Name: Maria Wallace
Anticipated Graduation Date: Spring 2023
What does public health mean to you? Public health is such a challenge to me, like a puzzle. It is more than just the health and well-being of a community. It's looking at health from a holistic perspective, accounting for a person's demographics, experiences, and beliefs. When you gather all the pieces that make a person who they are, that's when you can truly make an impact on their health.
When did you know you wanted to purse a career in Maternal and Child Health? I grew up in a family where conversations about reproductive and sexual health were avoided at all costs. I was left with so many questions and answers from the internet that were inconsistent and horrifying. After struggling with my own reproductive health for a few years I was determined to build a career toward helping women find the answers to questions about their own bodies.
Why did you choose GW's Milken Institute School of Public Health for your public health education? I knew that joining GW would provide me with so many opportunities, not only because of the location but because of the option to concentrate my MPH in maternal and child health.
If you have completed your CE or Practicum, please comment about that experience and what it meant to you as you pursue your career: I completed my Practicum with The Body Agency during the spring and summer of 2022. I spent most of my time building content for The Body Agency's various social media accounts. While learning public health communication tactics was a great skill to practice, more than anything I learned about the sense of confidence it takes to really engage people in conversations about sexual health and wellness. My mentor and founder of The Body Agency, Kate Roberts, was the perfect example of the confidence it takes to break into spaces that aren't used to discussing sexual health.
Have any Public Health faculty or staff members influenced you in a unique way? Working as one of the Maternal and Child Health Center or Excellence Graduate Assistants has been one of my greatest opportunities. Working with Dr. Vyas and other Center Faculty has given me the opportunity to work on research projects I could only dream of. I'm eternally grateful to the CoE Faculty for the chance to learn new public health skills and assist in the MCH program.
What are your career plans post-MPH? While these plans are very much still tentative, I hope to continue working in Maternal and Child Health Research. Working in data collection and analysis has always been one of my favorite parts of public health because I feel like I never stop learning.
What advice would you give an incoming MCH-MPH candidate? I feel like I can't stress enough the importance of building and using the connections offered to you during your time in the MPH program. I can't think of another time in your life when you'll have this many people who are there to help you build your career and succeed in life. Whether it be connections with Milken Faculty or fellow students, you have the opportunity to leave this program with hundreds of connections in the public health community.
Why should someone choose to come to the Milken Institute School of Public Health? Choosing to come to the Milken Institute School of Public Health means joining a community of dedicated public health professionals that work in service of the common good. You'll be trained by some of the most incredible leaders in the field of public health and leave with more passion for public health than you came with.