Students organize health, resource fair for Spanish-speaking community

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue University's Spanish service-learning class, "Ayuda y Aprende" or Help and Learn, is hosting its third annual health and resource fair on April 22 at the Lafayette Adult Resource Academy.

The free, student-led fair will provide information about a variety of health and community services to LARA students and the Spanish-speaking community. Spanish interpreters will be available at the event. There will be two public sessions, with the first from 9-11 a.m. and the second from 6-8 p.m. at LARA, located at 1100 Elizabeth St. in Lafayette.

"The first two years we focused on providing health information and screenings to the Spanish-speaking community, and because that was so well-received, we are expanding to promote a variety of community resources," said Julie Harrell, a continuing lecturer in Spanish and director of the Spanish service-learning program Ayuda y Aprende.

The fair will include booths on heart health, dental care, prenatal care, mental health and substance abuse, as well as a medication review and screenings for blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol by Nursing Students Without Borders and Rho Chi. There also will be informational tables by CityBus, Habitat for Humanity, Lafayette Urban Ministry and Wabash Valley Alliance.

"Ayuda y Aprende" allows students in 300-level Spanish courses and above to practice their language skills in real-world situations. Each semester nearly 100 Purdue students participate in weekly volunteer sessions in which students use their Spanish at local schools to tutor children or help teach English at LARA.

The April 22 event is sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts, Office of Engagement, School of Languages and Cultures, and LARA. 

Writer: Amy Patterson Neubert, 765-494-9723, apatterson@purdue.edu