Healthy Generations eNewsletter
December 2025
Meet Erika Lattimore, the Newest Maternal and Child Student Interest Group (MCHSIG) Executive Committee Member
Erika, first-year MPH MCH student, will serve in the new Online Representative role for MCHSIG. A few words from Erika: “I am a distant learner, currently residing in North Carolina. I am passionate about using public health to advance equity in black maternal and mental health and to support this underserved and underrepresented community. As a black woman in public health, this work is very important and personal to me, and I plan to help uplift those impacted by these disparities. I am excited to serve on MCHSIG’s EC and help build a supportive, collaborative community for MCH students!”
Welcome, Erika!
Student Spotlight: How is Kara Cowell Advancing Menstrual Equity?
#UMNMCH student Kara Cowell (she/her/hers, MPH 2026) wrote this reflection on how her work co-writing the Minnesota Menstrual Products in Schools Toolkit has connected her previous policy and health research work to public health practice. Through her leadership across organizations, including the Minnesota Menstrual Equity Coalition, PERIOD, Honest Sex Ed Minnesota, and the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, Kara shares how transforming grassroots advocacy into an equity informed, accessible toolkit can advance menstrual and reproductive health outcomes across Minnesota. Read Kara’s Spotlight here.
Student Spotlight: How Did Ruth Dele-Oni’s Passions Inform her Hennepin County Internship?
#UMNMCH student Ruth Dele-Oni (MPH 2026) reflects on her deployment with Hennepin County’s Baby Tracks Team, where she supports critical research on vaccine hesitancy among the Somali population in Minnesota. In this piece, Ruth shares her drive for closing BIPOC maternal and child health equity gaps. Read Ruth’s Spotlight here.
MCH Leads Blog: The Mothers Who Shaped My Public Health Future
Mahek Zaveri, MPH candidate in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the University of Pittsburgh's School of Public Health, is the December feature of MCH Leads. In her blog entry, “The Mothers Who Shaped My Public Health Future,” Mahek shares extensive expertise as a dentist in India caring for pregnant women and patients through the lenses of MCH Competency 5 (Communication) and Competency 7 (Creating Responsive and Effective MCH Systems). “If I could share one insight with a future MCH student, it would be this: your lived experiences are not separate from your future in MCH—they are the foundation of it. Trust the stories that moved you. They are guiding you toward the communities you are meant to serve.” Learn more about Mahek’s contributions here.
