The American Public Health Association (APHA) has announced Sharon Laing, adjunct associate professor of health systems and population health at the University of Washington School of Public Health (UW SPH), as one of its’ 2023 Awards of Excellence in Public Health recipients. Laing, who is also an associate professor in the School of Nursing & Healthcare Leadership at UW Tacoma, was selected to receive APHA’s 2023 Lyndon Haviland Public Health Mentoring Award for “guiding young health professionals involved in community-based research and student programming.”
Each year, the Lyndon Haviland Public Health Mentoring Award is presented to seasoned public health professionals or scholars who actively engage in mentoring students and emerging professionals through consistent communication, facilitating professional growth, supporting research or collaborating on joint publications.
To promote greater diversity within public health research, Laing recruited students from minoritized groups to participate in community-engaged research. In addition, she helped students secure scholarships and grants for travel expenses to present their research findings. As a dedicated member of APHA’s Committee on Health Equity, Laing also played a pivotal role in recruiting panelists for a committee webinar tailored to recent public health graduates.
This year’s award recipients will be honored at an event during APHA’s 2023 Annual Meeting and Expo.