Esohe Owie came with her family to Maryland from Lagos, Nigeria in her early teens, the eldest of three siblings. Adjusting to this new world was challenging, especially when – just a few years later – she needed to navigate an unfamiliar college system.

This fall, a new group of accomplished professionals brings a wealth of experience, energy, and vision to the School of Public Health’s 2024-26 Alumni Network Board, with a renewed focus on engaging Alumni communities near and far. 

Tia Cunningham is passionate about supporting students in all the ways – how they connect, how they belong and how they grow beyond UMD into meaningful careers.

School of Public Health alumna Regina Webb (B.S. ’06) has been recognized as one of Maryland The Daily Record’s Leading Women, awards that honor women 40 or younger for their significant accomplishments in community involvement and commitment to inspiring change.

It’s hard to imagine the world of science without trailblazing environmental microbiologist Rita Colwell. An expert in global infectious disease and the first female director of the National Science Foundation, Colwell has conducted seminal research on cholera that transformed our understanding of how the deadly disease behaves and spreads.

Even on the roof of the world, climate change is melting the snow. The loss of a third of the ice of Himalayan mountains in the past 30 years has translated into water and food shortages and variable water quality in the villages below.

A University of Maryland team traveled there this month to see how communities there are tackling these insecurities and to apply its expertise in water sampling and analysis to inform solutions to citizens in Namobuddha Municipality.

The School of Public Health continued to move fearlessly forward this year, tackling pressing issues at the local, national and global level, while educating the next generation of public health practitioners. Here's a look back at some of the school’s achievements in 2023.

The Maryland Safe Drinking Water Analysis and Testing for Education and Research (WATER) study examines the quality of public drinking water systems and private wells in Maryland through citizen science, field-based research and laboratory analyses.

Dr. Mona Mittal, associate professor in the Department of Family Science and supervisor at the Center for Healthy Families, explains how stress affects us in different ways, why so many people seem to be stressed out year-round and how we can find relief.