Team Member: William Carson

William Carson, MPH

Ohkay Owingeh

Pronouns: He/Him/His

Positions(s):

Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Health Promotion Sciences, University of Arizona

Email me: williamocarson@email.arizona.edu

I am in my first year of studies as a doctoral student at the University of Arizona’s College of Public Health, with my research interests focused on native health, and how indigenous ways of knowing can inform policy. In addition, I serve as a Graduate Research Assistant for Dr. Felina Cordova-Marks. In my career, I have been able to work on tribal health issues on several occasions, seeking out opportunities where I could. Until this year, I have worked as a public health professional and it has allowed me to have developed a wide range of skills, work and in a variety of settings. This will allow me to give a strong contribution to the goals of NACP. My first major public health experience was 4 years ago during my MPH where I worked with Tohono O’odham Nation as part of a team to develop culturally competent public health courses for their college. After completion of my MPH, I joined the CDC as a public health associate, spending 2 years working in Arizona, working for Maricopa County. I worked in the STD division, assisting the epidemiology team, formed connections with the state department of health’s tribal liaison and served as my fellowship’s liaison to prospective AI/AN candidates, explaining the advantages and benefits of the program, and guest speaking at tribal community colleges. Due to my strong background in tribal health, I deployed to work with Muscogee Creek Nation, Navajo Nation, and White Mountain Apache, to assist with the implementation of their contact tracing online software while on the CDC’s COVID-19 response. I also spent time working in the Emergency Operations Center Policy and Public Health Partnerships Section, responding to requests from external partners, developing weekly leadership summaries, crafting SOPs, and serving as liaison to other branches on the response. I also served as chair of my fellowship’s networking council, serving as liaison between the fellows and program leadership, developing programs as needs arose. Since enrolling at the University of Arizona in August, I have already started using my skillset from prior jobs to assist in the organization of our research and have been contributing to multiple projects. In conclusion, I have acquired many skills that will be beneficial to the team I will be working with through my time as a public health professional, and I feel that this project will allow me to continue gaining skills to excel in research.