Columbia University - Index

Columbia University - Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health - Index

20
" By analyzing
data, I can help fi nd
answers to pressing health
challenges, which in turn
can lead to policy changes
that address racial and social
disparities in healthcare.?
EMMA BENN, MPH '07
Emma Benn has discovered a unique formula for giving a voice to underserved populations
of the world: Enroll in the Mailman School's biostatistics doctoral program, add a
healthy dose of community awareness, and, for good measure, toss in a dash of poetry.
Emma, who earned an MPH in the School's Department of Sociomedical Sciences,
realized as an analytical chemist at Johnson & Johnson that tackling complex medical
issues "takes far more than simply prescribing a pill.? With the assistance of the Mailman
School's Community Scholars Program, a bachelor's in chemistry from Swarthmore
College, and a wealth of inspiration from her community-minded mother, Emma embarked
on her public health path. Through electives in Epidemiology and Biostatistics,
she discovered that "by analyzing data, I can help fi nd answers to pressing health challenges,
which in turn can lead to policy changes that address racial and social disparities
in healthcare.?
During her practicum, Emma explored the diverse communities of Northern
Manhattan where she recruited Spanish-speaking patients to participate in a study analyzing
the role of maternal depression in the severity of asthma among children. She
continues to conduct data analysis at Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons'
Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center.
Emma also regularly returns to the Philadelphia area to present and teach poetry to
children participating in the Black Women in Sport Foundation, introducing them to
poets such as Maya Angelou, Paul Lawrence Dunbar, and Langston Hughes.
"It's another form of public health,? Emma explains. "I expose them to poetry and
explain its role in the realm of social justice. I hope to inspire them to use their own
voices to create change.?