SPH Blog

Read about SPH people, research and impact.

Andrea Jade Scallon featured in Husky 100
Why did you choose to pursue the Public Health-Global Health Major? I became interested in Public Health-Global Health through its intersection with social justice. I initially understood global health as only being the study of worldwide diseases.
Why did you choose to pursue the minor in global health?: ​I knew that the knowledge I would gain from the course classes would be valuable life information. I think it is important to be an informed citizen in the topics of climate change, cultural humility, environmental health, political science, etc. and I knew that this program would provide me with that ability.
Why did you choose to pursue the Minor in Global Health? Throughout high school and the beginning of Freshman year at UW, I was always interested in everything medicine.
What influenced your decision to pursue a graduate degree in biostatistics? As an undergraduate, I was fascinated by math. But as much as I enjoyed it, I realized that pure math academia wasn't a good fit for me.
What led you to choose Biostatistics as your field of study? I am particularly interested in the intersection between public health and statistical methodologies. The beauty of biostatistics is its magic of transforming convoluted datasets into meaningful information that can help advance scientific understanding of diseases and shed light on potentially effective ways to improve health.

As the first person in her family to attend college, Taylor Okonek wants people to know that there are first-generation students in the field of biostatistics.

What brought you to UW? I am a Swiss-Peruvian immigrant that grew up in Renton, Washington. Culture has been a major part of my life.
What influenced you to pursue a degree in nutritional sciences? I’ve never seen myself as a “science person,” but the more I got into food and nutrition, the more I found myself needing that science background!
What influenced you to pursue a degree in nutritional sciences? I have been nudged towards nutritional sciences and dietetics in numerous ways but I started considering nutrition as a profession after continuously hearing the advice: “Do what you love!” And I love food.
What influenced you to pursue a degree in nutritional sciences? I decided to pursue a Master of Science in Nutritional Sciences after realizing that I wanted a career change. Before pursuing my master’s, I spent nearly a decade working for various food and beverage brands.
What influenced you to pursue a degree in nutritional sciences? Pursuing health through food and nutrition has always played a pretty big role in my life and throughout my career, I have had different opportunities to provide nutrition education and promote sustainable agriculture.
What interested you in studying nutritional sciences? I come from a country which is currently facing the triple burden of malnutrition – the coexistence of undernutrition, obesity, and micronutrient deficiencies. This nutrition crisis affects the most underserved populations and is common in low- and middle-income countries.
What motivates you to do this work? The problems in public health and medicine that I work on and the people who I work with keep me motivated. My collaborators open my eyes to pressing problems, and it's fun to be part of the solution through biostatistics.
Jeffrey Leek is an innovative data scientist and educator whose work has had far-reaching impacts on molecular biology, cancer research and neuroscience. His lab seeks to understand variation in human gene expression and how it relates to normal development and disease.