UTMB School of Public & Population Health

From the seas to the skies, we are public health.

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

SPPH rose 27 spots to No. 89 in U.S. News' 2026 Best Public Health Schools rankings, tied for the largest gain among current top-100 programs. https://t.co/zQ8T4Ut0ku

[UTMB Aerospace Medicine @UTMB_Aerospace]

Clare McNerlin, MD, a PGY-2 resident at UTMB specializing in emergency medicine and aerospace medicine, received AMSRO’s Anita Mantri, PhD Memorial Award during the 2026 AsMA-UHMS Annual Scientific Meeting.

Read more: https://t.co/ZEOSKR67il

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

SPPH administrative team members held their first staff development activity yesterday with an afternoon of bowling. Thank you to our admins for the work you do every day!

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Congratulations to our MD/MPH graduates, who celebrated commencement with the JSSOM Class of 2026 on May 30!

A special congratulations to Shilpa Rajagopal, MD, MPH, class speaker and recipient of the Gold-Headed Cane Award, UTMB’s highest recognition for a medical student.

[Kristen Peek @kristenpeek1]

The Gold-Headed Cane award is chosen by the graduating class — UTMB's highest recognition for a medical student. Shilpa Rajagopal, who completed both her MD and MPH, received it this year!
Congratulations, Shilpa!

[Kristen Peek @kristenpeek1]

Congratulations to our aerospace medicine residents on winning the RAM Bowl again this year, a national competition that brings together programs from across the military and academic medicine. Proud of how they represent UTMB! https://t.co/WuQ9eoPe5v
@UTMBPresident @UTMBProvost

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Monserrat Hinojosa, MPH (Epidemiology) with a Certificate in Global Health, spent four weeks in Lima working with the Peruvian CDC on dengue and tuberculosis research. She talks about how that experience deepened her interest in global health.

[UTMB Aerospace Medicine @UTMB_Aerospace]

At the Aerospace Medical Association meeting in Denver, our residents won the RAM Bowl again, faculty led the field's education committees, and alumni earned several career and lifetime honors. Three decades of training, in one week. https://t.co/WdxjK0zb9W

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Utpol Das, MPH (Epidemiology) and 2026 SPPH Excellence in Research and Scholarship Award recipient, came to UTMB from Bangladesh with eight years of public health field experience. He talks about finding his niche in aging research and the support he found along the way.

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Sinaan Momin, MPH (Public Health Practice), reflects on how his time at UTMB SPPH broadened his view of public health to include policy and population-level dimensions. Sinaan is applying to dental school, and his MPH research focused on oral health access in Texas.

[UTMB Population Health & Health Disparities @UTMBPopHealth]

Public health approaches are strongest when they fit daily life. Our faculty focus on practical strategies that are simple, available, and built around what people value.

Explore PHHD research: https://t.co/X1dqaTUrR7

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Anh Truonghuynh's two UTMB MPH capstone projects — a Galveston community garden and a reproductive law research paper — both came back to one question: what happens when public health systems aren't built for the people they serve. https://t.co/x1vaaNOMnK

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Andrew Tijerina, MPH (Epidemiology), reflects on how his internship at the Texas DSHS Zoonosis Control Program shaped his view of public health. Andrew worked on vector-borne and zoonotic disease surveillance across about 10 Southeast Texas counties.

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Izabella Galindo, MPH (Epidemiology), reflects on how her time at UTMB's School of Public and Population Health sharpened her research interests in aging and correctional health. Izabella served as Vice President of the SPPH Student Association this past year.

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

The UTMB School of Public and Population Health and United Way of Galveston hosted Galveston nonprofit partners last week. Mental health access, resource navigation, and early childhood were the top themes. https://t.co/nld4dTEfX2

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

The 2026 class of UTMB SPPH, in one frame. They leave as biostatisticians, aerospace medicine residents, epidemiologists, public health practitioners, bioethicists, future physicians, and population health scientists. Wherever this class is heading, the work is in good hands.

[UTMB Provost's Office @UTMBProvost]

Congratulations to the @utmbgsbs and @utmb_spph Class of 2026! Graduates of both schools make an impact helping diagnose, treat, and prevent disease; advancing understanding of complex health challenges; and improving quality of life and longevity. We are proud of you all!

[UTMB Provost's Office @UTMBProvost]

We join our @utmb_spph in celebrating a recent accolade for Dr. Cara Pennel! She has received the 2026 F. Marion Bishop Educator Award from @APTRupdate. Dr. Pennel is Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, and Associate Professor of @UTMBPopHealth. Congratulations!

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Leslie Stalnaker, MPH, Director of Public Health Practice, received the 2026 SPPH Student Association Distinguished Teaching Award at Friday's commencement, presented by SPPH Student Association President Emily Edgar. The award is selected by a vote of the entire student body.

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Congratulations to Griffin Baillargeon, who graduated Friday with his MS in Biostatistics and Data Science. Biostatisticians design and analyze the studies that drive biomedical discovery, including the clinical trials that move new treatments forward.

[UTMB School of Public & Population Health @utmb_spph]

Congratulations to Daniel Cox, Michael Stephens, and Samuel Stephenson, our 2026 MS in Aerospace Medicine graduates. All three are also aerospace medicine residents in our program, training to care for patients in the most demanding environments human bodies enter.