Naomi Blaushild could not have known when she enrolled in her first French language class in middle school that it might one day save lives.

It happened recently in Nima, an urban slum situated on the outskirts of Ghana's capital, Accra, where the Mt. Lebanon resident was teaching health and nutrition to young students at a private school.

While youngsters are taught in English and French, most are from the French-speaking countries surrounding Ghana, therefore making French the most effective language for communication.

So, to teach them about avoiding malaria, Ms. Blaushild, 21, composed a poem in French which, loosely translated, said malaria is a disease caused by mosquitoes, which like dirty and stagnant water and can bite you at night. If you have chills and a fever tell your parents and go to a hospital.

To convey the importance of good nutrition, she wrote rhyming verses in French that sing the praises of eating oranges for vitamin C, rice for energy, beef and chicken for muscle enhancement and washing one's hands before meals.

"I learned it doesn't help to be overwhelmed by the extremes in income and opportunities in Ghana. You have to try to make even a little difference whenever you can," she said of her work.

The rising senior at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, spent the past semester at the University of Ghana in Legon through the Council on International Educational Exchange, a U.S. nongovernmental international education organization.

Ms. Blaushild, a political science major, became involved in the program to study abroad. She chose Ghana, she said, "as I wanted to do something challenging and out of my comfort zone."

She was one of 45 U.S. college students in the program at the University of Ghana, where she undertook classes such as "Human Rights in Africa" and "Traditional West African Dance."

A development studies track offered courses on developmental issues in Ghana and Africa, like slavery history, corrupt leadership and ethnic conflict.

Her volunteer teaching internship led her to the Anani Memorial International School where, besides teaching, she left her mark with 635 mosquito nets for which she raised more than $2,600 through her AMIS Friends e-mail campaign.

The nets were distributed at AMIS and local day care and nursery centers. The money also funded scholarships for several AMIS students.

The daughter of Mim Seidel and David Blaushild, of Mt. Lebanon, Ms. Blaushild said one of the important lessons the semester abroad taught her was what it feels like to be an outsider.

"As a white girl everyone was staring at me. Sometimes I wished I could blend in instead of being the 'funny accent' person," she said.

She was also unprepared for the great extremes in wealth she witnessed, but which also underscored the value of lending a helping hand.

With that in mind, Ms. Blaushild and her friends are in the process of forming an on-campus student organization to continue fundraising for AMIS and the Nima community.

Her experiences in Ghana also helped solidify her plans for after she completes graduate school for public or education policy.

"I want to help close the achievement gap between low-income, high minority school districts and wealthier ones," she said.

For more, visit www.amisfriends.weebly.com.