Student ambassadors are current students of the Online Master of Public Health (MPH) program who help prospective students learn about the program and all it has to offer. The ambassadors have a wide variety of experiences and interests.
If you’re interested in connecting with one of them and learning more about the OMPH program, please email us (onlinemph@uw.edu).
Joseph Shoji Lachman
Joseph Shoji Lachman
Policy Manager | Asian Counseling and Referral Service
I’m proud to be a 4th/5th mixed-ethnicity Japanese American born and raised in Seattle in the Online MPH program! After completing my undergraduate degree at Yale University in History of Science, Medicine, and Public Health, and spending a couple of years abroad in Japan, China, and Taiwan for language and culture study, I felt ready to come back to my hometown to start my career.
Since 2017, I have worked at Asian Counseling and Referral Service, which provides vital social services to over 30,000 community members annually in over 30 languages. I currently serve as the policy manager, helping to oversee and lead our legislative advocacy efforts.
My recent involvement in the Health Equity for Immigrants Campaign to ensure all undocumented Washingtonians can receive healthcare led me to realize that it was time to deepen my public health knowledge and skills. With this program, I have been able to maintain my employment while getting my degree, while also teaching yoga and being a cat dad!
The program has been a wonderful experience so far and I have learned so much from my instructors and peers. Please feel free to reach out to me if you’d like to know more about the program!
Maleah Nore
Maleah Nore (she/her)
Tribal Public Health Contractor
Hello! My name is Maleah Nore. I’m Tlingit (Alaska Native) and I was raised in Southeast Alaska. I first started my public health journey when I became a survivor of childhood abuse. An overwhelming anger at the system pushed me to try to make a difference. I’ve now been working on grassroots and non-profit projects relating to the prevention of child abuse, domestic violence, and suicide in tribal communities for over 7 years.
I chose the Online MPH program because I wanted a program that would support my Indigenous worldview, provide an engaging and valuable educational experience, and be flexible enough for me to continue working. I made the right choice! I’m so happy to be in this program. I feel deeply supported by the teaching staff and my peers, and I learn useful skills every week.
With my MPH, I hope to support tribal resilience and mental wellbeing through prevention and treatment centered around cultural connection with the natural world. I don’t know what that career will look like yet, but I trust the Online MPH program will help me get there.
If you want to know what it’s like to be in the program, please reach out!