Jayne Smitten.
HPU Public Health Professor Jayne Smitten, Ph.D., MEd, CHSE-A, FSSH, has been elected for the 2026-2028 term at Hawaiʻi's largest association of public health professionals, Hawaiʻi Public Health Association (HPHA). HPHA is made up of community members, public health professionals, and organizations dedicated to improving public health in the Hawaiian Islands. HPHA is an affiliate of the American Public Health Association (APHA). APHA has served as the leading 'convenor, catalyst, and advocate' speaking out for the nation's public health issues and policies for over 150 years.
HPU public health students and faculty attended the fall 2025 HPHA APHA annual Meeting. Clockwise from bottom: Heather Medicine Bear, Princess Paradise Pascua, Jayne Smitten, Gabrielle Mediola, Amber Mattoon, Elizabeth King, and Erika Collazo-Vargas.
As HPHA President-elect 2026, Smitten will be the state representative from Hawaiʻi for the 'APHA President-Elect Leadership Training' in Washington, D.C., July 11-14.
"I am thrilled to have the opportunity to connect with, potentially collaborate with, and support the important public health initiatives of my colleagues occurring across the nation," said Smitten.
The nation will be celebrating National Public Health Week on April 6-12. HPHA is featuring a Wednesday afternoon Zoom event on April 8 at 2:00 p.m., with talented and informed local public health speakers. See link for details.
Smitten is determined to increase engagement of the public health and healthcare discipline students in their local professional public health organization in Hawaiʻi.
"HPHA continues to encourage aspiring public health students to engage through attendance at one of the two major annual PH events in Hawaiʻi, through immersing themselves in local community educational events promoting healthcare, or through legislative and policy influence experiential exposure such as participating in the recent national 'Take Down Tobacco National Day of Action', to name a few," states Smitten.
Smitten focuses on the student-centered, experiential learning approach, encouraging future undergraduate and graduate public health practitioners to register and immerse themselves in the inspiring NPHW events of the week. Evidence of an increasing number of students attending the HPHA events, such as the major annual APHA public health meeting in fall 2025, has reinforced the success of the professional engagement opportunity.
In addition, an HPHA Public Health Fellowship Grant for undergraduate and graduate students has also been established (deadline for 2026 applications is April 30), furthering the opportunity for mentorship and fostering the next generation of public health practitioners in HPHA.
