Olivia Howard

Contributor

Olivia Howard is an undergraduate student at Providence College. She is a candidate for a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Health Policy and Management and Bachelor of Arts in Spanish in May of 2018. Olivia is passionate about the health field and discovered her passion for women’s health and diet specifically through a class offered at Providence College called Diet, Nutrition and Obesity in the U.S. with Dr. Deborah Levine, PhD. Upon graduation, Olivia plans to continue her health studies by acquiring a masters degree in Physician Assistant studies and eventually pursuing her masters in Public Health.

Undergraduate Writing Series

The Freshman Fifteen: A Stigmatized Phenomenon

By Olivia Howard • January 18, 2018

Seventeen magazine popularized the phrase “freshman fifteen” in 1989 and the phrase remains ubiquitous in U.S. culture today.1 Seventeen’s cover story “Fighting the Freshman 15” depicted the inevitable weight gain as an uphill, hopeless battle. The so-called “freshman fifteen” fostered a legendary nervous epidemic amongst students, especially women, entering their first year of college. How… Read more →