SPA professor plays leading role in public health administration
November 22, 2023 - Savannah Peat
UNM’s School of Public Administration (SPA) is playing an integral role in the future of public health in the U.S.
Thanks to SPA Associate Professor Kate Cartwright, UNM is a growing, prominent part of the American Public Health Association (APHA.)
This organization is the largest professional body of public health practitioners, scholars, students, and leaders. Public health professionals are represented in public, private, and non-profit sectors, and they all share an aim to improve the health of the public efficiently and effectively.
“The smallest portion of the U.S. health care budget is spent on public health efforts, so public health professionals must be strategic and precise in how to impact change for health outcomes and health equity,” Cartwright said.
Cartwright has a jam-packed resume when it comes to the APHA, with five years of leadership roles. In addition to leading and co-planning programs for the health administration section, she has served as program planning chair– orchestrating showcases for over 150 research teams across panel, roundtable, and poster presentations. That includes her work on rural New Mexican perspectives about and experiences with the COVID-19 vaccine, as well as breast cancer prevention efforts in the Zuni Pueblo.
“I typically share work in progress at APHA in order to receive feedback from national experts as I develop my projects and manuscripts,” Cartwright said. “I work alongside leaders from the American Heart Association, the City of Hope, Public Health Officers from around the country, and professors and academics from around the country and world.“
She has also just finished her two-year term as a governing councilor for APHA—one of approximately 297 voting members representing a membership body of over 50,000 members.
Cartwright has helped elect the president of APHA and voted to adopt APHA policy statements.
Read more in the UNM Newsroom
