First published on October 7, 2019 in observance of the COPH’s 35^th anniversary celebration.

Advocacy is as important in public health as data analyses and needs’ assessments.

But students have traditionally lacked advocacy experience.

In 2018, Dr. Karen Liller, a USF College of Public Health (COPH) professor specializing in injury prevention and health education, decided to remedy that situation by starting the Activist Lab at the COPH.

The group, which is run with the help of two research assistants and a six-student advisory board made up of graduate and undergraduate students, provides interdisciplinary advocacy, education, research and service opportunities for students to develop the skills that will promote their success as effective public health advocates and leaders.

The Activist Lab, directed by Liller, is the second such lab in the country, with the first being at Boston University’s School of Public Health.

Liller says she had been wanting to start a program like the Activist Lab at the COPH for a while, to compliment the Doctoral Student Leadership Institute she began as dean of the USF Graduate School, now known as the Office of Graduate Studies.

“I strongly believed students needed much more preparation in leadership and advocacy skills before they graduated,” Liller commented.

In just one year of its existence, hundreds of students have taken part in the Activist Lab’s educational and service opportunities, which include activism boot camps, seminars, guest speakers, journal clubs, writing groups, research efforts and public health in a minute videos. These videos—only 60 seconds long—have featured faculty and community leaders discussing pertinent public health issues, everything from the importance of voting to refugee health.

According to Liller, some of the Activist Lab’s first-year highlights include:

• work with Dr. Mark Roberts and other University of Pittsburgh researchers on a measles simulator for Florida (called FRED Florida Measles Simulator), which shows how cases of the viral infection can grow in an area with just a 10 percent drop in immunizations
• a gun violence prevention and advocacy seminar, held in partnership with USF Health and led by Parkland shooting survivors David Hogg and Emma González

Things won’t slow down for the Activist Lab anytime soon. In addition to the continuation of seminars, speakers and learning opportunities, the organization has the following things planned for the future:

• a boot camp on the prevention of firearm violence, scheduled for January
• a new program called “More Opportunities to Use Learned Advocacy” (MOULA), where students work with particular agencies, such as Moms Demand Action and the Guardian ad Litem program, on advocacy issues
• the launch of a new podcast series called “Advocation—Change It Up!” The first podcast features Dr. Jill Roberts, a COPH alumna and assistant professor of global health, discussing the importance of immunizations.
• an oral presentation on activism, to be delivered at the 2019 American Public Health Association (APHA) meeting in November

The Activist Lab serves as an exciting hub of learning and action for students to become directly involved in practicing leadership and advocacy skills, says Liller, who sees the lab’s numbers growing and its reach expanding beyond the college and university to the state, nation and world. 

“For example, with our podcast new persons will be reached and advocacy skills can be expanded and practiced,” remarked Liller. “Students can become part of our advisory board and really help shape the direction of the lab. They can participate in all of our events, and as we grow more and more opportunities will become available.”

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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The USF College of Public Health (COPH) Activist Lab recently received an American Public Health Association (APHA) Student Champions Climate Justice Award.

The APHA’s Center for Climate, Health and Equity presents the Student Champions for Climate Justice Awards each year to student groups across the country. Students receiving the award are tasked with creating an academic community experience on their campuses to raise awareness about climate justice.

According to Rolando Trejos, a COPH PhD student who also serves as the project lead for the grant, climate justice recognizes the unfair, unequal and disproportionate effects of changes in the climate among communities of color, older adults, children and people with lower incomes and encourages the input of the uplifting community when attempting to tackle its effects.

“As an international student from Panamá, I have observed firsthand the catastrophic role of human-made emissions and contamination in accelerating the rate of climate change in the region I am originally from, called Azuero,” Trejos said. “In this region, pesticide exposure and atrazine contamination of one of the main rivers are hypothesized to play a role in the steep increase in the number of new cancer cases, with little to no attention to this issue. It is hoped that programs such as ours will enhance advocacy.”

The months-long project has been performed in several stages.

In September, Activist Lab members visited Liberty Middle School in Tampa and provided an interactive presentation on climate justice for 22 students.

In October, they released a podcast on climate justice and Latino health that featured COPH professors and Salud Latina members Drs. Arlene Calvo and Ricardo Izurieta and Dr. Joseph Grzywacz, associate dean for research and faculty, from San Jose State University. The third and main event was a climate justice workshop for undergraduate and graduate students held at the COPH at the end of October.

The final events, said Trejos, will be an oral presentation given at the APHA 2023 Annual Meeting and Expo within the APHA Emerging Scholars program and an “Instagram takeover” of the official Instagram of the American Public Health Association.

“Bringing awareness to the importance of climate justice and promoting health equity among Latinos has been exciting,” Trejos said. “On a personal note, as a Latino public health professional and cancer researcher, I aspire to continue to work toward envisioning equity in cancer among Latinos, which will necessitate an understanding of the roles of both the social and built environments.”

Trejos said he and the other Activist Lab members feel “honored” to have received the APHA award.

“It is an honor to collaborate with our Activist Lab director and principal investigator of the grant Dr. Karen Liller and student advisory board members Jenny Ho, Amadeo Brandon, Hannah Harburg and Farshid Faizee in the planning and implementation of this project,” Trejos noted.

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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Even before COVID-19 reared its head, roughly 50 percent of U.S. adults reported experiencing measurable levels of loneliness.

Social isolation and loneliness are at epidemic levels, reports U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, prompting his office to recently issue a Surgeon General Advisory to raise awareness about the health impacts of social disconnection.

“It’s been an underappreciated public health crisis,” Murthy said in a press release, “that’s harmed individual and societal health.”

For example, adults who lack social connection increase their risk of premature death by 60 percent—about the same amount as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Older adults with limited human connection increase their risk of dementia by 50 percent. And loneliness can increase a person’s risk of heart disease and stroke by approximately 30 percent.

These sobering statistics, as well as prompting from USF College of Public Health’s (COPH) Dean Donna Petersen to address the issue, led the COPH’s Activist Lab to develop a program called “Let’s Chat.”

Let’s Chat is a community outreach program staffed by Activist Lab members who are available to chat and provide mental health materials to help end loneliness.

“The connection between loneliness and one’s health is astonishing,” said Dr. Karen Liller, director of the Activist Lab. “This is an epidemic among younger and older individuals and cannot be ignored. The Surgeon General’s report on this topic and his book ‘Together’ should be must-reads for the public health community.”

The first few Let’s Chat sessions were held at a local café, but members are now looking for new venues and partnerships.

“Over 25 individuals have signed up for the Let’s Chat Task Force, which is a partnership between the Activist Lab and the Florida Public Health Association,” Liller said. “Through the task force, we hope to learn from each other about effective strategies, implement the strategies and then evaluate our results. The ultimate goal is to provide ways to increase social connection and decrease loneliness across Florida and beyond.”

To get involved, contact the Activist Lab at COPHActivistLab@usf.edu.

Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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Advocation – Change It Up! is an exciting podcast from the University of South Florida College of Public Health Activist Lab.

The host, Dr. Karen Liller is a professor at the USF College of Public Health (COPH) and director of the Activist Lab. Each episode she is joined by a student co-host from the Activist Lab.

The Activist Lab prepares students to be exemplary advocates and leaders in public health. Visit their website to learn more about the Activist Lab’s education programs, outreach, research and more!

This episode focuses on injustices to marginalized groups (such as through hate crimes and victimization by extremist groups) and features leading academic and community advocates, Mike Deeson, Reverend Dr. Bernice Powell-Jackson and Dr. Jacob Glickman who provide historical significance, understanding of hate and recommendations for change.

Listen to the episode here.

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The USF College of Public Health (COPH) Activist Lab held its fifth annual boot camp virtually on Jan. 27. Over 200 students, faculty and interested parties took part in the event, which focused on teaching advocacy strategies to promote global health and health equity.

The Activist Lab provides interdisciplinary advocacy, education, research and service opportunities for students to develop the skills that will promote their success as effective public health advocates and leaders. The boot camp is a one-day advocacy education and practice program highlighting successful public health advocacy, policymaking and communication strategies.

“This is technically my last year in the MPH program and I knew I could not let myself graduate without attending an activist lab boot camp,” said Delaenam Akahoho, who’s concentrating in epidemiology and maternal and child health. “The focus of health equity is what caught my eye with this year’s theme. An equity-centered approach to health is important because it ensures that those who have been historically overlooked are no longer cheated out of a safe and quality health experience across the life course.” 

After a welcome from Dr. Karen Liller, a Distinguished University Health Professor and director of the Activist Lab, Dr. Donna Petersen, dean of the COPH, gave the opening remarks, noting that it’s the duty of all public health professionals to work together to encourage and promote health for all.

“We do it because we want to see change in the world so everyone can be healthy, happy and thriving,” Petersen said. “And we know that being able to effectively communicate, build coalitions and work in the policy arena to make these changes is so important.”

U.S. Rep. Cathy Castor echoed those sentiments. While acknowledging that the U.S. has played an important role in tackling worldwide problems like HIV, malaria, Ebola and COVID, she called on students to not ignore the issues facing our own country.

“We have a lot of work to do when it comes to protecting reproductive rights and ensuring that people from disadvantaged communities have access to contraceptives, reproductive care and needed medical services,” Castor said.

Attendees listened to presentations about advocacy 101, policy development and communication from COPH faculty, including Liller and Drs. Zachary Pruitt and Claudia Parvanta.

Dr. Jill Roberts, COPH associate professor, gave the keynote address that focused on vaccine-preventable diseases and global health equity. She used the disease mpox (monkeypox) to highlight the health inequities between high- and low-income countries.

“Despite the fact that there was widespread knowledge of an mpox outbreak going on [in  Nigeria] in 2017, there was no surveillance, no epidemiological investigation and no use of the vaccine that we had sitting in the States, getting stockpiled and going nowhere. There were vaccine dosages that went in the trash because they expired. We never sent them to Nigeria. Had we been at the forefront of this when it was starting, we could have saved. I’m sorry to tell you that the very first vaccines that went to Nigeria to combat this [virus] went out last month. So clearly, we have an equity problem going on here.”

After a Q&A session with a diverse group of COPH faculty and a former Activist Lab Student Advisory Board member, attendees took part in breakout sessions, each one focusing on a different global health topic, including nutrition, violence-related issues, maternal child health and vaccine-preventable diseases. Each breakout session produced a position paper that was later presented and reviewed.

Akahoho said the breakout sessions were her favorite part of the event.

“As a team, we were tasked with advocating for a global maternal and child health issue,” she said. “We all had our own level of expertise and bringing all that to the table allowed for us to create a strong ask. Passion takes us far, yes, but the facts are just as important in getting people on your side. I walked away a lot more confident with the new advocacy skillsets I gained through the boot camp.”

“The biggest takeaway for me was the critical importance of teamwork and the composition of the team itself,” added Catherine Oakes, an MPH student concentrating in public health practice. “There must be diversity in experience and perspectives and disciplines as well as diversity in backgrounds, cultures, lived experiences and education. Without having the ability to see from all angles, it is not possible to properly frame the issue or problem. I loved the learning and engagement opportunity that attending this boot camp gave me, and I would highly recommend it to my fellow students and colleagues.”

Liller expressed thanks for all those who contributed to the success of the boot camp, including the students, faculty, staff, speakers, Dr. Ann Joyce and Silvia Moreno from the Lifelong Learning Academy and Carlos Montoya, who provided technical support. She also thanked the Florida Public Health Association, who paid for members’ boot camp registrations. 

The Activist Lab looks forward to planning boot camp number six, to be held in 2024.

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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Dr. Karen Liller, a USF College of Public Health(COPH) professor and director of the college’s Activist Lab (which provides advocacy training, research and opportunities), teamed with Ellen Kent, coordinator of the USF Health Service Corps, and Activist Lab Student Advisory Board members to develop the Adopt-a-School Program for student advocacy.

Never Too Young to Advocate

The Adopt-a-School Program, which is ongoing, invites students from Tampa’s Liberty Middle School and Freedom High School to participate in lab meetings and activities with Liller and her student team. The aim of the program is to introduce students to advocacy and foster within them interest and engagement in topics they would like to become involved with. Students hone writing and speech skills while learning how to implement change at all levels. 

“Young individuals need to find their voice early to become strong advocates and have an outlet for their passion for change. However, advocacy takes skill, and these skills need to be not only learned but practiced so that one is effective in leading change efforts,” Liller said. “I believe you can’t start too young when it comes to learning advocacy.”

Liller and the board brainstormed and came up with the idea of soliciting topics from the students that they were passionate about and having them deliver their advocacy messages via TikTok. 

A total of 21 Freedom High School and three Liberty Middle School students participated in making the TikTok videos. Five COPH Activist Lab members took part in the program.

Teaching Advocacy

“At first, you could tell the students were a little shy to the idea of advocacy and being an advocate,” Michaela McMahon, an Activist Lab board member and second-year MPH student concentrating in global communicable diseases, said. “However, once we got them talking about issues they were passionate about—school dress code, school lunch, increased access to feminine products in schools and gun violence (to see student-made TikTok videos, click on links)—and then validated that one can advocate for those issues, you saw them light up. Our main goal for the students was for them to gain a foundation of what advocacy is and what being an advocate looks like, which I really think they developed. I learned that a lot of the issues presented by the students were identical to those I faced when I was in middle and high school. Granted, I only graduated high school in 2016, but I felt that I could empathize with the students and show that these issues need to be addressed.”

The TikTok video focusing on the need for free feminine hygiene products in school bathrooms. pictured a female student frantically rifling through her school backpack for a hygiene product and coming up empty-handed. To the theme of “Mission Impossible,” she ran through the school hallways and into a bathroom, again finding nothing. The voice-over to the video ended with a call to action that said, “Schools should consider adding free, accessible [feminine hygiene product] dispensers in the women’s restrooms. This would lessen the embarrassment of having to ask for products when in need.”

Erin Millsapps, another Activist Lab board member and second-year MPH student concentrating in epidemiology and global health, said she got involved because she believes “advocacy plays an important role in the health of our communities. The students were extremely creative and passionate about advocacy. They were appreciative of the knowledge we shared and will take the skills with them as they move through their future endeavors.” 

The COPH students who participated in the program also noted that while they were there to teach, they also learned. 

“The students asked me and other board members about life after high school, the university and other job-related questions,” Madison Sanders, an MPH student concentrating in health policy and programs, said. “The opportunity to connect with the community allowed me to immerse myself in the Tampa Bay Area—and it reinforced my belief in the importance of public health.” 

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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Advocation – Change it Up! is an exciting podcast from the University of South Florida College of Public Health Activist Lab.

The host, Dr. Karen Liller is a professor at the USF College of Public Health (COPH) and director of the Activist Lab. Each episode she is joined by a student co-host from the Activist Lab.

The Activist Lab prepares students to be exemplary advocates and leaders in public health. Visit our website to learn more about our education programs, outreach, research, and more!

With Liller’s co-host, COPH student Rolando Trejos, this episode focuses on the Activist Lab Bootcamp and some strategies for advocacy and change in mental health. Hear from Dr. Jerome Galea from the USF School of Social Work and students, Jeanine Ashforth and Ivory Hayes.

Listen to the episode here.

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Karen Liller, PhD, CPH, FAAAS, USF Health College of Public Health professor and COPH Activist Lab founder and director, recently earned recognition as Culture Champion for her leadership with the lab.

For her expertise and steadfast leadership, Charles Lockwood, MD, senior vice president for USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine, presented Dr. Liller with a Culture Coin during the 4th Annual USF Health  Interprofessional Education Day, held Nov. 10.

The purpose of the Activist Lab is to serve as the hub for providing interdisciplinary advocacy, education, research and service opportunities for students to develop the skills that will promote their success as public health advocates and leaders.  The lab provides seminars, webinars and other opportunities for students and faculty to learn public health advocacy skills and competencies.

Dr. Liller recently took on a new leadership role in the USF Center for Justice Research and Policy.  Launched in January, the CJRP  is devoted to the study of social and criminal justice issues around the Tampa Bay region.

Reposted from USF Health Awards and Honors Blog

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When USF College of Public Health (COPH) professor Dr. Karen Liller was approached by the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine to write an article on injury prevention, she switched gears and decided what was really needed was an article on the importance of physicians advocating for injury prevention measures. 

In October, the journal published “The Important Role for Physicians as Advocates for Firearm and Road Traffic Injury Prevention.” Liller wrote the piece along with Dr. Amber Mehmood, a trained surgeon and COPH associate professor.

“Physicians are typically trained to treat sick patients and focus on their health problems,” Mehmood explained. “The notion that gun control and traffic safety are not health problems has some role to play in physicians’ willingness to partake in gun safety and road injury prevention. Fortunately, this attitude is changing, and physicians are more open to looking beyond the traditional spectrum of ‘diseases.’ Our goal is to seize this opportunity and give them necessary tools that help them speak about public health, injury prevention, gun safety and other issues connected with individual and public health.”

Part of the problem, Liller said, is the lack of advocacy training students embarking on medical careers get.

“I believe that pre-med, medical school and internship/residency training needs to include coursework on how to be an advocate and participate in policy change,” commented Liller, who also directs the COPH’s Activist Lab. “Physicians are among our most trusted health professionals and their involvement would do much to enhance advocacy efforts. Recently I and the Activist lab led an interprofessional experience with medical and other health students on how to advocate for various environmental issues. This type of training needs to increase and be expanded. Physicians need to be comfortable asking questions of patients about injuries and injury prevention.”

What are some steps physicians can take to address public health issues like firearms safety and traffic injuries? Liller and Mehmood suggest that physicians:

• Take time to advise patients about preventing injuries, including counseling them about firearm safety and risks associated with firearm usage during in-office exams.
• Advocate for legislation and policies that—among other things—can improve access to mental health services and reduce access to high-capacity magazines and firearms.
• Intervene with education and counseling when treating patients in trauma centers.
• Promote safe roads practice and research.
• Form interprofessional alliances that tell the stories of injury survivors and highlight the dangers involved.
• Promote multidisciplinary research into injury prevention.
• Use evidence to inform public policy.

“Advocacy seeks to change upstream factors like laws, regulations, policies and institutional practices. These factors are the drivers of market availability, prices, and product standards that influence personal health choices. Bringing physicians with commitment and skills into the helm of health advocacy would be a huge win for clinical medicine as well as public health,” Mehmood said.

Liller said “Working with colleges of public health on developing academic coursework and practice experiences for physicians will allow their comfort level to increase in being advocates for change.  Our work together then will have much stronger results.”

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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“This group of students have persevered under unprecedented circumstances. Their worlds were flipped upside down and they have hung in there, learning in new ways since March of 2020. This group has learned in real-time what it means to confront the failings of our system.” said USF College of Public Health’s Dean Donna Petersen. “We have a lot of choices to make in the coming years about healthcare, the value of work, our place in the global economy, climate change, systemic racism and how to prepare for a future pandemic but I’m not worried. You all are smart, capable, committed and passionate.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s graduation ceremony was presented virtually to family, friends, students, faculty and staff. Petersen delivered her address and congratulated the Summer 2021 graduating class in front of a camera instead of an audience. (Click here to watch the ceremony). 

This semester, 185 undergraduates, 61 masters and 8 doctoral students graduated and entered the public health profession. 

Every year, the COPH Excellence in Teaching awardee offers words of inspiration to the graduating class. This year’s speaker was Dr. Joe Bohn, assistant professor and director of community engagement and deputy director of the DrPH program.

“I have one final lesson for you all,” Bohn said. “Some of you know I have spent a little time on the dance floor these past four years, so I offer you four pillars of practice from my West Coast swing training that we can apply in your public health journey: timing, distance, connection and purpose.”

Timing

“Know when to start the dance if you are the leader and be ready to respond to a public health crisis when it happens,” Bohn said.

Distance

“Manage the distance with others on the dance floor. In your community, understand how distance impacts people and their access to the resources they need,” he cautioned.

Connection

“Pay attention to the connection with your partner in dance and find ways to connect better to your community, virtually and in-person,” Bohn continued.

Purpose

“Practice with intent—and in your community, practice your passion to help others in need,” he urged.

Dr. Alison Oberne, director of the BSPH program, also presented her end-of-the-year address to the graduating class.

“Did you know that only one-third of the U.S. population has a 4-year degree? It is no small feat to earn your degree, and amidst a pandemic it’s even more challenging and inspiring. It is a time where you were tested in more ways than one,” Oberne said. “You learned the value of self-determination through remote learning, the power of data literacy as we’ve been bombarded with information about COVID-19 and the election, and the creativity to find opportunities for community engagement at a time where in-person gatherings have been restricted.”

“I hope these challenges have made you stronger and helped you realize your passion and perseverance despite all obstacles you have faced and that you continue to overcome” she said.

Here are some of the stories from the Class of 2021:

Marina Martinez Rivera, MPH

Originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico, Marina Martinez Rivera moved to Gainesville, Fla in 2008. She earned her undergraduate degrees in public health and psychology from the University of Florida before moving to Tampa in 2019 to begin her master’s degree in behavioral health at the COPH.

“My passion in public health issues revolve around behavioral health with topics like mental health, substance use, HIV/AIDS, harm reduction approaches, LGBTQIA+ and youth/adolescent populations,” Martinez Rivera said. “With that in mind, I thought the behavioral health concentration was a great fit along with wanting to participate in the Institute of Translational Research in Adolescent Drug Abuse as I thought that was something of interesting to participate in and great experience.”

Martinez Rivera said that despite the impact of the pandemic, she did the best that she could to make the most out of her time in the MPH program.

“I made some good friends and developed my professional skills in any way I could. I think the college did the best it could to maneuver through the pandemic while retaining the standard that the college is known for,” she said. “I’m grateful to all the professors that did their best in modifying the curriculums to fit student’s needs and the circumstances we were working with.”

Martinez Rivera’s post grad plans are to continue working in public health and to find a position with a focus in behavioral health so that she can begin developing her professional skills.

“My dream job is a position where I can apply my skills in translational research and community engagement to improve behavioral health outcomes, reduce stigma and improve health equity for youth/adolescent populations, HIV/AIDS populations and/or LGBTQIA+ populations,” she said.

Rolando Trejos, MPH

Originally from Monagrillo, Panama, Rolando Trejos became introduced to public health while working as a program developer and coordinator for USF Health’s Office in Panama City under Dr. Arlene Calvo.

“During my time involved in the USF Health office in Panama, I saw the drive for changing the world for good. I was exposed to so many incredible projects and assets unique to the USF and even more to the USF COPH,” he said. “Out of those assets, the people and their passion for creating healthier communities was why I chose USF COPH for my MPH degree.”

As a student, Trejos was heavily involved with the COPH Activist Lab as both a student board member and graduate research assistant.

“As a member, we were able to tackle with evidence so many important topics like racism and COVID-19 by creating a pathway to deliver information from decision-makers, researchers and community-based organizations back into the general community and to our USF community,” he said.

During his time, he also was a graduate research assistant to the Public Health Interdisciplinary Center in a homelessness cross-college initiative with the Morsani College of Medicine’s Tampa Bay Street Medicine team, a volunteer for the USF Health Peace Corps, a volunteer for the COPH racism working group and a fellow for the Chiles Center.

Trejos’ post-grad plan is to enroll as a PhD student with the COPH.

“I hope to continue to expand my knowledge and skills in grantsmanship, teaching, mentoring, and translating research into practice, policy and tools applicable to communities, decision-makers and individuals,” he said. “My dream job is in academia as a full-time professor and researcher to provide a platform for individuals that have been pushed out of academia due to their sex, gender, sexual orientation, religion or any other category. I want to reclaim their space and have their voices heard and their input elevated so that science can truly become for everyone, not just a reflection of specific communities or individuals.”

Danielle Washington, BSPH

After overcoming adversity as a teenage mother, Danielle Washington graduated with her BSPH with a minor in infection control and specialization in nutrition.

“I became a teen mother to my first son who is now a teenager. I worked many jobs over the years to provide for us. I always wanted better and to prove naysayers wrong,” she said.  “I knew accomplishing my dreams of graduating college would happen if I kept going no matter how many times I failed.”

Washington said that one of the things she loved about USF was its course diversity and the flexibility to take online courses that allowed her to graduate on time.

“My favorite memory during my time at the COPH was taking the workforce course where I learned how to create a resume properly. This gave me the tools I needed to attract more employers,” she said.

Washington plans to attend graduate school to earn her master’s in public health with a specialization in health care management.

“I would like to open a health office that educates the public and also offers testing and routine lab work. I hope to own a health clinic and travel the world helping to solve global health issues,” she said. “I know that attending graduate school will help me go to the next level with owning my business. As a student at the COPH, I worked in groups to complete class projects so having a team will help me bring my vision to life. Teamwork always makes the dream work!”

Story by Caitlin Keough, USF College of Public Health

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