EKU’s nationally prominent Master of Public Health (MPH) program is a growing network of highly respected professionals nationwide. While a civilian working in occupational safety and health, in 2015, Sarah Hughes encountered Lieutenant Commander (LCDR) Rebecca Hampton Ebersole, an EKU MPH alumna and an environmental health officer in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. LCDR Ebersole recommended the EKU MPH program, setting in motion a transformational career change.
LCDR Hughes, ’17, is now an environmental health officer in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and a research health scientist with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). She has authored more than 12 publications with safety recommendations for workers and is at the forefront of important research related to the dangers of lead and other occupational health hazards.
A document LCDR Hughes developed along with three colleagues concerning actions to protect workers and communities from lead exposure appeared on the White House website.
LCDR Hughes said she is “passionate about tailoring guidance to the people who need it most, especially vulnerable and overlooked populations of workers.”
LCDR Hughes continues to stay connected to EKU and to the faculty who “have been relentlessly supportive of my career.” She has presented on campus three times since 2021 and spoke at the annual EHS (Environmental Health Science) Symposium in March.