ALAKIIR MAPIOR
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, HEALTH, AND HUMAN SCIENCES
Public Health
When Alakiir Mapior was asked to write about her experiences with school health from grades K-12 for a UNO public health class, her descriptions stood apart from the others.
While some students wrote about experiences with school nurses, Mapior, a native of South Sudan, wrote about her upbringing in a refugee camp in Kenya. With her words she painted a picture of a world where food was sparse, may girls her age stayed home from school to learn how to be mothers, and people died of preventable diseases due to lack of vaccinations.
Her journey from refugee to the proud owner of a public health degree from the University of Nebraska at Omaha seemed impossible even to her, but the experience set the stage for a life and a career that will be defined by serving others who walked a path similar to hers.
“I never thought I would graduate from college or even high school,” Mapior said. “Because back then I was in a refugee camp, and I never knew that I would ever make it this far.”
Most girls Mapior’s age were not allowed by their parents to go to school and would instead stay home and help with chores. Her father was different and placed a priority on education. Mapior and her siblings attended kindergarten and middle school at the refugee camp, where she said hot, cramped schoolhouses with students of all ages and nationalities were the norm.
“It was a struggle,” she said. “Sometimes you would have 500 students in one class with one teacher. It was hard to focus.”
When her family eventually resettled in Omaha in 2015 when she reached age 15, it was a culture shock. She said many students took their education for granted and was disheartened when classmates skipped class.
“At the end of the day when you get your degree, even if the diploma is burned, you have the knowledge in you. That encouraged me to go into those setting and encourage girls to study whatever they wanted to study.”
— Alakiir Mapior, public health student
But through the encouragement of her family, she stayed on track and graduated from high school, overcoming language and cultural barriers along the way. It created a spark to serve as an example for her sisters and inspire girls to create their own paths.
“At the end of the day when you get your degree, even if the diploma is burned, you have the knowledge in you,” she said. “That encouraged me to go into those setting and encourage girls to study whatever they wanted to study.”
High school diploma in hand, Mapior chose UNO for its affordability, proximity to home, and the opportunity to have financial support from the Buffett Scholarship. She began by pursuing a degree in biology, with hopes of eventually become a nurse.
It was at UNO where her path crossed with Dr. Marcia Adler, the School of Health and Kinesiology instructor who gave Mapior the writing assignment to describe her experience with school health. Their shared interests in reducing health disparities opened doors for Mapior to explore her interests in public health.
Adler said that over time, Mapior’s eyes opened to the many different ways she could serve refugees like her, and make public health more inclusive by breaking down barriers and finding common ground with people. In addition to her classroom work, Adler said Mapior took on volunteer opportunities at the North Omaha Health Clinic, after school programs at Completely Kids, and an internship at QLI rehabilitation center.
“I think her individual potential is endless because she deals so well with people who are different than herself,” Adler said. “She finds common ground to talk with everyone.”
Adler said it is critical that public health professionals find meaningful ways to connect with individuals from all walks of life because of the growing public health challenges the world faces in the era of COVID-19 and the emerging monkeypox virus. She added that it will take people like Mapior — people of diverse backgrounds and experiences who approach their work with the community as a caring person rather than a clinician coldly giving out instructions — to turn the tide.
“If we go and delve into the hearts of the Alakiirs of the world, they want to make the world a better place,” Adler said.
UNO’s commencement ceremonies at Baxter Arena was a proud day for Mapior, who will join her father — a recent recipient of a teacher education degree — in the Maverick alumni family.
As she looks ahead to occupational therapy courses as a graduate student at the College of Saint Mary in Omaha, she will look back fondly at her time at UNO.
“Just come in and tell your story,” Mapior said. “Everybody is going to listen to you, they’re going to give you advice, they’re going to nurture you and they’re going to mentor you into becoming who you want to be.”
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