Taking Research on the Road - to Uganda - Christopher Newport University
Source: https://cnu.edu/news/2025/10/17-cnu-s27-burke-uganda/index.html
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:13
Taking Research on the Road - to Uganda - Christopher Newport University
Visit
Apply
Tuition
Give
Jobs
myCNU
Home
News
2025
October
Taking Research on the Road - to Uganda
Taking Research on the Road - to Uganda
Captain travels to Africa to study reproductive patterns
by
Kelli Caplan
| October 17, 2025
Above: Yasmiere Burke in Uganda
When Yasmiere Burke ‘27 arrived in rural Uganda this summer, something ignited in her. She felt it immediately.
Her purpose came into focus, her worldview shifted, and the excitement of finding what she loved powered her to make the most of the research experience. It not only changed her life, it confirmed that she was on the right career path.
“It’s neat to see the connections. I talked to people and they told me their stories and their needs,” she said. “This was my first time working with qualitative research. I think it was amazing to see how stories could cultivate research. Public health, in that way, is one of my favorite sciences.”
Burke traveled to Uganda as part of a cohort from the Global Health Experiential Fellowship, an international organization that brings students from all over the world together to conduct health research. Burke’s topic: the male perspective on family planning in Uganda’s rural areas.
In Uganda, unplanned pregnancies are very common. Sixty four percent of pregnancies among women ages 15-49 between 2015 and 2019 were reported as being unintended.
Burke’s mission was to interview healthcare professionals about available family planning resources and community knowledge and stigma. By doing so, she learned about thought processes and cultural traditions and was able to use the responses to create interventions.
The work demonstrated to her in real time the difference she can make and the impact her research can have on a community.
“It showed me what I really value in an organization and the ethos behind my research,” she said. “I realized that I want to create something that’s sustainable and long lasting. I want to help contribute as much as I can. My view of the world is different. I value different things now. It clearly has realigned my priorities.”
Burke grew up in Newport News and is a
Community Captain
, which means she is part of a CNU college-prepatory program that offers early admission to local high students. She originally planned to attend a Historically Black College or University (HBCU), but she couldn’t refuse the financial aid and admission package Christopher Newport offered. She became a Captain, and has not looked back.
Going to Uganda is one of many life-changing experiences she has embraced while at Christopher Newport, each one helping to solidify her goal of being a changemaker in the health field.
“I feel such gratitude and responsibility for what I can do in the realm of giving back and doing better,” she said.
Burke is deeply involved in research at CNU. She works in a lab on campus that is studying the effects of hormones on learning and memory using rodent models. She is also researching the connection between menopause and neuro-degenerative disorders. She has presented her findings at national and international conferences.
For a long time, Burke has known that she wanted to study something related to STEM and health. Her father died of cancer when she was 11, and she made a promise to herself then to pursue a health-related career that would help people.
Initially, Burke wanted to major in psychology. But then she was introduced to subject after subject that captivated her:
neuroscience
,
epidemiology
,
computer science
and
biology
. She wanted to do it all. And
interdisciplinary studies
, which allows students to design their own plans of study, provided an avenue to make that happen.
“CNU gave me the option to cultivate what I was looking for,” she said. “Not a lot of schools offer that.”
She has interned for local politicians, coached AAU Volleyball, and even hosts CNU’s
“On the Lawn” podcast
. Christopher Newport has provided her with countless opportunities on and off campus, including being a STEM intern, volunteering in the oncology department at Riverside Regional Medical Center, and belonging to the Virginia Medical Reserve Corps. In addition, she is an ambassador for the
Office of Research and Creative Activity (ORCA)
.
“I take every opportunity,” she said.
The combination of all of her experiences, punctuated by her Ugandan experience, has brought into focus her passion for helping others and her desire to make the world a better place. CNU, she said, has provided her with not only a well-rounded education and unique perspective, but a foundation of support and possibility.
“CNU has continued to prove itself time and time again. It was clearly the best choice for me,” said Burke, who is considering either graduate school or the Peace Corps as her next endeavor. “I am not the same person who walked onto the Great Lawn that first time, I am a different person. I thank CNU for that.”
Read more like this
Student Research and Creative Activity
Advance
Strategic Compass
Community Captains
For the media
Archives
Categories
All Categories
Academics
Alumni
Community Captains
Faculty Research and Creative Activity
Inclusion and Belonging
Internships
Institute for Public Humanities
News
Scholarship
Service
Student Life
Study Abroad
Student Research and Creative Activity
Sustainability
Strategic Compass
Advance
Build
Connect
Create
The Arts at CNU
Departments
All Departments
Biology Chemistry and Environmental Science
College of Arts and Humanities
College of Natural and Behavioral Sciences
College of Social Sciences
Communication
Communications and Public Relations
Economics
English
Fine Art and Art History
History
Honors Program
Leadership and American Studies
LifeLong Learning Society
Luter School of Business
Mathematics
Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures
Molecular Biology and Chemistry
Music
Music, Theatre and Dance
Neuroscience
Organismal and Environmental Biology
Philosophy and Religion
Political Science
Pre-Law
Pre-Med and Pre-Health
Presidents Leadership Program
Presidents Office
Psychology
School of Engineering and Computing
School of the Arts
Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology
Teacher Preparation Program
Theatre and Dance
Torggler Fine Arts Center
Wason Center for Civic Leadership
Follow us
facebook
twitter
instagram
youtube
Have a story idea?
Let us know
Back to top
quick edit
report a problem
Visit
Apply
Tuition
Give
Jobs
myCNU
Home
News
2025
October
Taking Research on the Road - to Uganda
Taking Research on the Road - to Uganda
Captain travels to Africa to study reproductive patterns
by
Kelli Caplan
| October 17, 2025
Above: Yasmiere Burke in Uganda
When Yasmiere Burke ‘27 arrived in rural Uganda this summer, something ignited in her. She felt it immediately.
Her purpose came into focus, her worldview shifted, and the excitement of finding what she loved powered her to make the most of the research experience. It not only changed her life, it confirmed that she was on the right career path.
“It’s neat to see the connections. I talked to people and they told me their stories and their needs,” she said. “This was my first time working with qualitative research. I think it was amazing to see how stories could cultivate research. Public health, in that way, is one of my favorite sciences.”
Burke traveled to Uganda as part of a cohort from the Global Health Experiential Fellowship, an international organization that brings students from all over the world together to conduct health research. Burke’s topic: the male perspective on family planning in Uganda’s rural areas.
In Uganda, unplanned pregnancies are very common. Sixty four percent of pregnancies among women ages 15-49 between 2015 and 2019 were reported as being unintended.
Burke’s mission was to interview healthcare professionals about available family planning resources and community knowledge and stigma. By doing so, she learned about thought processes and cultural traditions and was able to use the responses to create interventions.
The work demonstrated to her in real time the difference she can make and the impact her research can have on a community.
“It showed me what I really value in an organization and the ethos behind my research,” she said. “I realized that I want to create something that’s sustainable and long lasting. I want to help contribute as much as I can. My view of the world is different. I value different things now. It clearly has realigned my priorities.”
Burke grew up in Newport News and is a
Community Captain
, which means she is part of a CNU college-prepatory program that offers early admission to local high students. She originally planned to attend a Historically Black College or University (HBCU), but she couldn’t refuse the financial aid and admission package Christopher Newport offered. She became a Captain, and has not looked back.
Going to Uganda is one of many life-changing experiences she has embraced while at Christopher Newport, each one helping to solidify her goal of being a changemaker in the health field.
“I feel such gratitude and responsibility for what I can do in the realm of giving back and doing better,” she said.
Burke is deeply involved in research at CNU. She works in a lab on campus that is studying the effects of hormones on learning and memory using rodent models. She is also researching the connection between menopause and neuro-degenerative disorders. She has presented her findings at national and international conferences.
For a long time, Burke has known that she wanted to study something related to STEM and health. Her father died of cancer when she was 11, and she made a promise to herself then to pursue a health-related career that would help people.
Initially, Burke wanted to major in psychology. But then she was introduced to subject after subject that captivated her:
neuroscience
,
epidemiology
,
computer science
and
biology
. She wanted to do it all. And
interdisciplinary studies
, which allows students to design their own plans of study, provided an avenue to make that happen.
“CNU gave me the option to cultivate what I was looking for,” she said. “Not a lot of schools offer that.”
She has interned for local politicians, coached AAU Volleyball, and even hosts CNU’s
“On the Lawn” podcast
. Christopher Newport has provided her with countless opportunities on and off campus, including being a STEM intern, volunteering in the oncology department at Riverside Regional Medical Center, and belonging to the Virginia Medical Reserve Corps. In addition, she is an ambassador for the
Office of Research and Creative Activity (ORCA)
.
“I take every opportunity,” she said.
The combination of all of her experiences, punctuated by her Ugandan experience, has brought into focus her passion for helping others and her desire to make the world a better place. CNU, she said, has provided her with not only a well-rounded education and unique perspective, but a foundation of support and possibility.
“CNU has continued to prove itself time and time again. It was clearly the best choice for me,” said Burke, who is considering either graduate school or the Peace Corps as her next endeavor. “I am not the same person who walked onto the Great Lawn that first time, I am a different person. I thank CNU for that.”
Read more like this
Student Research and Creative Activity
Advance
Strategic Compass
Community Captains
For the media
Archives
Categories
All Categories
Academics
Alumni
Community Captains
Faculty Research and Creative Activity
Inclusion and Belonging
Internships
Institute for Public Humanities
News
Scholarship
Service
Student Life
Study Abroad
Student Research and Creative Activity
Sustainability
Strategic Compass
Advance
Build
Connect
Create
The Arts at CNU
Departments
All Departments
Biology Chemistry and Environmental Science
College of Arts and Humanities
College of Natural and Behavioral Sciences
College of Social Sciences
Communication
Communications and Public Relations
Economics
English
Fine Art and Art History
History
Honors Program
Leadership and American Studies
LifeLong Learning Society
Luter School of Business
Mathematics
Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures
Molecular Biology and Chemistry
Music
Music, Theatre and Dance
Neuroscience
Organismal and Environmental Biology
Philosophy and Religion
Political Science
Pre-Law
Pre-Med and Pre-Health
Presidents Leadership Program
Presidents Office
Psychology
School of Engineering and Computing
School of the Arts
Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology
Teacher Preparation Program
Theatre and Dance
Torggler Fine Arts Center
Wason Center for Civic Leadership
Follow us
youtube
Have a story idea?
Let us know
Back to top
quick edit
report a problem