SCHOLARS 2017
Kennedy Countess is a rising senior at Amherst College, majoring in History and on the pre-med track. She hopes to attend medical school after graduation. Within health care, Kennedy’s interests include exploring disparities in health care access and working to find ways to reduce these inequalities.
She is excited to participate in this research experience and hopes to learn more about the public health sphere this summer. This summer she will be working with Phillip Coffin & Emily Behar in the Substance Use Research Unit.
Melvin Faulks is a graduating senior from California State University, East Bay, majoring in Sociology and Ethnics with a concentration in Genders and Sexualities in Communities of Color. After graduation, he will be entering a post-baccalaureate program to further pursue a career in medicine. He plans to works towards a career in HIV research, focusing on underserved communities of color. This summer he will be working with Sean Arayasirikul.
This summer he will be working with Sean Arayasirikul in the Center For Public Health Research.
Lauren Kemmeter is a graduate of California State University, Chico with a Bachelor of Science in Health Education. She is eager to utilize research to influence policy, public health practice, and community efforts toward health equity. Lauren is interested in working with many populations, including those who marginally housed, people who are or have been incarcerated, and people experiencing substance misuse. Homegrown in the North Bay Area, Lauren is passionate about serving the diverse needs of her community, specifically utilizing harm reduction interventions to reduce HIV risk. An aspiring epidemiologist, Lauren is excited to spend the summer with peers and professionals who are stakeholders in the global eradication of HIV/AIDS infections, deaths, and stigma.
This summer she will be working with Susan Scheer and Darpun Sachdev in the Applied Research, Community Health Epidemiology, and Surveillance Branch (ARCHES).
Eric Lam is a recent graduate from Arcadia University in Pennsylvania with a B.A in Psychology and a minor in global public health. Starting in the fall, he will be attending Boston University School of Public Health to pursue an MPH with a concentration in health communication and promotion. He was active in a variety of organizations at Arcadia University, including being the captain of the Arcadia men’s swim team and president of Puro RItmo, a Latin dance group on campus. He enjoys working out, photography, and spending time with his friends and family. He is excited to use what he has learned to help underserved communities! This summer he will be working with Milo Santos and Chris Rowe.
This summer he will be working with Milo Santos and Chris Rowe in the Substance Use Research Unit.
Jacki Lewis is rising senior at the University of San Francisco expected to graduate with a double major in Biology and Psychology and a minor in Neuroscience. Jacqueline is interested in examining health disparities across gender and sexual minorities, HIV/AIDS, and the intersection of marginalized racial populations. She explores social activism and advocacy as a Resident Advisor at USF while also gaining experience as a Research Assistant at the UCSF brainLENS (Laboratory for Education in NeuroScience). Jacqueline hopes to further her education with a Master’s in Public Health for either Epidemiology or Social and Behavioral Sciences and ultimately continue to pursue research that is rooted in social justice.
Throughout the summer, she worked with her mentors, Erin Wilson and Jess Lin in the Center For Public Health Research, to conduct a secondary quantitative analysis on the SHINE study. Specifically, Jacki examined the relationship between familial social support and sexual risk behavior among young trans*Latinas in the San Francisco Bay Area. Additionally, she assisted with the Trans*National study, as well as both the COPING and BYE-C studies at the Substance Use Research Unit. After SHARP, Jacki will be completing her last semester at USF and will be working at her campus’s Counseling and Psychological Services center as a Mental Health Outreach Ambassador. Following graduation, Jacki intends to further her career as a public health research associate before applying to graduate programs for a Master’s of Public Health with a concentration in Epidemiology.
Katie Rivas is entering her fourth year at University of California, Davis where she is pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science in Global Disease Biology with a minor in Public Health.Her passion is for infectious disease and health disparities, specifically the disproportionate impact of infectious disease on underserved populations. In the future, she hopes to pursue a joint MD/MPH degree and ideally work with HIV positive individuals and vulnerable communities at risk in a global health setting. This summer she will be working with John Sauceda at UCSF.
This summer she will be working with John Sauceda at UCSF.
Michael Salib is in his final year at the University of California, Berkeley pursuing a degree in Public Health and African American Studies. He is interested in the public health disparities among ethnic minorities, African American community, and specifically, Black MSM that are at-risk for HIV/AIDS and the intersection of mental health, substance use, and HIV/AIDS. He is currently a volunteer for the Gay Men’s Health Collective at the Berkeley Free Clinic providing free, quality, non-judgmental, HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) testing and counseling. Following SHARP and his undergraduate career, Michael Salib to pursue his MPH in epidemiology followed by a Ph.D. or MD.
This summer he will be working with Sean Arayasirikul in the Center For Public Health Research.