad Cities launched The QC Caring Assignment.

Two veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom shared their experiences with the college campus on April 30. The two Augustana College seniors highlighted their times in service, their experiences in Iraq and the challenges of transitioning to college life.

At Augustana College, the Social Action Research class tested a communication theory while gathering donations. The class raised $850 and brought in over 500 pounds of food donations to a local food bank called River Bend Food Bank.

In a new initiative, six Augustana College students are living together in Micah House, where they will engage in service and hospitality to their neighborhoods while deepening their own vocational understanding. The following students are from your area:

Twenty-two Augustana students will spend two weeks in mid-July administering medical care to impoverished Nicaraguans. The service trip gives students hands-on experience in the medical fields and immerses them in Latin American culture. It is organized through JETS (Joining Education Through Service), a student organization at Augustana. The students will be accompanied by Dr. Darrin Good, professor of biology, and three doctorsaEUR"two alumni and one the spouse of an alumna. The students will set up their free medical clinicaEUR"usually in a tent or covered pavilionaEUR"in six small Nicaraguan towns. The students will work with translators to evaluate patients' symptoms and make a preliminary diagnosis. Before prescribing treatment, they will consult with one of three Nicaraguan doctors or the three American doctors who confirm the students' diagnosis. From your area, this includes:

More than 15 aspiring doctors and nurses, one biology professor, two Augustana alumni and a Quad-City dentist will spend the next two weeks providing medical care to people in several small Nicaragua towns. The service trip was organized through JETS (Joining Education Through Service), a student organization at Augustana. The team will be in Nicaragua from February 21-March 5. The following team members are from your area:

Rock Island, IL- Twenty-two aspiring doctors and nurses, one biology professor and an Augustana alumna spent two weeks in June providing medical care to people in six small Nicaragua towns. The service trip was organized through JETS (Joining Education Through Service), a student organization at Augustana. Students saw patients in their free clinic, which they typically set up in a tent, church basement or covered pavilion. Each patient would explain his or her symptoms, through a translator, to a group of two or three Augustana students. The students would make a preliminary diagnosis and then consult with one of five Nicaraguan doctors who would make an official diagnosis. If needed, the patient would receive free medicine or health supplies from the makeshift pharmacy the students set up at the clinic. Augustana biology professor Dr. Dara Wegman-Geedey, who accompanied the students on the trip, said the clinic gave students the opportunity to use their physiology, anatomy and immunology knowledge. "JETS students gain first hand experience working as healthcare providers and quickly learn what it means to use critical thinking skills to follow a line of questioning when evaluating patients." For Jaynee Krippel, a junior biology and pre-med major at Augustana, the most meaningful part of the trip was making a home visit with one of the doctors. "We were bringing the people medical care they otherwise could not get," Krippel said. "The patients were eager to tell us about themselves and their lifestyles. Seeing where and how they lived helped me understand why the patients contracted certain diseases so frequently." Wegman-Geedey and fellow biology professor Dr. Darrin Good established Augustana's Joining Education Through Service (JETS) program in 2008. Augustana students interested in health-related fields can apply to go to Nicaragua twice a year through the organization. Wegman-Geedey says these trips give students more than just experience as a doctor or nurse. "The JETS students realize how much we in the U.S. take for granted and begin to understand why a country such as the U.S. shouldn't just take over and make things 'better' for a third-world nation. Cultural identities must be preserved and cherished," she said. Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America, but it is also one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. According to the United Nations 2007-08 human development report, 80% of the population lives on less than $2 a day and a large number of households are headed by woman. Quality medical aid is either unavailable or unaffordable to much of the population. From your area, participating students included: