From Data to Classrooms: The Impact on School Health and Policies
Education
I attended Princeton for my PhD in Social Psychology. The summer before graduating there was an internship opportunity at CDC where people could submit their Curriculum Vitae (CV) and be placed in different programs. I was able to get an opportunity with the Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH).
First Job at CDC
When I graduated there was a hiring freeze, so I began working with a non-governmental organization (NGO) that was funded by DASH. I then applied to the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) and was accepted into that program. I matched with the same branch within DASH.
Later Jobs and Last Job at CDC
After the two-year EIS program, I was offered a permanent full-time role and stayed in the same division, DASH, for 30 years. During most of my time at CDC, DASH was part of the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) although we moved to the National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and Tuberculosis Prevention (NCHHSTP) for several years before moving back to NCCDPHP.
My role as a Health Scientist was to oversee data collection for national school-based surveys including the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) and School Health Policies and Practices Study (SHPPS). I also worked closely with state agencies and school districts throughout my career to help them conduct surveys.
Proudest Accomplishment
I’m proud of my work done with various school-based surveys. Early on in my career I worked on the SHPPS, which was a national survey to assess school health policies and practices at the state, district, school, and classroom levels. This survey was expensive to conduct but provided valuable information and data that could be used by multiple audiences. It was conducted every six years and data were released to the public. A memorable moment I had was working with our Center’s communications team to release the results in D.C. at the National Press Club. It got a lot of media attention which was exciting.
Impact of Work and Belief in Work
While working on a survey, such as YRBSS or SHPPS, you don’t also realize until it is released how important it is for communities as you are living the day-to-day. I found it rewarding to know the work I was doing impacted schools around the nation.
This work helped to improve the health of young people through school-based programs and policies. Public Health has not historically used schools as an avenue to improve health and instead funded health agencies. The work in DASH directly funded school districts. That to me felt like something that was making a difference and closely connected to the population.
Leaving CDC
The end of January 2025 was really challenging at CDC. Many incidents made it feel like we were being set up to fail. Things that were normally permitted were suddenly not. For example, I had a regular trip scheduled at the end of January to oversee training for data collection for YRBSS, and this is something I had been doing every odd-numbered year for 30 years, outside of 2021 during COVID-19. Additionally, I had meetings scheduled in D.C. with a contractor that helped with processing the large amount of data. I had made all the travel plans but only a few days beforehand it was announced travel was not allowed. We were also given unclear guidance about being allowed to communicate with the outside world, including contractors.
This created a huge barrier in my work. I was communicating regularly with contractors that supported this work and that was cut off. Further, my communication with colleagues at the state and school district levels was cut off. It was very complicated and confusing. I couldn’t send an email to anyone external to CDC. Once communication lines reopened, the confusion continued with guidance that we could conduct virtual calls, but only three people were allowed to join the call and there were restrictive rules to documenting communication. All this led me to feel there was no way to be successful under these circumstances. It impeded my work and was highly inefficient.
In addition to the restrictions, on April 1, 2025, many entire divisions were shut down. We were a small division, and we watched an entire division on our floor all get RIFed. It was scary to see another division and people you’ve interacted with for years just gone.
The Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA) and Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments (VSIP) were offered in March 2025. I knew it was important for me to maintain the benefits that I had earned over 30 years and felt this was the best option for me at the time. This decision was extremely difficult as I did not want to leave my division without a transition plan for the work, and I wasn’t ready to end my time at CDC. I didn’t know what was going to happen and my livelihood was so uncertain with the early 2025 federal workforce cuts. Public Health was in turmoil, and I was unsure where I would earn a living, but the VERA/VSIP seemed to be the best avenue for me
Future Plans
Fortunately, after I retired one of the association journals needed a new editor-in-chief and I was able to secure that position in August 2025. This helped me stay involved in what I enjoyed and spent my career on, school health. It is part-time, but still a way to stay involved.
Other Comments
From my corner of the world, leaving in a rushed way worries me for the future and what I and others built for years at CDC. Yes, things are documented but it is different having someone who has institutional memory there for future leaders to turn to and be someone that can sit with you and give guidance. It’s unsettling to me to see things coming out of my group that may not have in the past and what was lost in my division. I imagine this being multiplied—if I’m experiencing this many other divisions are too. Things that may have a grave and substantial impact like infectious disease. If I’ve felt it even in my small part of CDC, it is a bigger loss across the agency.