Fall brings gold and crimson leaves crunching beneath our feet, athletic and academic events, students hustling to and from class. Fall also brings reminders of why it is such a privilege to work in higher education where we all collaborate to support students in their educational journeys. Please help us celebrate the latest efforts of the WSU Program in Public Health.
Faculty and staff hires
Kameko Washburn
WSU Vancouver
Scholarly Assistant Professor Psychology Department
College of Arts and Sciences
Dr. Kameko Washburn is a public health educator and community-engaged researcher whose work focuses on inclusive, application-based teaching and advancing equity in health. She earned her PhD and MPH from the University of California, Irvine, and previously studied anthropology and biology at San Diego State University and Monterey Peninsula College.
Dr. Washburn’s teaching and research explore the intersections of climate change, environmental justice, and public health inequities with particular attention to the impacts of climate-related hazards and public health disasters. Her work is grounded in community- and place-based approaches that highlight the social, structural, and environmental determinants of health through a social-ecological systems lens. Dr. Washburn has also been highly engaged with initiatives aimed at expanding academic-community partnerships and integrating experiential learning experiences into public health education.
Luke Rice
Student Success and Experiential Learning Coordinator
College of Veterinary Medicine
With more than 20 years of experience in higher education, including leading the development and management of educational programs at Idaho State University, Luke Rice brings extensive expertise in experiential education, academic program coordination, and educational technology systems in his role as the public health student success and experiential learning coordinator.
Luke earned a Master of Education with an emphasis in foundations of education from Eastern Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from WSU where he was also a student-athlete, playing football for the Cougs. In his current role, Luke coordinates internships, service-learning, and global learning opportunities for students in the Public Health program with a focus on preparing students, especially those who serve rural and underserved communities, for meaningful, high-impact careers in public health.
Marketing and communications
Website updates
Over the summer, Assistant Director of Undergraduate Education Chanelle Denman and Marketing and Communications Coordinator Cindy Hollenbeck collaborated with the college’s Communications team to update links and webpages to better serve prospective students and other audiences.
- New Academic Advising page, linked from the webpages of each of the five majors: biochemistry; genetics and cell biology; microbiology; neuroscience; and public health.
- New Request Information form, linked on each of the five majors’ web pages. When prospective students click on the link, they input their name and email address, enabling us to capture these data into Slate. This improved process allows the undergraduate advisors to provide customized service for the students, bolstering recruitment and retention efforts.
- Updated Program in Public Health webpage. Now that the General Option for Public Health majors is up and running, and the student success and experiential learning coordinator has joined the team, we updated the page to show those updates.
Curriculum updates
Curriculum updates for the Public Health General Option and Minor have been approved and entered in the WSU General Catalog. The General Option enables students accepted into the public health major to select one of more than a dozen academic concentrations or create their own concentration in collaboration with their academic advisor.
Outreach
Tribal and indigenous
Dr. Cole Allick, assistant professor in the Allen School for Global Health and citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, bridges public health, health policy, and Indigenous methodologies to support equitable research and policy change in Tribal communities. Over the summer, Allick attended the Welcome Back Barbecue for Native Students hosted by WSU Native programs. In addition, along with Dr. Todd Sabato, associate professor of Public Health, Allick met with Dr. Gary Ferguson, interim director of Tulalip Health Systems, in Marysville, Washington, where they discussed collaborating on how to better serve Tribal communities, the future of Tribal health work in the Public Health program and creating more opportunities to engage students.
Evidence for Action blog
Dr. Cole Allick and Dr. Ye Ji Kim, a social epidemiologist, have collaborated on a blog Rooted in Relationships: Sharing Broad Themes from E4A Grantee Networking Sessions | Evidence for Action with the goal of sharing broader learnings that emerge from networking events where grantees speak about successes and challenges and imagine what future collaborations will look like.
Washington State Public Health Association Conference
From Oct. 21–23, faculty and staff from the Program in Public Health attended the Washington State Public Health Association Conference with the theme of “Together for Health: Action, Compassion, and Collaboration.”
The Program in Public Health was a Platinum sponsor for the conference along with University of Puget Sound. Attendees from WSU included Dr. Kameko Washburn, Dr. Todd Sabato, Luke Rice, and Dr. Andreas Eleftheriou, assistant professor in Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology.
Washington Consortium for Reproductive Health
Dr. Kim McBride, associate professor in the School of Molecular Biosciences, presented a talk on STI stigma at the Washington Consortium for Reproductive Health, an initiative funded by the Washington Foundation. The aim of the foundation is to facilitate multidisciplinary partnerships among scientists, clinicians, non-profit organizations, and funders across Washington state to commercialize reproductive health innovations.
Study Abroad
Dr. Kim McBride, along with Dr. Martina Ederer, assistant professor (career track) for the School of Molecular Biosciences, attended the Study Abroad Fair on the Terrell Mall on Aug. 27 where they shared information with dozens of interested students about the Kenya: Research Immersion in Nairobi faculty-led program. For more information on Study Abroad, email ip.edabroad@wsu.edu.
Community engagement
Dr. Todd Sabato, associate professor of Public Health, along with the students from his Public 310 class, Community Health, formed a partnership with WSU’s Center for Civic Engagement so students can learn more about opportunities for experiential and service-learning experiences on the Palouse.
In October, Dr. Kim McBride helped organize Reproductive Health Awareness Week events at WSU Pullman and served on a panel that focused on the career impacts of menopause. Currently, she is partnering with clinicians and researchers from Seattle Children’s Hospital and University of Washington to examine dysmenorrhea (painful periods) in college women.
Dr. McBride presented a workshop that addressed intersectionality and implicit bias in the workplace at the college Community Connect Series.
Student engagement
CVM faculty and staff held an Ice Cream Social on Sept. 30 for current students outside the Biotechnology and Life Sciences Building. The team served Grabbers from Ferdinand’s, and seven student groups — Molecular Biosciences Club, Neuroscience Club, Teaching Mentoring Program, Pre-Pharmacy, and MAPS — tabled at the event. More than 60 students across all majors attended.
Cindy Hollenbeck, marketing and communications coordinator for CVM, traveled to Ritzville and tabled at the Career Showcase held at Lind-Ritzville High School on Oct. 9. Approximately 250 students, first-years through seniors, attended the event. Cindy promoted the Program in Public Health as well as Neuroscience and the School of Molecular Biosciences. Cindy made connections with staff from the Washington Council for Behavioral Health.
CVM faculty, staff, and WSU Student Financial Services held a Scholarship Workshop in the Biomedical Research Building on Oct. 22. The group presented information on the Distinguished Scholarships Program, General Scholarship Application, and provided tips and tricks to help students fund their undergraduate educations.