Learn more about CPH alumni accomplishments recently featured in the news.
Haris Ahmad - MPH ‘22
Haris Ahmad, MPH, has recently been accepted into the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) fellowship program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. As part of the Influenza Prevention and Control Team (IPACT), he will be researching vaccine effectiveness to inform vaccine policy at the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the Food and Drug Administration's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC). Ahmad graduated with his bachelor's degree in biology at the University of Toledo before earning his Master of Public Health degree with an epidemiology concentration from the Â鶹´«Ã½ College of Public Health in 2022. During his undergraduate studies, he gained experience as a medical scribe and oncology research intern at the University of Toledo Medical Center and studied colon cancer treatments at the University of Michigan. During his time at Kent State, he volunteered on Dr. Mary Step's research team and worked as a COVID-19 contact tracer. During summer 2022, Ahmad worked at CHC Addiction Services in Akron, where he analyzed client data to look for changes in quality of life scores and factors influencing program effectiveness.
For more information and to connect, email Haris Ahmad at: hahmad2@kent.edu
Wallace Chambers - Ph.D. '22
Wallace Chambers, PhD, MHA, REHS, is the Commissioner of Environment at the Cleveland Department of Public Health. He is a registered environmental health specialist and a healthy homes specialist, and serves on numerous state and national boards, including the CDC Lead Exposure and Prevention Advisory Board. Recently, Chambers was appointed to the Children’s Health Protection Advisory Committee (CHPAC) of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Wallace was also part of the National Association of County and City Health Officials’ (NACCHO) Environmental Health Work Group from 2017 to 2019. During his career, he has supervised the Lead Program (Akron Health Department), worked in Air Quality (Summit County Public Health), and served as Deputy Director of Environmental Health (Cuyahoga County Board of Health). He earned his Doctorate in Public Health with a concentration in health policy and management from Â鶹´«Ã½, his Master of Applied Science from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and his Master of Health Administration from Ohio University.
For more information and to connect, email Wallace Chambers at: wchambers@clevelandohio.gov
Rebecca Jindra, MPH ‘21
Rebecca Jindra graduated from Â鶹´«Ã½ with her Master of Public Health with a concentration in epidemiology. While attending classes at Kent State, Jindra worked full time at the Cuyahoga County Board of Health as a communicable disease investigator, specializing in COVID-19 outbreaks. After graduation, Jindra was accepted into the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists Applied Epidemiology Fellowship program. She was placed on the epidemiology team at the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department located in Santa Barbara, California. Jindra is mentored by highly skilled epidemiologists as she completes several projects focusing on understanding the health of residents living in Santa Barbara County and implementing evidence-based strategies to help address community needs.
Â鶹´«Ã½ College of Public Health (CPH) is proud and eager to keep up with the recent news of our alumni. To share your story, email the college at publichealth@kent.edu.
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