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Union’s master’s programs give graduate students deeper perspectives

More education? If that sounds like an exciting proposition to you, Union’s got you covered. Newly renamed, �������� offers four graduate programs—Master of Science in Leadership, Master of Occupational Therapy, Master of Physician Assistant Studies, and Master of Public Health.

Whether they’re going straight from undergraduate courses into a master’s program or returning to school after being in the workforce, master’s candidates are discovering how higher-level courses and hands-on, experiential learning can take them to the next step.

Helping with public health

Before enrolling in Union’s International Rescue and Relief program, Ingrid Papalii ’23 had changed majors five times. But finally, IRR felt like home. 

“I knew in my heart that it was what God called me to do,” she said. “I loved the community here. I found instructors who supported me, and I absolutely loved the program.”

So when it was time to decide the next step after graduating, her path was clear. “I wanted to come back to Union and do my master’s in public health,” she said. “The aspects that continue to attract me to the IRR program and the master’s program are the diversity and inclusiveness, and the focus on global community development.”

Papalii grew up in American Samoa, which she credits for fueling her interest in community development. “I saw a lot of homeless people, and our island is heavily dependent on aid from other countries and organizations,” she said. “I always wanted to do something to help my community with sustainable growth and development.” 

She gained first-hand experience with this during her undergraduate program, learning about development work and public health alongside rescue techniques. Now, she’s building on that knowledge in the master’s program.

She’s part of the inaugural Master of Public Health class, and Papalii is also serving as a graduate assistant for the IRR program. In spring 2024, she helped lead the three-month-long Malawi Africa Expedition that gives senior IRR majors hands-on experience providing medical care and health education to underserved communities.

The Malawi trip was a formative trip for Papalii as a student and now, as a coordinator. “As someone who is interested in public health and community development, working in Malawi really solidified my passions,” she said. “Helping the vulnerable and while working with people with my same goal was really powerful.”

Papalli loves the program’s emphasis on experiential learning and hands-on service coupled with the opportunity to be outside and implement programs. “We try to come up with problems and solutions that could be beneficial to everyone,” she said. “I’m doing what I love with people I enjoy working with.”

Her master’s cohort is helping with a community garden initiative to address food deserts in Lincoln, along with other intentional programs that make an immediate and long-term difference. Over the coming semesters, Papalii and her fellow master’s candidates will take part in a practicum program that fully immerses them in their education.

“We have awesome instructors and a director who are willing to connect us with organizations we want to work with,” Papalii said of the program’s support system for students. “I’m still learning, and I’m not sure where God will take me, but what I do know is that I’d like to assist in the empowerment of vulnerable communities, developing countries and developing work, and the advancement of public health.” 

She’d also like to return home to American Samoa and serve the community and country that nurtured her. “In IRR, I gained a wide variety of skills,” she said. “And now, with my master’s program, I’m well equipped to handle even more challenges. Both programs pushed us to be our best selves and be resilient.”

Learning to Lead

Martha Lucar Hornung has had the entire Union experience. She graduated with a degree in business administration in 2007, and she returned to campus in 2022 as executive director for student success. Now, she’s a student again—this time as a graduate degree candidate for a Master of Science in Leadership.

Hornung calls her career experience “multifaceted,” and that’s an understatement. She’s held positions in human resources, government, corporate, customer service, and health care, and now she’s leading a team in academia. All roles, she explains, she was meant to hold.

“I made a deal with God that I’d allow Him to interject or guide me where He wanted me to be professionally,” she said. “His path has been the biggest blessing in my personal and professional growth.”

She’s a natural leader, but Hornung felt called to expand her skills. She’s found the graduate-level leadership curriculum gives her flexibility to take courses and continue to learn while she uses her existing and new skills to serve other students in her professional position.

“The beauty of the program is that we can invest in ourselves and put into practice what we’re learning in an applied and meaningful way,” she said. “In my role here in student success, I work with individuals, understanding their goals and barriers. I’m part of an amazing team that specializes and individualizes with each student. We help them with a wholesome, whole-person approach. We lead as mentors, and we’re here to serve.”

This will be Hornung’s second master’s degree. “I have my MBA, and I’m a firm believer that leadership isn’t a destination — it’s a journey,” she shares. “And what better way to really understand yourself and how to lead people than by going through a rigorous training like Union’s master’s in leadership to learn what true leadership is and to get the tools to become a better leader?”

In her MBA studies, Hornung learned how to lead in an operational way—her courses centered on business finance, data analysis, forecasting and projecting. She’s found Union’s leadership program to be refreshingly different. 

“I love Union’s holistic approach,” she said. “In this program, we’re not just diving into managerial operations, we’re learning how to lead. It’s pure, hardcore leadership principles. We’re learning how to be researchers, think critically, and take practical steps in understanding who we are and the power we have not because of our title but because of who we can be when we intentionally make a difference in someone else’s life.”

Hornung also values the program’s Christian approach. “There’s a biblical perspective,” she said. “We look at what it means to lead as Jesus did. It’s been fascinating to understand that method of leadership and how we can emulate those characteristics.”

She’s still in her first year of the two-year program, but Hornung said she’s already seen positive results. “This master’s program has been transformative,” she said. “God has called all of us to be influential leaders, and with the knowledge I’m gaining in this program and with His help, I can achieve that purpose.”

by Lauren Bongard ’04