Connecticut Children’s Injury Prevention Center Expands Hayley Petit Injury and Violence Prevention Fellowships

Hartford, Conn. – Beginning this summer, Connecticut Children’s Injury Prevention Center (IPC) will expand its Hayley Petit Injury & Violence Prevention Fellowship to include three sessions in what will be a year-round program.

Starting today, four female college students will spend five-weeks learning injury prevention strategies from Connecticut Children’s experts. The IPC will also offer two fellowships in the fall and another two fellowships in the spring of 2020, with applications to be released at a later date. Each fellow will receive a $1,000 stipend for their participation in the fellowship program. The fellowships are generously supported by a grant from the Petit Family Foundation, which also funded similar fellowships during the past four summers.

“We are excited to begin working with the 2019 summer fellows and expand the program year-round to reach additional students,” stated Garry Lapidus, PA-C, MPH, director of Connecticut Children’s Injury Prevention Center. “We believe this fellowship is a critical step toward raising awareness about the importance of injury and violence prevention among future leaders in the field.”

This summer’s fellows are Pranally Desai, from Farmington, Connecticut, who studies physiology, neurobiology and Spanish at the University of Connecticut; Callista Love, from Bolton, Connecticut, who studies physiology and neurobiology at the University of Connecticut; Sydney Osborne, from New Haven, Connecticut, who is pursuing allied health sciences at the University of Connecticut; and Elizabeth Tavares, of Holyoke, Massachusetts, who is studying psychology and neuroscience at the University of Massachusetts – Amherst.

“There are too many people in today’s world that die due to senseless violence, and this fellowship would provide the necessary tools and resources to bring about awareness and knowledge of various forms of abuse that are not known to everyday individuals,” stated Desai in her application.

“I am inspired by the opportunity to honor Hayley Petit and the Petit Family Foundation’s values by gaining a greater understanding of injury prevention in all facets,” wrote Love in her application. “I have always been interested in the medical and psychological treatment of victims of violence, but the chance to further investigate the epidemiology of these topics from a different perspective will greatly enrich my education beyond the classroom.”

“All of the learning objectives of the fellows for the summer sound extremely exciting to me, and I can bring drive, energy, and curiosity to the program,” wrote Osborne in her application.

“This program offers an unparalleled opportunity to engage with local experts and learn about the importance of adopting key principles of preventative medicine in all clinical settings,” stated Tavares in her application.

The Petit Family Foundation honors the memories of Jennifer Hawke-Petit, Hayley Elizabeth Petit and Michaela Rose Petit by continuing the kindness, idealism and activism that defined their lives.

“We have been so pleased to see what Connecticut Children’s Injury Prevention Center has been able to accomplish through its summer fellowships to date, and are excited to support the program’s expansion,” said William A. Petit, Jr., MD, president of the Petit Family Foundation. “We believe the training offered to the fellows is invaluable as they pursue careers in the medical field and further their dedication to reducing injury and violence.”

Connecticut Children’s Injury Prevention Center is part of Connecticut Children’s Office for Community Child Health, which works to strengthen families to promote their children’s optimal health, development and well-being.