Student Spotlight Celebrating our students’ achievements, impact, and excellence—inside the classroom and beyond.

A colorful artistic representation of a cell under a microscope

Carmen Haynes Asks What Happens When Emerging Technology Meets an Imperfect System

Carmen Haynes turned a classroom discussion on artificial womb technology into her first peer-reviewed publication. Now a PhD student at UTMB SPPH, she explores how emerging medical technologies intersect with child welfare policy and maternal health, bridging law, history, and bioethics.
A professional headshot of Amie Hufton

Amie Hufton, PhD ‘23, Traces Path from Hurricane Response to Higher Education Leadership

Hurricane Ike changed Amie Hufton’s direction from marine science to public health. At UTMB School of Public and Population Health, that shift led to disaster research on older adults and a teaching career now shaping hundreds of Ohio State students.
A collage of photos representative of people working in epidemiology and public health practice

MPH Epidemiology vs. Public Health Practice: How to Choose (Careers, Skills, and Fit)

Epidemiology or public health practice? Compare day-to-day work, skill stacks (analysis vs implementation), and common job screens so you can choose a concentration—and build a portfolio employers recognize.
Group shots of UTMB students who volunteered at narcan distribution event

UTMB Public Health Students Distributed 72 Boxes of Free Narcan at Galveston's Mardi Gras

At Galveston’s Mardi Gras, 13 UTMB students ran a Marmo Plaza booth distributing 72 free Narcan (naloxone) boxes and teaching overdose response. Their survey and volunteer notes show how stigma shaped reactions and how reframing Narcan like CPR or an AED helped more people engage.
Leila Brammer stands by a podium during talk

SPPH Welcomes Communication Expert Dr. Leila Brammer for Professional Development Sessions

UTMB SPPH welcomed Dr. Leila Brammer (University of Chicago) for interactive sessions with staff, students, and faculty. Participants practiced engaged listening and meeting techniques designed to surface quiet perspectives and reduce polarization.
A photo of Vasilis wearing a heavy coat while on polar rotation

Charting Health in Microgravity and Community

UTMB resident Vasilis Mavratsas blends internal medicine and aerospace medicine—using prevention, risk assessment, and human factors to support safer missions. From a Vast commercial space rotation to Galveston safety-net clinics, he’s building systems that protect health on Earth and in orbit.
Graphic featuring five incoming 2028 aerospace medicine residents

Welcome, Aerospace Medicine Residency Class of 2028

Meet the University of Texas Medical Branch Aerospace Medicine Residency Class of 2028. Five residents join the program, including new categorical trainees and advancing combined EM and Aerospace Medicine residents, bringing diverse clinical and aviation experience to UTMB.
Briana at the Health Education Center

Centering Community: MPH Graduate Briana Nguyen’s Path from East Texas to Peru

MPH graduate Briana Nguyen turned lessons from an East Texas ER into community-centered public health at The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) School of Public and Population Health, including an Applied Practice Experience in Peru supporting child nutrition and anemia prevention.
Student speaking with faculty

2025 SPPH Faculty Student Research and Scholarship Mixer

UTMB SPPH’s 2025 Faculty-Student Research and Scholarship Mixer at the HEC connected graduate students with faculty across all four departments, sparking mentoring relationships, project ideas, and concrete next steps for research and community-focused scholarship.
PhD student Zhiwei Hu in the Ashbel Smith building

Measuring Care at Life's End

Zhiwei Hu draws on early palliative care experience in Chengdu, graduate training at LSE, and doctoral work at UTMB to study hospice disparities. His recent GSA presentation and travel award support a growing research path focused on equity in end-of-life care.
UTMB SPPH ConTex fellows at Kidney Week 2025

Beyond the Clinic: Key Updates from Kidney Week

Kidney Week spotlighted real-world progress: AI that assists clinicians, primary-care training that boosts early detection, and strategies to address food, housing, and access. Fellows also warn about smoking’s cadmium damage and urgent global care gaps.
Winrose Windsor

Moderate Physical Activity Linked to Lower Odds of Stroke

Rehab Sciences PhD student Winrose Windsor presents at APHA 2025 with a national analysis of 2021–2023 NHANES data. Moderate leisure-time activity links with lower odds of stroke (57% in men, 49% in women) and supports realistic weekly goals.

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