Alumna Blends Medicine and PoliSci To Create World-Changing Impact

At the intersection of political science and medicine sits the passion of Kezia Domond ’20, a recent UCF political science graduate with a calling to help those in underrepresented and underprivileged communities throughout the world.

This upcoming fall, Domond takes a seat in Boston University’s Masters of Public Health program, where her hope is to elevate and further these passions for health equality.

“I spent time in college searching for a way to combine my two passions, policy and medicine,” said Domond. “I’ve always been interested in sustainable development that organizations such as UNICEF provides, so I studied international relations with a minor in biology to work towards that large, broader goal of studying global public health.”

After taking a trip to visit family in Haiti as a young girl, Domond recalls that initial flash of confusion, shock, and anger that pushed her toward a future in helping others.

“I remember feeling discomforted by the differences I saw in quality of life between my home in Naples and my family’s home in Haiti,” said Domond. “I was recently in Haiti last year, and it wasn’t any better than my initial visit. There is contaminated water, people bathing in the streets, cholera outbreaks…my whole family has been affected and we’ve even lost people.”

Realizing that aid offered to places in need is a temporary fix needing a solution, Domond found herself inspired to pursue a life fixing just that.

“There was a time when the U.S. was offering aid to Haiti,” said Domond. “Barges of clothing were literally dropped on beaches and left, with no sort of system or order. This is not aid, that is chaos, and that’s what I intend to fix.”

Her goal moving forward is to use her research and knowledge to integrate long term practices and sustainability programs in developing countries. After taking a job with the Multicultural Student Association at UCF her senior year of college, a social justice component was melded into her original goal.

“At first I wanted to focus on children in these communities because they are the future,” said Domond. “I worked for MSC my senior year, and that opened my world up to an entirely new set of problems that need addressing. While the communities I’m focused on suffer largely as a whole, there are communities within that suffer greatly, a great example being the LGBTQ+ community.”

After pursuing her master’s in Boston, Domond hopes to work with the sustainability development sector of UNICEF.

“I feel called to this,” said Domond. “Health precedes wealth and through developmental programs I hope to give people the chance to experience this basic human right.”