Travis Anane

Travis Anane is a passionate first-generation, low-income student advocate and recent graduate of Rutgers University-New Brunswick. With aspirations of becoming a physician working with underrepresented populations to increase representation in the medical field, he pursued a degree in Kinesiology and Exercise Science, with a minor in Spanish. While at Rutgers, he has volunteered as a cultural liaison and translator for the American Preventive Screening and Education Association. His research background includes working in the Ready and Healthy Kindergarten Research lab, a program implemented in New Jersey to increase literacy rates of bilingual Latino children from families of low-income backgrounds, and overall improve future health outcomes. Studying abroad with CIEE in Mérida, Yucatán, Travis volunteered with an all-women-founded community kitchen, Comedor Zarigüeyas. Here, he prepared meals for children returning from school, sorted donated clothes and toys, and picked vegetables and plants from the garden. During Friday nutrition workshops on incorporating organic ingredients into traditional dishes, Travis used his Exercise Science background to help connect nutrition concepts to practical, affordable choices families could realistically consider while discussing barriers such as cost, taste, and access.