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Dear UCI campus community and public health advocates,
A fundamental value of UC Irvine Public Health is its commitment to fostering meaningful connections, partnerships, and positive change within our communities in Orange County and beyond. In this inaugural community-centric newsletter, Community Connections, we highlight examples of our continuing commitment to community engagement – from our students' practicum site experiences and our faculty's research all the way to our community partnerships, which place diversity, inclusion, and health equity above all else.
We believe that community engagement is vital for creating sustainable, long-term impact. It ensures that public health interventions are not imposed from the outside, but rather co-created within the community. We are committed to advancing a curriculum which values community engagement and as a culminating experience our students apply a community-engaged focus through their public health practicum experience. By being actively involved within a community, students learn first-hand to appreciate diverse perspectives, respect cultural values, and tailor our public health projects and services to meet the specific needs of the community. This experience also prepares them for what lies ahead as a public health practitioner of the future.
I am also excited to share that Marizen Ramirez, PhD, will be joining our program leadership team as our inaugural Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Dr. Ramirez is a champion for communities whose work is focused on reducing violent behavior in youth and we know her work will inspire the UCI enterprise and community-at-large. The addition of Dr. Ramirez to our leadership team represents our continued investment into building healthier communities.
Public health is a collaborative endeavor that thrives when practitioners actively engage with the communities they serve. This could not be possible without the partnerships we’ve forged with community and non-profit organizations, government agencies, and healthcare entities. A few of our amazing partners are featured below with many more to come in future editions. By working together, we can drive positive change, improve health outcomes, and create a healthier and more equitable future for all.
Sincerely,
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Bernadette Boden-Albala, MPH, DrPH
Director and Founding Dean
UCI Program in Public Health
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Celebrating Our Community Organizations
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Standing Out for Standing Up
Every year, the Program in Public Health recognizes two practicum sites as champions for the community. We honored Veterans Legal Institute as the undergraduate outstanding site-of-the-year, and SCAN Health Plan as the graduate outstanding site-of-the-year. Well-deserved accolades to Diana Garcia (at left) and Allen Suh for accepting the awards on behalf of their organizations.
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UCI Public Health in the Field
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Visibility, Empowerment, & Community Through Public Health
Recent graduate, Manuel Antunez, MPH, selected the LGBTQ Center of OC for his practicum site project, where he also serves as the full-time Transgender Service Coordinator. His dedication to advocating for the LGBTQ+ community aligns with his passion for public health.
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Public Health is my Calling, Thank you Latino Health Access!
The connection that alum Nallely Enriquez felt for public health, and with her professors' encouragement to explore community-driven work, led her to discover Latino Health Access.
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UCI alumna, Jasmine Kerr, chose Karate for All for her practicum experience, and her contributions to the organization turned into a rewarding full-time job where she can work with children and use her public health knowledge.
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Recent graduate, Reina Obeid, MPH, chose the UCI Health Patient Education Department for her practicum experience. She wanted to gain more experience to prep for a career in medicine.
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Research with a State-wide Impact
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Masashi Kitazawa and Michael Kleinman showed that exposure to traffic-related air pollution in Irvine led to memory loss and cognitive decline, as well as increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease in mouse models. Full Article >>
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David Timberlake and Denise Payán found that residents of California jurisdictions with a comprehensive sales ban have a 30% reduced odds of using flavored tobacco relative to those living in a jurisdiction without a ban. Full Article >>
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Scott Bartell explains the danger of toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which have been found in water supplies worldwide, including in cities throughout Orange County, specifically Anaheim, Garden Grove, Orange, and Yorba Linda. Full Article >>
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Researcher Margaret Schneider helped develop a tool to help school administrators and education professionals determine what actions to take when presented with students at risk for spreading infection, like COVID-19, at schools across Orange County. Full Article >>
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Jun Wu found that among data pulled from 415K records of births in Southern California, exposure to green space at street level and tree coverage were linked to reduced risk of postpartum depression. Full Article >>
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Suellen Hopfer will work with Communities for a New California Education Fund to create a webinar series and share evidence-based data on place-based impacts by wildfire in the San Joaquin Valley. Full Article >>
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Jun Wu, PhD and Alana LeBrón, PhD receive a $2.7M grant to study the link between low-level lead exposure during pregnancy/early childhood and its impact on school performance/behavior in Santa Ana. Full Article >>
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Bringing the Community Together
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Friday, October 13 | 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Sue Gross Auditorium
Registration details coming soon!
UCI Public Health is thrilled to partner with the Orange County Women’s Health Project to host its annual Health Summit. For the ninth year in a row, advocates for women's health will come together to discuss how to advance women’s health and equity. This year's theme touches on women's health in a post-Roe era.
If you have questions about the event or are interested in sponsorship opportunities, please contact Juliana Goswick at jgoswick@hs.uci.edu.
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Wednesday, November 8 | Noon to 2 p.m.
Sue Gross Auditorium
REGISTER Today
Join us for our fall Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series. This upcoming quarter, we will feature a keynote lecture by UCLA's Julienne Bower, PhD, on the interactions between psychology and the immune system in cancer patients and survivors.
Casual reception to follow lecture. Hosted in partnership with the UCI Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center.
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UCI Public Health is always looking for new partners to join our practicum experience to enrich our students before they step into the workforce.
For any interested organizations or campus units, please fill out this survey form for our Community Engagement Manager to follow up with additional steps before becoming an official community partner.
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