The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s very own Brigitte Pratt will serve as the next speaker in the 2014-2015 Distinguished Lecturer Series on Tuesday, Feb. 24, at 7 p.m., in the Campus Center. Pratt, who is the second UMPI student ever to serve as a student Distinguished Lecturer, will deliver her talk Tanzania: My Learning Safari. Her talk is free and the public is encouraged to attend the event.

Pratt, now a senior at UMPI, traveled to Africa in June 2014, to be the first participant in the Athletic Training Program’s newly developed clinical opportunity at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre in Moshi, Tanzania. While there, she observed in a number of hospital departments and worked with a community-based organization that serves children with special medical needs.

Before going to Africa, Pratt had never been on a plane and hadn’t traveled outside of the United States. When she traveled to Moshi, Tanzania, she was joined by advisor and coordinator, Shirley Rush, for her three-week internship.

During her trip, Pratt observed intensive family education, physiotherapy exercises for the children, and participated in home visits, located in remote areas. On the final day of her stay, Pratt gave a presentation to the physiotherapy students and preceptors about Athletic Training and the UMPI program.

Pratt will share photos and stories from her trip and discuss the unexpected ways that the educational opportunity personally impacted her, from a sobering detour to a burn victims’ unit in one of the hospitals to the realization, through working with children in Moshi, that she wants to focus her future career on a younger age group.

Pratt grew up in Southwest Harbor. She also is a member of the UMPI Women’s Basketball team.

The University’s Distinguished Lecture Series was established in 1999. Each year, the UDLS Committee sponsors four to six speakers who come from Maine and beyond, representing a range of disciplines and viewpoints. While the emphasis tends to be on featuring visiting academics, it is not exclusively so. The speakers typically spend two days at the University meeting with classes and presenting a community lecture. This is the first year that the University has invited students to participate in the series as Distinguished Student Lecturers.

All are invited to attend Pratt’s distinguished student lecture. For more information about this event, contact the University’s Community and Media Relations Office at 207-768-9452 or email info@maine.edu.