The University of Washington School of Public Health recognizes the recipients of the 2025 Excellence Awards, which celebrates members of the SPH community for their dedication, service, and many contributions to public health. Congratulations to all our awardees!
Outstanding Staff
Biostatistics — Matthew Conomos
Matt Conomos is a Senior Research Scientist and Project Manager at UW’s Genetic Analysis Center (GAC) in the Department of Biostatistics. This award recognizes his outstanding contributions to GAC’s success over 15 years, through responsibilities that include leadership of research scientists and staff; scientific and statistical consulting on ongoing projects; data management and analysis; budget preparation and monitoring; and grant writing and strategic planning. The award also recognizes his outstanding personal skills, running projects with grace, expertise and, as needed, humor. Finally, we recognize his contributions as a teacher, advisor and role model for students in the School.
DEOHS — Dennise Drury
Dennise is an Outreach and Education Specialist with the Pacific Northwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center, where she has worked since 2017. She has a passion for developing safety resources in collaboration with Latino communities. With agricultural partners, she has helped develop training tools for sexual harassment, heat illness, wildfire smoke, and more. As an MPH student in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, she conducted a formative evaluation of the ¡Basta! Toolkit. She is also a trainer for the Agricultural Leadership Program developed by the Washington State Tree Fruit Association and Washington State Department of Agriculture.
Epidemiology — Veronica Jones
As Epidemiology’s Grants Director, Veronica directs the comprehensive research administration activities for the Department and partners with the rest of the grants and finance team in providing a full spectrum of support across sponsored research projects and other funds associated with faculty budgets. Veronica has the challenging task of needing to deal with emergent issues that change by the day and minute, and still finds time to think about the future and help set up grant processes that will help faculty communicate and collaborate more effectively. Over the course of a particularly challenging two years, Veronica has been a steadfast pillar of support.
Health Systems and Population Health — Emily Batlan
Emily Batlan is the Graduate Program and Career Advisor for our MHIHIM program. She has been instrumental in developing innovative resources that enhance student preparation for academic and professional success. She has created a comprehensive career advising framework in Canvas that addresses the unique challenges faced by health informatics professionals in today's complex healthcare environment. She facilitates meaningful connections between students, faculty, alumni, and industry partners through thoughtfully designed networking events, mentorship programs, and professional development programming. The MHIHIM program's outstanding retention rates, career placement statistics, and glowing alumni feedback can be directly attributed to Emily’s exceptional contributions.
Office of the Dean — Joe Harper Kowalczyk
Joe has worked for the SPH since October 2016, since then, he has collaborated with colleagues across the university and school and partnered with faculty and administrators to advance and accomplish the equity goals, vision, and mission of the School and the major. In recognition of Joe’s dedication, work ethic, and excellence, he rose to the role of Academic Service Director and, most recently, to his current position as Director of Program Operations. Joe embodies the School's values by centering students’ and staff's experiences, building connections among colleagues, modeling and embracing inclusion, fairness, transparency, and uplifting diverse experiences.
ANDERSON-O’CONNELL AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING STAFF SERVICE
Lisa Nonzee — Global Health
Lisa has worked diligently and with exceptional care to meet the evolving HR needs of our organization. Guided by a deep respect for the people behind the processes, she brings a thoughtful, human-centered approach to her work—ensuring that policies and systems not only function efficiently but also support the well-being of faculty, staff, and students. Through her strategic insight and thorough analysis, she has significantly enhanced processes and workflows—improvements that will leave a lasting mark on DGH. Most notably, she developed a comprehensive new workflow and form for faculty reduced responsibility requests, which is expected to substantially ease the administrative burden for all stakeholders and has already received praise from units across UW. Additionally, Lisa led the creation and implementation of processes for new position exception approvals, compensation exceptions, and robust tracking systems to monitor the status of faculty, staff, and student hires.
Outstanding Undergraduate Students
Environmental Health — Kaidan St. Louis
Kaidan St. Louis is an accomplished undergraduate pursuing a dual degree in Environmental Public Health and Community, Environment, and Planning. Their capstone examines micro pantries in Seattle, addressing food security and safety. As Co-Chair of the Student Environmental Health Association and a leader in Peaks and Professors, Kaidan fosters collaboration within UW. Beyond campus, their Recycle Corps internship with Waste Management improved waste diversion and recycling behaviors, followed by leading a biomedical waste outreach initiative with King County to enhance recycling practices across the Puget Sound. Kaidan’s work integrates environmental health and community engagement to advance equitable public health solutions.
HIHIM — Sukhman Dhillon
Sukhman Dhillon is from the Eastside, and is a self-defined Husky through and through. During their time at UW, they've been incredibly passionate about integrating technology with healthcare to improve patient outcomes and streamline operations. As they move forward, they are excited to continue learning and contribute to the transformation of healthcare through technology by beginning their graduate studies in Information Management at UW this coming fall. Outside of academics, they love listening to music, playing, reffing, or watching soccer, and going on walks near Lake Washington.
Public Health-Global Health — Erica Stagg
Erica is completing a BA in PH-GH Health Education & Health Promotion. She is a highly engaged student, leading through her commitment to service and understanding of nuance that impacts public health systems. Erica joined the major as an Army veteran after transferring from South Seattle College. We are proud of her work in the major and departmental honors curriculum, as well as the leadership she has demonstrated through her involvement with DACS, student panels, and her internship. We celebrate her finishing her bachelor’s and joining the Master of Public Policy program with the Evans School this autumn.
OUTSTANDING UNDERGRADUATE AWARD
Food Systems, Nutrition and Health — Alex Ball
Alex has worked with the UW Farm to help distribute produce to both community households and UW students, while also providing education about the food system to student volunteers. He plans to build on this experience and his undergraduate coursework to further explore the nuances of how our food system affects the health of communities by pursuing a Master’s in Public Health (MPH). His ultimate goal is to research and implement programs that improve public health outcomes through food, while applying a systems view to also improve the sustainability of our food system.
Outstanding Master’s Students
Biostatistics — Tengfei Cui
Tengfei Cui is a master’s level biostatistician who is working to develop scalable software for single-cell allele specific expression. He has a strong interest in statistical genetics and bioinformatics. His research has produced scalable software to process this expression from 10X Genomic single-cell RNA-seq data. He will continue his research work at Texas A&M in their Statistics PhD program.
Epidemiology — Molly Sneller
Molly is a passionate student in Epidemiology with a special interest in host-microbial interactions and occupational safety. Her thesis research combines microbiology and epidemiology to investigate how sexual activity shapes the vaginal microbiome in Kenyan adolescent girls and young women. She also works with Public Health – Seattle & King County on a project focused on auto repair shops, where she evaluates worker exposure to volatile organic compounds and investigates safer alternatives to toxic degreasers. Molly is especially interested in bridging laboratory science and field application, improving how we train people to work with hazardous materials and translating exposure data into practical workplace protections.
Global Health — Brekken Cogswell
Brekken has spent her professional and academic career focusing on improving rural and Indigenous health. While pursuing her MPH, she worked as a research fellow for Grow RURAL, adapting global innovations from Brazil and Uganda to rural US contexts, and collaborated with the UW Indigenous Knowledge Family evaluating suicide literature in Native communities. Furthermore, Brekken interned with the Naa Kaáani Traditional Medicine Program, combining traditional medicinal knowledge of local tribes with Western public health practices. After graduation, she will join the Rural PROCARE Health Equity Research Network as a research scientist, focusing on improving cardiology care access for tribal populations.
MHA — Vincent Da
Vincent "Vinnie" Da exemplifies excellence in healthcare leadership through exceptional academic work and community impact. His insights at the intersection of healthcare administration, health equity, and public policy have distinguished him in the MHA program. Vincent's leadership in national case competitions, including a second-place finish at the SloanCornell Competition, showcases his empathetic understanding of mental health access for underserved youth. His experience at the Washington State Department of Health during COVID-19 and MultiCare's equity initiatives demonstrates his ability to translate policy into meaningful change. As a mentor and 2025 Husky 100 recipient, Vincent leads not only by example but by ensuring others feel heard, valued, and equipped to succeed.
Health Systems and Population Health — Maleah Nore
Maleah Nore is a tribal public health contractor and a recent MPH graduate from the Department of Health Systems and Population Health. Maleah has worked on grassroots and non-profit projects relating to the prevention of child abuse, domestic violence, and suicide in tribal communities for over 7 years. With her MPH, she is ready to nurture a lifelong career helping tribal communities return to traditional ways of love and resilience .
Nutritional Sciences — Hannah Sanders
Hannah is graduating with an MPH in Nutrition and completing the Coordinated Program in Dietetics. She plans to use her training to promote equity in nutrition access and outcomes globally. At UW, she interned with PATH’s Newborn Nutrition team, completed her thesis on the nutrient adequacy of the Planetary Health Diet for West Africa, and served on the board of the Greater Seattle Dietetic Association. Prior to graduate school, she worked in health care consulting and supported public health nutrition research in Kenya and Senegal. Hannah earned a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies from Wheaton College.
GILBERT S. OMENN AWARD FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE: MASTER'S STUDENT
Cecilia Martindale — Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences
Cecilia Martindale is an outstanding Master of Environmental Health Sciences student dedicated to advancing environmental and occupational health. Her thesis examines the relationship between heat and toxic exposures, earning her the prestigious 2025 Castner scholarship. As a research assistant, she has improved the calibration of low-cost air quality sensors, addressing key limitations in the EPA’s correction equation. Beyond research, Cecilia has championed environmental policies and mentored students, creating resources that help bridge science and policymaking. Through advocacy, innovation, and collaboration, she continues to drive meaningful progress in public health.
Read more about Cecilia on the DEOHS blog
Outstanding Doctoral Students
Biostatistics — Yunhan Wu
Yunhan Wu is a recent PhD graduate in Biostatistics whose work focuses on improving public health through small area estimation. Committed to developing methods and software with real-world impact, particularly in low-resource settings, his doctoral research centered on enhancing subnational estimation for key health and demographic indicators using complex survey data. Among his contributions, the web-based tool ‘sae4health’ has had the greatest practical reach, which enables non-technical users to generate health estimates at fine spatial scales. Adopted by WHO-led workshops across Africa, the tool continues to evolve as a platform for accessible, data-driven public health planning.
DEOHS — Amber Khan
Amber Khan is an exceptional PhD student, committed to public health and climate action. Her research focuses on low-income housing preparedness, response, and recovery from disasters, leading to publications, fact sheets, a successful grant, and strong partnerships with affordable housing organizations in Washington, DC. Using a mixed-methods approach, she examined how public housing authorities manage disaster risks. An advocate for environmental justice, Amber engages in climate activism, organizes mutual aid efforts, and fosters inclusivity through her leadership in UW POC Outdoors. Through research, mentorship, and advocacy, she advances equitable housing solutions and community resilience.
Epidemiology — Hiwot Zewdie
Hiwot exemplifies the best in our students, excelling both in her studies and commitment to public health, in particular the fields of the built environment, injury and violence, and socioeconomic indicators of health. Hiwot has presented her research at national conferences, and has been first author on six publications, with co-authorship on several more. She is a founding and active member of the International Student Support Program, co-led a study abroad program to Ethiopia for undergraduates, co-led the Epi Peer Mentoring program, was a Global Engagement Fellow, and independently initiated a collaborative research project on pedestrian safety in Bogotá, Colombia.
Global Health — Tessa Concepcion
Tessa Concepcion holds a PhD in Global Health Implementation Science from the University of Washington and an MS in Global Health from Duke University. Her research centers on designing, implementing, and evaluating evidence-based interventions to support the sexual and reproductive health of pregnant and postpartum women in low-resource settings. Her doctoral work examined early implementation factors for integrating long-acting PrEP into antenatal care in Kenya. Tess previously led a national study on the burden of pediatric surgical conditions in Somaliland and has expertise in mixed methods research, perinatal mental health, mental health systems analysis, and intervention delivery.
Public Health Genetics — Taylor Johnson
Taylor is a PhD candidate in Public Health Genetics at the University of Washington, studying how aging shapes the immune response to viral infections like SARS-CoV-2. Her research combines bioinformatics and experimental data to understand aging immune responses and how to improve inclusion of older adults in clinical research. Taylor is passionate about mentorship and expanding access to academic and career guidance, especially for underrepresented students. Outside the lab, she enjoys hiking, kayaking, and spending time with her Australian shepherd, Dax.
GILBERT S. OMENN AWARD FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE: DOCTORAL STUDENT
Taylor Rapson — Health Systems and Population Health
Taylor Rapson, MPH (she/her), will graduate from the Health Services Doctoral program. Her research during her tenure at UW centers on quality improvement in HIV services and digital equity in non-profit practices and safety-net health systems. Her dissertation examines barriers to digital health technology use, evaluates the impact of digital training on reducing disparities, and assesses associations between digital health technology use and health outcomes. Committed to advancing equity in health service delivery, particularly in safety-net and nonprofit settings serving marginalized populations, Taylor will pursue a practice-based research fellowship embedded in an integrated safety-net health system after graduating.