Through the summer, we'll be posting stories of some of our outstanding 2026 graduates. Check our news pages or follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn to read these as they're posted.
A newly minted graduate with a Master of Public Health (MPH) in Health Equity, Hobbs completed both her undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of Maryland and has always stayed close to her home in Kent Island, enabling her to leave her mark in the community.
“I really like customer-facing roles and really fast-paced environments,” Hobbs said. “So anything that gets too boring; I hate it.”
Hobbs started doing research with the First-year Innovation and Research Experience (FIRE) program during her freshman year and then joined the School of Public Health’s Public Health AeroBiology Lab, or PHAB Lab. She was fascinated by findings with viruses and vaccines, but especially fell in love with the collaborative and social atmosphere of the labs.
Hobbs kept on connecting through her UMD years. She was an undergraduate teaching assistant (UTA) for two years alongside Dr. Shuling Wu and under Dr. Sylvette La Touche-Howard, who encouraged Hobbs to pursue a MPH degree. Hobbs also received mentorship from a fellow TA, Taliah Hodges ’23, MPH ’24.
“Meghan was an absolute joy to have as my UTA,” La Touche-Howard said. “Her effervescent energy, optimistic attitude, creative nature and true love for humanity and the field of public health made her an ideal UTA and later TA.”
The opportunities in the role astounded Hobbs. “They’d have me moderate the panels and write up the questions and I’m talking to people from [the National Institutes of Health],” Hobbs said. “I was like ‘I’m a fetus!’”
Through the experience, she also practiced time-management, organization and formality, finding the challenges difficult but useful. Her graduate TA position helped her realize she especially loved working with people in the public health community.
Hobbs continued on to be a graduate TA during her master’s studies and advises other students to pursue these opportunities despite how intimidating they seem.
“Once you get one social role, you realize ‘It’s fine, we can keep going,’” Hobbs said. “It’s like a domino.”
Hobbs was also the president of the Public Health Honors Society (PAE), where, she said, “You become even more comfortable talking in front of people.”
She was additionally president of the Health Policy and Management Student Association (HPMSA,) for which she received the Outstanding Service Award from SPH’s Department of Health Policy and Management at this May’s Celebration of Scholarships. Hobbs mentioned that the Department of Health Policy and Management’s (HPM) Associate Clinical Professor & Director of Graduate Studies Dr. Melvin Seale was a huge mentor in her graduation process.
Hobbs took on these roles all while being a semester behind. When she was an undergraduate, Hobbs broke her leg. She ended up joining the +1 program, which allowed her to morph remaining undergraduate and graduate classes into her senior year schedule.
“It was technically more competitive, but it didn’t feel as scary,” Hobbs said about not having to fill out a classic graduate application portal because of this.
Hobbs also pursues her creative side, painting pottery, creating watercolor works that earned her awards in high school and wiring/fixing jewelry. “That comes very in handy for both my friends and myself,” Hobbs said.
Hobbs said she learned how it is essential in public health to be open-minded to learn something new, saying, “It’s important to have the perspectives that you wouldn’t normally have.”
By Rachel Kebler