Alumni: Applying Herself

Alumna to bring applied epidemiology training to underserved areas

By Michele Dula Baum

Samantha Hernandez (MPH, EPI ’23) grew up in the border town of El Paso, Texas, where most of family still lives. In September, she began an epidemiology fellowship at the Chicago Department of Public Health. Funded by the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), the two-year fellowship offers on-the-job training and mentorship to recent graduates in applied epidemiology at state, tribal, local or territorial health departments. Since then, she has transitioned to another position and will complete the fellowship at the Cook County Department of Public Health.

Applied epidemiology is a career path specializing in research, statistics, data analysis and community engagement. Applied epidemiologists work in governmental agencies as epidemiologists, researchers, data analysts, scientists or project managers.

“It’s a privilege to learn alongside such bright, driven individuals who share a deep commitment to advancing public health,” says Hernandez, who is working on a project leveraging electronic health record data for chronic disease surveillance. “Through the fellowship, particularly with support from CSTE’s professional development funds, my technical skills in coding and data analytics have grown substantially.”

For example, she has been able to deepen her experience in data management, analysis and visualization to bring greater clarity to complex datasets. “Moving forward, I hope to apply the skills I’ve developed in informatics and data modernization to strengthen surveillance infrastructure and support more timely equity-focused public health decision-making,” she says.

Hernandez completed a bachelor's degree in biology at the University of Texas at El Paso in 2020 and a Master of Public Health in epidemiology at Pitt in 2023 – while working part-time. She also took out government loans, which helped to support living expenses as well cover tuition, books and other educational needs.

“I wouldn’t have been able to do any of it without those loans,” says Hernandez, who is the first in her family to go to college at all – let alone graduate school. She sends loan payments faithfully every month. “This fellowship is a wonderful opportunity to help pay it forward,” she says.

During MPH studies, Hernandez worked with Pittsburgh’s Black Equity Coalition to evaluate the impact of gentrification on low-income neighborhoods. A resulting study, Gentrification, Racial Demographics, and Indicators of Community Conditions in Allegheny County, was published in the November 23 issue of the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities.

The study found environmental and health improvements in gentrifying neighborhoods. However, increased living costs were more likely to drive longtime community members out of their homes, with median rents increasing 35% and home values increasing 62% in gentrifying areas between 2011 and 2019.

“I’m very grateful for my experiences at Pitt and, later, working with the nonprofit Women for a Healthy Environment,” says Hernandez, who contributed to that organization’s comprehensive 2025 report on environmental hazards facing Pennsylvania’s K–12 public schools.

Among these hazards are lead in water; radon, mold and mildew in aging school buildings and chemical risks associated with synthetic turf sports fields. Asthma rates among Pennsylvania school-age children far exceed the national mean, says Hernandez.

“I want to make a difference in real people’s lives,” she adds. “My experience in higher education and professional training will help me to do that.”