Leah Fogarty

Amira Roess, professor in the College’s Department of Global and Community Health, says that while several Middle Eastern countries had preparedness plans in place prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the region’s response shows that the implementation plans remain underdeveloped and under-resourced.

Amid reports that many advanced degree programs in the United States leave graduates in financial debt for years after graduation, the Wall Street Journal published an online tool comparing the debt-to-income ratio of graduates from different programs and different universities across the country. When using this metric, Mason’s Master of Public Health (MPH) degree fared the best compared with other MPH programs in Virginia.

Jhumka Gupta, ScD, MPH, associate professor in the College of Health and Human Services’ Department of Global and Community Health, says that she has always been drawn to research that seeks to “bring the ‘hidden side’ of things out in the open: such as violence against women and girls and refugee populations.” Gupta’s research on period poverty, and more broadly, stigma and menstrual health, is helping to inform a national policy discussion on health equity, reaching well beyond the public health community. U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Queens) has referenced Gupta’s research in support of legislation for menstrual equity. After Gupta saw her research referenced on Rep. Meng’s social media, she reached out to Meng’s office to share additional resources. In May 2021, Meng introduced the Menstrual Equity for All Act of 2021, aimed at increasing access to menstrual products, and she met with Gupta to learn more about her work.