Marquette University is situated in the heart of Milwaukee, providing opportunities for students to find innovative ways to engage with the city’s diverse community through their education. Arik Zintel, a senior triple majoring in Spanish, mathematics and economics, put his skills into practice by volunteering and conducting research at the Sixteenth Street Community Health Center over the 2023-24 school year.
After studying abroad in Spain, Zintel was eager to continue practicing Spanish while exploring his interests in economics and mathematics. In October 2023, he found the perfect opportunity to integrate these fields as a social screening intern at the clinic. This internship runs through the Arrupe Center for Community Service and Social Responsibility in the Salud Social Internship Program.
The Sixteenth Street Community Health Center plays a vital role in the health and well-being of Milwaukee’s South Side residents. The clinic takes a holistic approach to healthcare, recognizing that factors such as economic stability, access to education and other social determinants all impact healthcare access for Milwaukee residents.
Focusing on the intersection of the economic and Latinx identity in Milwaukee, Zintel worked to address the social service needs of patients by connecting them to resources around the city. As he became more aware of how identity and economic factors influence healthcare, Zintel hoped to take his work to the next level.
In the summer of 2024, Zintel was awarded an Honors Summer Research Fellowship, fueling the opportunity to continue his efforts at the clinic as a statistical evaluator. His work aimed to explore how the data collected through social screening can provide the best healthcare access possible. Zintel focused on the fine details of the social screening process, collecting data on how likely people were to return to the clinic and what factors would influence someone to decline a screening.
Under the mentorship of Dr. Kathryn Wagner, associate professor of economics, Zintel learned to analyze his data in the broad context of its impact on the clinic’s operations. Zintel also collaborated with Michelle Corbett, a researcher at the Center for Urban Population Health, who helped shape Zintel’s research questions and the methods of data collection.
At the end of the summer, Zintel delivered a report of his findings to help increase the efficacy of the clinic’s Social Determinants of Health screening process. Zintel’s research yielded new perspectives on how social screening should be conducted, staffed and followed through to increase the accessibility of healthcare in the clinic.
“I aim to more fully understand the problem of poverty, and I want to work towards alleviating it in communities,” Zintel says. “Conducting antipoverty research with social services has allowed me to learn about the complex situations in other people’s lives and grow in my own Spanish skills.”
Zintel reflects that blending Spanish, economics and mathematics was hugely beneficial to his academic and professional growth. He will continue his antipoverty research in a pre-doctoral program in the Lab for Economic Opportunity at the University of Notre Dame in the fall of 2025. Zintel is grateful for the staff at the Sixteenth Street Community Health Center, Marquette faculty and all the Milwaukee residents he served as a social screener. His Marquette and community mentors strengthened his skills and his commitment to service.
For more information on the Sixteenth Street Community Health Center and how to get involved click here.
