Fall 2018 Class Acts

  • Karen Aguirre, MPH '17

    Karen was named one of the 2018 35 Under 35 Young Leaders Making an Impact by Chicago Scholars.

  • Bakari Baker, MPH '10

    Bakari, also a doctoral candidate in Environmental and Occupational
    Health Sciences, received the Diversifying Higher Education Faculty in Illinois Fellowship.

  • Xinqi Dong, MD, (MPH ‘10)

    Xinqi has been named director of Rutgers University’s Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research.

  • Karissa Frazier (BA '18)

    Karissa was honored by the Chicago White Sox with the Roland Hemond Award for her outstanding efforts with Gift of Life.

  • Feygele Jacobs (DrPH '17)

    Feygele has been named one of Crain’s New York Business 2018 Notable Women in Health Care. She is currently the President & CEO of RCHN Community Health Foundation in New York.

  • Eric Johnson (MPH '06)

    Eric has been elevated to shareholder by the firm Simmons Hanly Conroy. Mr. Johnson focuses his practice on pharmaceutical litigation, representing individuals who have been injured by dangerous drugs and defective medical devices.

  • Alyson Klausing (MPH '18)

    Alyson is the recipient of Global Health Corps Fellowship. As a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, she will be working with Dignitas International in Malawi.

  • Katharyn Kryda (MPH '18)

    Katharyn Kryda, DVM, received the ASPPH/National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Public Health Fellowship in the Office of Emergency Medical Services.

  • Lesly Lopez (BA '18)

    Lesly  has been awarded the U.S. State Department Benjamin A. Gilman scholarship to study in Santiago De Los Caballeros, Dominican Republic.

  • Suzet McKinney (DrPH '09)

    Suzet was named a Chicago Notable Women in Healthcare.

  • Paula Rusca (MPH '16)

    Paula is currently a Lab Manager at the Behavioral Insights and Parenting Lab at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy where she is managing a large scale research project (MPACT) and coordinating 30 research assistants.

  • Ryan Salzman (BA '17)

    Ryan started a full-time research position with World Vision Jordan, where he will be traveling to Azraq and Zaatari refugee camps to observe and monitor their project’s impact.

  • Mayuko Takamiya (MPH '17)

    Mayuko accepted a CDC Global Health fellowship where she will be working as an Epidemiology fellow at the Division of HIV and TB in Harare, Zimbabwe.

  • Christina Welter, DrPH, MPH

    Christina Welter, associate director of the DrPH in Leadership program, director of the MidAmerica Center for Public Health Practice, and clinical assistant professor of community health sciences, is the recipient of the of the Public Health Program of Excellent Award from the Illinois Public Health Association.

  • Urszula Tyl (BA '16)

    Urszula has been accepted into the Jeffco Leadership Academy and the Colorado Public Health Association Mentoring Program.

  • Angelica Alonso, MD/MPH candidate in epidemiology

    Angelica received the Diversifying Higher Education Faculty in Illinois Fellowship.

  • Maria Argos, PhD, associate professor of epidemiology

    Maria was named the 2017 Rising Star Researcher of the year in the field of Clinical Sciences by the University of Illinois at Chicago.

  • Juana Ballesteros (MPH '05) & Suzet McKinney (DrPH ‘09)

    Juana and Suzet were selected for the Leadership Greater Chicago Fellows program, a select group of 40 accomplished and diverse individuals who work to effect transformative change in Chicago.

  • Rodney Johnson (BA '17), MPH candidate

    Rodney was named a Schweitzer Fellow where he will work to design and implement a project that helps address the health needs of underserved Chicago communities.

  • Michele Kelley & Mayra Estella

    Michele Kelley, PhD, associate professor of community health sciences and Mayra Estella, PhD, research fellow at the UIC Institute for Minority Research, published a study called “Exploring the Meanings of Place Attachment Among Civically Engaged Puerto Rican Youth.”

  • Suzet McKinney (DrPH ‘09) & Mary Elise Papke (DrPH ‘11)

    Suzet and Mary co-authored a book titled “Public Health Emergency Preparedness: A Practical Approach for the Real World.”

  • Michael J. Wesbecher (MPH '15)

    Michael accepted the position of Director of Communications and Events for the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System.

  • Heather Venkat (DVM ‘13, MPH ‘14)

    Heather became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, a board certification frequently pursued by veterinarians working in public health. She is currently employed as a CDC Career Epidemiology Field Officer assigned to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

  • Morgan Young, MHA candidate

    Morgan  was selected for the Scholars and Leaders in Interprofessional Geriatrics summer program, a HRSA funded program to train more professionals in geriatrics.

  • Kee Chan, PhD, clinical assistant professor of health policy and administration

    Kee was selected to conduct a course at the Centers of Disease Control University titled “Communicating Effectively with Policymakers: The Art of Translating Science.”

  • Bruce Douglas, DDS, MA, MPH, MS, professor of health and aging

    Bruce was selected to receive the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award.

  • John A. Herrmann, DVM, MPH & Yvette J. Johnson-Walker, DVM, MS, PhD

    John A Herrmann, Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and Yvette J. Johnson-Walker, instructor in Bachelor of Arts program, edited and wrote three chapters in a book titled Beyond One Health: from Recognition to Results.

  • David DuBois, PhD, associate dean and professor of community health sciences

    David was named associate dean of research at the UIC School of Public Health.

  • Linda Forst, MD, MPH, professor of environmental and occupational health sciences

    Linda has been named senior associate dean for the UIC School of Public Health.

  • Lisa Powell, PhD, director & distinguished professor of health policy and administration

    Lisa was invited by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Argentina to participate at the first meeting of the G20 working group on health in Buenos Aires where she gave a lecture titled Burden of Disease and the Economic Cost of Obesity. Dr. Powell was also invited to give the Keynote address at the ADB-ADBI-WHO Obesity and Fiscal Policy Training Workshop held in Manila, Philippines titled Tax Policy Design and Health Impact in Asia.

Fall 2018 Healthviews Magazine