Zambia Project and Students in Africa

Welcome to Africa! Dr. Mary Willis will present the impact of a Rotary #14 project, the largest in 2024, providing dental supplies and treatment for children in Zambia! Eight of her students from Missouri State University and 20 from the Copperbelt University School of Medicine, Dental Clinic, provided assessment and dental supplies to 1,123 kids with 143 receiving dental treatments in June & July. 

Dr. Willis is the Department Head for Sociology, Anthropology and Gerontology at Missouri State University. For 22 years, she was a Professor, Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.   Her passion has always been student research trips to Africa which have had a major impact on their careers. She has organized research for 65 students in Zambia and Ethiopia over the past ten years. Her philosophy is always the importance of “giving back” to the communities where she works; this Rotary #14 support has provided 6th and 7th graders with dental supplies and treatment in Zambia, improving the health of those who have never been to a dentist. Dr. Willis earned an MA and PhD at Washington University, St. Louis and completed the AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowship at USAID’s Population, Health, and Nutrition. She has authored numerous articles and book chapters, and is currently working on a textbook, Consuming Culture: A Holistic Approach to the Study of Food and Nutrition. Her focus is on food security and health-related sequelae in domestic and international settings, and always in serving for an impact.