Ngoda Manongi '08 has been awarded the College's prestigious Bristol Fellowship. The Bristol Fellowship was begun in 1996 as part of a gift to Hamilton College by William M. Bristol Jr. '17. The purpose of the fellowship is to perpetuate Mr. Bristol's spirit and share it with students of the College that was such an important part of his life. Created by his family, the fellowship is designed to encourage Hamilton students to experience the richness of the world by living outside the United States for one year and studying an area of great personal interest.
Manongi's project is titled "Keeping Mothers Alive: A Comparative Study of Maternal Mortality and Child Health Care in South Africa, Mexico, the Philippines and Sweden." Through this fellowship Manongi will focus attention on the dynamics of pregnant women and children's lives through conditions of basic health care practices, access to clinic versus home care, rehabilitation services due to morbidity, social-community attitudes and the legal, health and social support for pregnant women and how to teach women to avoid unwanted pregnancies.
In his proposal Manongi wrote "I want to explore the reasons that make a country such as Sweden to have amazingly low rates of maternal mortality, fewer than five mothers die in 100,000 live births, while in South Africa more than 300 pregnant women die for 100,000 live births. It is obvious that there are differences among these countries," he wrote, "but I am convinced that the problem is not just economics, education and politics. I believe that countries like South Africa 'where education and health system are collapsing under the stress of poverty and AIDS, reducing maternal mortality is possible.' The opportunity of the fellowship will allow me to study and understand the ways that can be implemented in order to improve maternal health care."
Manongi explained why he has chosen to visit South Africa, Mexico, the Philippines and Sweden. "Although South Africa, the Philippines and Mexico have relatively high mortality rates, they have shown improvement in trying to reduce the problems. It is important to study, document and understand the reforms made by these countries whether regionally or nationally in the hope of creating a model for other countries or regions to use. Sweden on the other hand, has one of the lowest maternal mortality rates in the world," Manongi wrote. "I feel that a comparative study of these countries is good in order to compare the strategies they all employ in the fight to keep mothers alive. Even though the countries are different in many aspects, knowing what Sweden does best and what South African and Mexico aren't doing initiates a starting point for a dialogue geared for development," he explained.
A biochemistry major, Manongi is president of the BioMatters Club; he teaches four levels of Swahili; and has been a Quantitative Literacy Center tutor for biology, chemistry and mathematics. In 2007 he conducted research with Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren on the enzyme activity on halophenols; and from 2004-2006 conducted atmospheric chemistry research on the reaction of nitrogen and water in Hamilton's Chemistry Department.
Manongi is a member of the West Indies and African Association and has participated in Urban Service Experience (USE) and HAVOC's Make a Difference Day.
The Bristol Fellowship is intended to be highly personal and is open to all interested Hamilton seniors. Proposals are evaluated based on inquisitiveness, a spirit of adventure, depth of personal interest, and openness to other cultures. While not a requirement, proposals are also considered for their sense of family connection.
William Bristol served as a Hamilton trustee, president of the alumni association, fundraiser and benefactor. He was one of seven generations of Bristol family members to attend Hamilton, dating back to the chartering of the College in 1812. Mr. Bristol's great, great-grandfather became one of the College's first trustees after helping to found the Hamilton-Oneida Academy, which later became Hamilton College in 1793.
Manongi's project is titled "Keeping Mothers Alive: A Comparative Study of Maternal Mortality and Child Health Care in South Africa, Mexico, the Philippines and Sweden." Through this fellowship Manongi will focus attention on the dynamics of pregnant women and children's lives through conditions of basic health care practices, access to clinic versus home care, rehabilitation services due to morbidity, social-community attitudes and the legal, health and social support for pregnant women and how to teach women to avoid unwanted pregnancies.
In his proposal Manongi wrote "I want to explore the reasons that make a country such as Sweden to have amazingly low rates of maternal mortality, fewer than five mothers die in 100,000 live births, while in South Africa more than 300 pregnant women die for 100,000 live births. It is obvious that there are differences among these countries," he wrote, "but I am convinced that the problem is not just economics, education and politics. I believe that countries like South Africa 'where education and health system are collapsing under the stress of poverty and AIDS, reducing maternal mortality is possible.' The opportunity of the fellowship will allow me to study and understand the ways that can be implemented in order to improve maternal health care."
Manongi explained why he has chosen to visit South Africa, Mexico, the Philippines and Sweden. "Although South Africa, the Philippines and Mexico have relatively high mortality rates, they have shown improvement in trying to reduce the problems. It is important to study, document and understand the reforms made by these countries whether regionally or nationally in the hope of creating a model for other countries or regions to use. Sweden on the other hand, has one of the lowest maternal mortality rates in the world," Manongi wrote. "I feel that a comparative study of these countries is good in order to compare the strategies they all employ in the fight to keep mothers alive. Even though the countries are different in many aspects, knowing what Sweden does best and what South African and Mexico aren't doing initiates a starting point for a dialogue geared for development," he explained.
A biochemistry major, Manongi is president of the BioMatters Club; he teaches four levels of Swahili; and has been a Quantitative Literacy Center tutor for biology, chemistry and mathematics. In 2007 he conducted research with Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren on the enzyme activity on halophenols; and from 2004-2006 conducted atmospheric chemistry research on the reaction of nitrogen and water in Hamilton's Chemistry Department.
Manongi is a member of the West Indies and African Association and has participated in Urban Service Experience (USE) and HAVOC's Make a Difference Day.
The Bristol Fellowship is intended to be highly personal and is open to all interested Hamilton seniors. Proposals are evaluated based on inquisitiveness, a spirit of adventure, depth of personal interest, and openness to other cultures. While not a requirement, proposals are also considered for their sense of family connection.
William Bristol served as a Hamilton trustee, president of the alumni association, fundraiser and benefactor. He was one of seven generations of Bristol family members to attend Hamilton, dating back to the chartering of the College in 1812. Mr. Bristol's great, great-grandfather became one of the College's first trustees after helping to found the Hamilton-Oneida Academy, which later became Hamilton College in 1793.
