Sarah Fountain, MPH, Helps Arkansans Benefit from Research
| Sarah Fountain, MPH, is grateful for each opportunity to connect Arkansans to invaluable resources.
A research program manager for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Translational Research Institute (TRI) Community Engagement team, Fountain embraces the task of being a link to people getting the services they need.
“In TRI, we’re community voices in the realm of research,” she said. “Members of the community, more than anybody else, know what must happen for improvements to occur in their area. In TRI, we help the citizens share their voice so the necessary changes can develop.”
Fountain, an alumna of the UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, had a unique path to her profession.
Fountain, a Jonesboro native who also lived in Oregon during her youth, comes from a single parent household led by her mom. Fountain was also homeschooled by her mother — who was a chef.
“Being homeschooled was cool,” she said. “Education-wise, it proved beneficial for me. However, it was tough to make friends, especially due to coming back to Arkansas from Oregon.”
To remedy any social development gaps associated with homeschooling, Fountain participated in a community dance class. She loved learning the different dance genres, especially tap, jazz, and ballet. Most important, Fountain met lots of people and made some close friends.
Eventually, Fountain and her mom decided to accelerate her educational process. At the age of 16, she took the General Education Development (GED) exam. She has vivid memories of going to the Valley View Adult Education Center in Jonesboro and attending GED study classes alongside adults.
“The thought process was why wait to take college classes,” she said. “Let’s start getting them out of the way right now.”
The plan proved successful. Fountain passed the exam and then turned her attention to college at Arkansas State University.
“In college I had to start with the basics — the lowest level classes and build my way up,” Fountain said with a laugh.
Additionally, she worked a job, lived at home with her mom, and commuted to school. However, Fountain was still able to develop lasting friendships, most notably with her cohorts from freshman seminar. Even still, her age was not something that she immediately disclosed.
“People were shocked when they found out I was 16,” she said. “It made things tricky because I couldn’t do things 18-year-olds and especially 21-year-olds could do. But in the classroom, everything was fine.”
Initially, Fountain majored in exercise science. However, she later discovered health promotion and enjoyed its health education aspect. Eventually, she declared it as her second major.
While pursuing her undergraduate degrees, Fountain participated in a life-changing internship. In summer 2019, Fountain took part in the Stead Scholars program, an internship sponsored by the UAMS College of Public Health and the Arkansas Department of Health.
During the eight-week internship, students get one-on-one mentorship from a public health professional. The interns also receive a public health research project to complete. Kate Stewart, M.D., MPH, a then-College of Public Health professor, mentored Fountain. While working with Stewart, Fountain wrote a review that introduced her to community-based participatory research.
Fountain credits Stewart and the Stead Scholars program for helping her learn about public health and community engagement.
“I didn’t know much about the College of Public Health until I started the internship,” Fountain said. “While being a Stead Scholar, I began to look into the college’s programs and discovered the Master of Public Health — and I later applied.”
Once she finished the internship and returned to Arkansas State, Fountain continued to excel. She graduated in fall 2019.
She then focused on getting a public health degree with a concentration in Health Behavior and Health Education (HBHE). Fountain commended the program for how it taught her practical, public health knowledge that she uses to this day.
“The lived experiences you’ve endured, and those of others, can help you make a difference as a public health professional,” she said.
Fountain earned her master’s degree from the college in fall 2021. Just over a year later she began her tenure with TRI. Fountain helps develop and implement activities and programs that support the institute. She also teaches community members and UAMS researchers about the proper research process and why partnerships with the public are important.
“It’s good to see that people who have real world experiences can influence research and improve their situations and communities as a whole,” she said.
Fountain enjoys being in Arkansas’ communities advocating for the people. Seeing a person realize the power of their voice motivates her personally and professionally.
“Research takes time to conduct,” she said. “You must take what’s on paper and implement the research into real world solutions for the people you’re aiming to assist. TRI helps researchers get that done.
“Helping the people see that they can make a difference really makes me feel like I’m making a true impact in the world.”