February 19, 2021

The Office of Public Health Practice at the Dornsife School of Public Health held its second annual Public Health Case Competition on Thursday, February 18, 2021. Due to the coronavirus the event, which is normally held at Nesbitt Hall and open to all to attend, was held virtually.

Dornsife undergraduate and master’s students in nine interdisciplinary teams were tasked with addressing COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and proposing informed solutions for select Philadelphia communities. Teams had to create an outreach plan for a specific target community and discuss how they would encourage them to get a vaccine.

The teams had just under two weeks to collaborate with one another via Zoom before presenting to an expert judge panel of Dornsife faculty for a chance to win prize money for the best outreach plan. During the work period, students were able to meet with a randomly assigned faculty mentor for guidance and support.

This year, a People’s Choice award was added to the competition. In addition to their outreach plan, teams submitted "subway posters" that targeted their community. Posters were posted so the public could review the submissions and vote for the one they thought had the most compelling message. Over 1,000 votes were cast.

The competition concluded with an Award’s Ceremony where all nine teams were acknowledged for their thoughtful presentations and winners were announced. Congratulations to the winning teams:

Winning Team:
Team 5: Anna Davis, Shrenik Gadagkar, Cecirahim Sesay, Conor Millard
Award: $1000 for the team

Honorable Mention:
Team 1: Alesha Amin, Armonie Pierre-Jacques, Sandra Nannozi, Sehrish Rashid
Award: $500 for the team

People’s Choice:
Team 6: Dzhuliyana Handarova, Karaan Kothari, Nyah Collier
Award: $500 for the team

All 2021 Competitors:

• Team 1: Alesha Amin, Armonie Pierre-Jacques, Sandra Nannozi, Sehrish Rashid
• Team 2: Alysha Melnyk, Jennifer Griffin, Emily Krueger, Pushti Shah, Mikaela Perez
• Team 3: Grace Castle, Arya Amaro, Alison Long, Katie Singley, Gabby O’Leary
• Team 4: Nahian Ehtesham, Meghan Gupta, Ying St. Cerny, Sofia Argibay, Nikki Kanakamedala
• Team 5: Anna Davis, Shrenik Gadagkar, Cecirahim Sesay, Conor Millard
• Team 6: Dzhuliyana Handarova, Karaan Kothari, Nyah Collier
• Team 7: Puja Patel, Maya Stallings, Zuhaib Haleem, Sierra Cuellar
• Team 8: Afrah Howlader, Mariah Menanno, Alexandria Reguinga, Samiha Tahsin, Hope Hannigan
• Team 10: Kumal Siddiq, Amal Ahmed, Shaina Shakeel, Mervin Alexander, Bhargavi Sahu

2021 Judges Panel:
Leslie Ain McClure, PhD, MS; Jennifer Breaux, DrPH, MPH, CHES; Scarlett Bellamy, ScD; Kristen Lyall, ScD

2021 Dornsife Faculty Team Mentors and Case Reviewers:
Philip Massey, PhD, MPH; Randall Sell, ScD; Gina Lovasi, PhD, MPH; Jerry Fagliano, MPH, PhD; Michael LeVasseur, PhD, MPH; James Buehler, MD; Edward Gracely, PhD; Jen Kolker, MPH; Alina Schnake-Mahl, ScD, MPH

All Nine Subway Posters:

Team 1:

Team 2:

Team 3:

Team 4:

Team 5:

Team 6:

Team 7:

Team 8:

Team 10: