EMURG Health Fellows
Keyazia Taylor
MISSION STATEMENT: It is my mission to be intentional about helping others achieve their optimal health as well as alleviate persistent health disparities within communities.
Nikolaos Rivera
MISSION STATEMENT: I will use my career and knowledge to bridge knowledge gaps and reduce healthcare inequalities in immigrant and low socioeconomic status households. I will do my best to acknowledge the cultures of my peers and patients and respect their beliefs. I hope to leave this earth better than I found it.
Mineh Sahakian
MISSION STATEMENT: As a public health researcher, my mission is to leverage evidence-based research from cognitive sciences to drive meaningful advancements in addressing HIV prevalence within underserved communities in America. By dissecting the intricate interplay of mediating and moderating variables, I aim to highlight pathways for targeted interventions that will significantly contribute to the goal of ending the HIV epidemic. Through rigorous data analysis and strategic policy implementation, I am dedicated to making visible improvements in public health outcomes that align closely with the objectives of the Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) initiative.
Esohe Irabor
Howard University
Degree: Biology, PhD (c)
Expected Graduation Date: December 2022
MISSION STATEMENT: "Daily, I will strive for excellence academically, socially and professionally. I will do my best to equip others to do the same. I will be a proponent for interdisciplinary research as well as an advocate for the disadvantaged through community service, science communication and STEAM research. Ultimately, I want to be known as a dynamic professional that is competent, intentional and accomplished."
Abena Afari
University of Maryland
Degree: Master of Public Health (c)
Expected Graduation Date: May 2023
MISSION STATEMENT: "As a public health professional and practitioner, I will positively impact and contribute to the improvement of healthcare systems. I will achieve this through leadership and advocacy in the field. I will engage communities and use my gifts to confront systemic barriers and inequities."
Priscilla Markin, MPH
Johns Hopkins University
Degree: MBA (c) in Healthcare Management, Innovation and Technology
Expected Graduation Date: May 2024
MISSION STATEMENT: "As a health professional, I am determined to utilize all knowledge bestowed to me to assist individuals in need of health care services. I am dedicated to the principle that all people have the right to affordable, efficient, equitable and quality health care services. To foster such principles, I will utilize democratic leadership facets to positively motivate and create a team of likeminded partnerships. As a team, we will advocate and develop solutions regarding economic sustainability for the allocation of quality health care services. In addition, contribute to the development of policies that efficiently redirect, repurpose and reuse sustainable resources with the goal to mitigate the cost and provide equitable health care services for underserved populations globally."
Munazza Saalim Abraham, MA
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Degree: Clinical and Community Psychology Ph.D. Candidate
Expected Graduation Date: May 2024
MISSION STATEMENT: "Each day I will honor my ancestors by embodying ubuntu (“I am, because we are”) to acknowledge my interconnected purpose with my soul, nature, and my people; past, present, and future. I will honor my ancestors by embodying sankofa (“go back and get it”) to look to the past and apply lessons for a brighter and wiser future. My mission is to foster spaces and capacities for building community, raising critical consciousness and changing harmful cultures. I will support the whole mind, body and spiritual healing of African descent people by learning and protecting our ancient ways of being and knowing; by promoting and engaging in anti-oppression research, consulting, teaching and policy advocacy to dismantle white supremacy systems; by promoting and facilitating African-centered psychotherapy and creative expression as healing tools; and ultimately, developing wealth and wellness programs in Black communities and carceral facilities to disrupt generational poverty and trauma cycles towards a future of internal and external freedom, sovereignty, abundance, unity and happiness."
