Carla RattundeGraduate Studentthey/them/theirs

I want to learn how to use interdisciplinary, mixed methods, and community-based participatory research approaches to improve public health. Working as a public health educator for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services since 2020, I have led focus groups and surveyed youth, vaccinators, and partners across Wisconsin. Although this was energizing and rewarding, I realized my need for more grounding in methodology to effectively work with these groups. I yearned for more guidance in how to ask the right questions, analyze the data, evaluate efforts, and better engage the people most affected. I am particularly interested in exploring how engaging and building systematic support for community health workers and doulas could help improve maternal and child health outcomes.

My experiences in public health, whether in West Africa or the Midwest of the U.S., have reinforced my belief that engaging with the wider community and elevating the power of those who are marginalized are the best ways to build positive change for current and future generations.

In my role as a WDHS public health educator, I have created and reviewed all kinds of communications materials. Previously, I worked at a nursing home in Germany and with Peace Corps in Guinée-Conakry. These roles have solidified my passion to engage people most affected by health issues and work together on discovering, implement, and evaluation upstream solutions.

Awards and Recognition

• Grueber Award for Campus Globalization, March 2019
• Timothy Lomperis Award for academic excellence and social engagement, March 2019
• Martin Luther King Jr. Scholar, Sept. 2016-May 2019