Mary Blackburn, PhD, MPH, has become nationally renowned for her pioneering work delivering research-based nutrition education to older adults, pregnant teens, women with substance abuse issues, incarcerated people, immigrants, refugees and people living in poverty.
Mary Blackburn, PhD ‘74, MPH '65
Michael Marmot, PhD ‘75, MPH '72
A conversation with Sir Michael Marmot, PhD, MPH. How the realization that health outcomes are directly tied to social status led to the “Marmot Eight”—a framework to reduce health inequalities by addressing social determinants of health.
Jane Garcia, MPH ‘80
Jane Garcia, MPH, selected 32nd Annual Celebration of Farmworkers’ Rights Movement keynot speaker. Since becoming CEO in 1982, Ms. Garcia has expanded the organization from a $2 million project to a $170+ million health system with over 1,200 employees. La Clínica now serves more than 85,000 patients across 35 sites in Alameda County, Contra Costa County, and Solano County.
Contra Costa County to celebrate farmworkers’ rights movement
Leah Rosenbaum, MPH ‘19
Leah Rosenbaum, MPH, has been named a finalist in two categories for the 2026 INNY Awards, honoring the best in nonprofit newsgathering.
Alums named finalists in INNY Awards honoring nonprofit newsgathering
Christine Santiago, MD, MPH ‘18
Dr. Christine Santiago, MPH, is the 2026 recipient of the Augustus A. White III and Family Faculty Award at Stanford Medicine. This honor recognizes her outstanding work in reducing health disparities and supporting under-resourced communities.
HPM on LinkedIn: Congratulations to Christine Santiago, MD, MPH
Joseph Griffin, DrPH ‘21, MPH ‘09
The science of de-escalation: Joe Griffin, DrPH, MPH on healing communities and interrupting urban violence. With Oakland homicides hitting a 25-year low, the two-time alum is launching a training institute to change how universities partner with frontline workers.
Cheralynn Corsack, MPH ‘19
As the founder of Local Insight Studio, Cheralynn Corsack, MPH ‘19 is helping foundations and nonprofit organizations amplify their work and uplift communities across the nation by collecting meaningful data, measuring impact, and supporting organizations make data-driven decisions.
UC Berkeley MCAH: A Conversation with Cheralynn Corsack, MPH
Amy Fan, MBA/MPH ‘19
Amy Fan, MBA/MPH receives UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business 2026 Alumni Emerging Leader Award. Amy co-founded Twentyeight Health, a company dedicated to empowering individuals with trusted information and affordable, convenient access to reproductive and sexual healthcare. She currently serves as general manager of a new venture at Papa, where she is expanding access to care navigation and patient advocacy for older adults.
Judith Heumann, MPH ‘75
Judith Heumann, MPH, the disability rights leader who championed accessibility and justice around the world, will be commemorated by the naming of the 11-story UC Berkeley student housing project under construction at People’s Park in her honor as the Judith E. Heumann House.
Student housing at People’s Park to be named after Judith Heumann, disability rights leader
Marilyn Kwan, PhD ’04
Marilyn Kwan, PhD, a Research Scientist at the Division of Research of Kaiser Permanente Northern California, was recently featured in a Zero Breast Cancer webinar on Breast Cancer and Bone Health.
Steven Lopez, MPP/MPH ‘08
Steven Lopez, MPP/MPH joins Georgetown University Center for Children and Families as a McCourt School of Public Policy Research Fellow. He is currently a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) candidate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and will be with CCF for one year to conduct his doctoral research.
Georgetown Newsroom: CCF Welcomes Longtime Collaborator Steven Lopez to our Team
Michael C. Lu, MD, MPH ‘92, MS ‘92
Dr. Michael C. Lu is the dean of the School of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to coming to Berkeley, Lu served as director of the federal Maternal and Child Health Bureau under the Obama Administration. During his tenure, he transformed key federal programs in maternal and child health, and launched major initiatives to reduce maternal, infant, and child mortality across the nation, and was awarded the prestigious Hubert H. Humphrey Service to America Award. In 2025, he was elected to the National Academy of Medicine.
Dean Michael C. Lu elected to the National Academy of Medicine
Marion Nestle, PhD, MPH ‘86
Nutrition policy expert, Marion Nestle, PhD, MPH was featured on NPR’s Fresh Air and talks about her latest book, ‘What to Eat Now’, SNAP, food policy and the ‘triple duty’ diet.
NPR: ‘What to Eat Now’ nutritionist talks SNAP, food policy and the ‘triple duty’ diet
Rhonda Roby, PhD, MPH ‘89
Rhonda Roby, PhD, MPH, was recently highlighted in WashU Magazine for her work in becoming one of the country’s foremost experts in DNA testing, solving some of the biggest forensic questions of our time. Currently, Rhonda serves on the UC Berkeley Public Health Alumni Association board of directors as vice president and she serves as supervising DNA criminalist/technical leader for the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office in California.
Marc Sapir, MD, MPH ’87
Marc Sapir, MD, MPH has a new book, I’ll Fly Away: Stories about Amazing Disabled Elders, which shares the intimate narratives of 40 extraordinary elders. The book is available now, and the first free chapter is available online.
I’ll Fly Away: Stories about Amazing Disabled Elders book information
Michael Stacey, MD, MPH ‘13
Michael Stacey, MD, MPH, is a physician specializing in family medicine and public health and has recently been named Sonoma County interim health officer. Dr. Stacey has served as the chief medical officer at LifeLong Medical Care in Berkeley, as the deputy health officer, deputy director of health and social services and medical services director for Solano County, where he oversaw federally qualified health centers and public health programs. He has also served as co-chair of the Bay Area Regional Health Inequities Initiative and has extensive experience advancing health equity and implementing care models for underserved populations.
Dr. Michael Stacey named Sonoma County interim health officer
Marilyn Thomas, PhD ‘19, MPH
Assistant professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, Marilyn Thomas, PhD, MPH leads study on how attending a historically Black college or university (HBCU) as a young adult may provide long-term cognitive health benefits for Black adults.
JBHE: HBCU Attendance Linked to Improved Cognitive Health for Older Black Adults
Let us know about your fellow alumni and keep us updated on all of your achievements at publichealthcommunications@berkeley.edu!