Photo from Sarah Auletta.

Simmons senior Sarah Auletta was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) in March 2017. This year, her face was on an enormous billboard in Times Square showcasing the young faces of T1D. 

“So that was really cool,” said Auletta, summing up her accomplishment nonchalantly. 

Auletta, a double major in Public Health and Spanish and a member of the Honors Program, was chosen to be on the Times Square billboard because she had represented The Diabetes Link at the Nasdaq bell ringing. 

Auletta was a Summer 2023 NextGen Fellow at The Diabetes Link.

Her advice to other college students with T1D is simple. “Yes you’re a diabetic in college,” said Auetta. “But you’re also a college student in college.”

This message aligns with a speech she gave at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s Annual Summit, titled “Taking T1D to College.” 

Auletta said that it can be easy to lose sight of smaller self-care tasks while managing diabetes, but that they are essential for success as a young adult with or without diabetes.

In addition to her work in T1D spaces, Auletta is the class of 2024 president, a wellness ambassador, an admissions fellow, an honors peer mentor, and a tutor, among other student activities and jobs. 

When asked why she stepped into the class president role following the class of 2024 council’s resignation, she said that she “saw a need, and [she] decided to fill it.” 

With a full slate of advocacy, schoolwork, and extracurriculars, Auletta’s goal for her last month of college is to “not lose [herself] in the process…[and] think about how this all sets [her] up for success in the future.”

After graduating in May, Auletta will be earning her Master’s in Public Health at Dartmouth College. 

Auletta plans to work in public health after graduate school. She told the Voice that part of her passion for public health comes from her passion for T1D advocacy.