What is SPHA?

The Student Public Health Association (SPHA) at the University of Washington was created in the Fall of 1996 with the goal of forging student interaction between all departments of the School of Public Health and Community Medicine (SPHCM). SPHA serves as a forum in which students can address their concerns as well as a consolidated voice that seeks to represent student interests. SPHA delegates representatives to all school-wide committees of student interest, such as SPHEC and the Curriculum Committee to ensure student representation on school-wide issues. The organization and its members are guided by several principles:

(1) to foster a positive graduate school experience for all members

(2) to create interdisciplinary learning and understanding between departments

(3) to encourage communication among all SPHCM departments

(4) to develop respect for individual departments

(5) to promote open communication between SPHCM students and administration

(6) to enhance social interaction among students and faculty in the SPCHM

(7) to promote Public Health research and its findings to society

All registered students in the School of Public Health are entitled to automatic membership. Interested students from other departments may also apply to become a member. SPHA is governed by a board that represents the five major departments in the school, Biostatistics, Epidemiology, Environmental Health, Health Services and Pathobiology.