Helena Chapman, M.D., (M.P.H. ’05, Ph.D. in Public Health – One Health ’16) was honored during a ceremony in October as the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions 2025 Outstanding Alumna of the Year for her significant contributions to the field and promotion of public health.
Chapman, a triple Gator, has dedicated her career to empowering the global health workforce to apply innovative scientific practices that safeguard population health. She now serves as associate program manager for Health and Air Quality Applications of NASA Earth Action Program (Booz Allen Hamilton), where her team promotes the use of Earth observation data in public health applications like air quality management and infectious disease prevention and control.
As a member of the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono team and professorial lecturer at George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health, she encourages health professionals at all learning stages to adopt the One Health concept in clinical and community practice.
Chapman is a founding member of the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations-Dominican Republic (Organización Dominicana de Estudiantes de Medicina). Previous awards include the NASA Early Career Achievement Medal and 40 Gators Under 40.
She shares some of her memories and insights:
What are your thoughts on being named Alumna of the Year?
I am truly honored and humbled to have been selected for this prestigious award, and together with other PHHP awardees, celebrate our significant and impactful contributions to the wider community. This award celebrates our unique career paths, including those that have a few twists and turns along the way, where we learn, explore and discover each step to shape our future, all while having fun! This sentiment is echoed through Marcel Proust’s words: “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” My unique journey is a reflection of the support, guidance and mentorship from my professors, colleagues, friends and family, in and out of the classroom, hospital and local community in the United States, Dominican Republic and Cuba.
You’ve maintained a close connection with PHHP since graduating. What does staying connected to the college mean to you?
Staying connected with the College of Public Health and Health Professions means the world to me! As a triple Gator, UF and PHHP remain my home, as a place full of memories and where long-lasting friendships were formed. With sincere gratitude to the college for supporting my academic training, I am passionate about contributing to the college’s mission and providing mentorship and guidance to students, especially navigating careers that promote the One Health approach. My active engagement in the American Public Health Association since graduate school also allows a space to strengthen existing and foster new friendships within PHHP.
What’s your philosophy on mentorship?
The power of mentorship cannot be overlooked, as it is instrumental and influential at every stage of our lives. I believe that mentorship offers consistent opportunities for mentors and mentees to brainstorm, share words of encouragement, and provide constructive feedback throughout the career path, as a source of inspiration and guidance in reaching established goals. The foundation of mentorship is rooted in the human touch, highlighting this genuine interest that empowers us to reach our highest potential. This essential personal connection in mentorship, defined by empathy and kindness, resonates through Maya Angelou’s words: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Who were some of your most influential mentors at UF?
Five significant faculty connections have been instrumental to my professional development at UF. During my M.P.H. program, the late Dr. Nabih Asal, a professor in the Department of Epidemiology, and the late Dr. James Maruniak, a professor in the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Department of Entomology and Nematology, helped guide my steps, including independent projects, in learning about dengue prevention and control in Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. When I returned to UF for my Ph.D. program, Dr. Gregory Gray, the former chair of the Department of Environmental and Global Health; Dr. Michael Lauzardo, a professor in the College of Medicine and associate director of clinical research for the UF Emerging Pathogens Institute; and Dr. Jamie Pomeranz, the associate dean for undergraduate programs, offered valuable support and guidance as I aimed to develop a comprehensive research project on tuberculosis risk that combined my clinical and epidemiology training with fieldwork in the Dominican Republic and cross-cultural training in Cuba. They were extremely supportive of local mentorship from Dr. Eddy Pérez-Then, the associate dean for research for the O&M Medical School, and Dr. Bienvenido Veras-Estévez, the coordinator of the Department of Epidemiology and Statistics at the Hospital Regional Universitario José María Cabral y Báez in the Dominican Republic.
What are some fun facts people might not know about you?
Catchy merengue and salsa rhythms are the secret to my heart, especially traditional Dominican merengue, or perico ripiao.
My path to medicine and public health all started with high school volunteering with nursing home patients through the Recreation Therapy Service program at the Department of Veterans Affairs.