UGA College of Public Health

Alumni Spotlight: Meet Chao Li (MPH ’12, PhD ’17), the senior director of biostatistics for Aura Biosciences, a pharmaceutical company focused on ocular and urologic oncology. During her time as a student at the UGA College of Public Health, Li knew the career she wanted to pursue but didn’t know the path she needed to take to get there.

She credits mentorship and guidance from Ye Shen, Ernest Corn Professor and epidemiology and biostatistics department head, for helping her identify the steps to reach her professional goals.

To read more about how CPH continues to support Li, visit https://publichealth.uga.edu/alumni-spotlight-chao-li-mph-12-phd-17/

On Juneteenth, the UGA College of Public Health reflects on the past and continues working toward a healthier, more equitable future for all.

At the UGA College of Public Health, we know how valuable hands-on learning and community engagement are for our students.

DrPH student Crystal Spears-Jones and Natalie Cann, who graduated in May with her Master of Public Health degree, worked with District 2 Public Health for their Applied Practice Experience. Spears-Jones supported disaster preparedness efforts for the Unity Project in Gainesville. Cann's projects in District 2 included analysis of influenza-related illness data and participation in routine notifiable disease investigations.

We love seeing how our students take what they learn in the classroom and apply it to support local communities!

Corbin Blum is a health promotion major and on a Double Dawgs pathway pursuing a Master of Public Health in health policy and management. You've probably seen him all over social media (he's a Digital Dawg, after all), but what is he up to this summer?

"I'm working with UGA Parent and Family Engagement as an intern, helping with orientation, planning Family Weekend 2026 and assisting with social media," said Corbin. "On top of that, I'm taking classes in chronic disease prevention and foundations of environmental health science. In chronic disease prevention, I'm currently working on a group project to develop a strategic plan to address nonalcoholic fatty liver disease among overweight and obese individuals in the Southern United States."

"I'm also continuing my undergraduate research with Dr. Christina Proctor this summer," said Corbin. "I recently found out that my abstract, 'Predictors of Alcohol Use in a Sample of Members of the Agricultural Industry,' was accepted for presentation as a student poster in the student award poster section of the 2026 American Public Health Association Annual Meeting and Expo in November."

"And I have to keep public health a focus in my life, too — I'm getting more into running this summer as well.

Classes (well, some of them) might be out for the summer, but our Public Health Dawgs are still making an impact in communities here and around the world.

Meet Amber Kim, an incoming third-year health promotion major with a minor in gerontology. She’s on the Double Dawgs pathway pursuing her Master of Public Health in epidemiology. Amber just wrapped up a study abroad program in Thailand.

"This Maymester, I participated in the Comparative Health Systems study abroad program in Thailand, where we analyzed how the country successfully achieved Universal Health Coverage, said Amber. "A major highlight was transitioning from classroom lectures at Chulalongkorn University to real-world application during our academic field visits, including observing local healthcare delivery at Hua Hin Hospital and exploring insurance mechanisms at the National Health Security Office in Bangkok."

"This experience deepened my understanding of the intersection between health governance and local equity," Amber said. "I saw firsthand how Thailand is navigating a major demographic shift by prioritizing preventative care to extend health spans, while simultaneously observing how local administrative organizations manage healthcare resources. It reinforced my belief that effective health promotion requires structural resilience and community-driven allocation that meets people exactly where they are."

What's it like to be a Public Health Dawg? The best.

Eating healthy doesn’t just lead to better health. It may also lower how much Americans spend on healthcare, according to new research from the University of Georgia

Researchers from the College of Public Health and the College of Family and Consumer Sciences examined data from more than 4,000 households across the United States.

CPH Professor Janani Rajbhandari said respondents who reported eating healthy spent less overall monthly and spent less on health expenditures. They were then able to apply those savings to other household needs.

You can learn more here: https://publichealth.uga.edu/eating-healthy-could-lower-health-expenses-for-families/