Harry Russell and Lakin Davis

It's definitely a message I want to get out to incoming freshmen. Get involved, just get involved any way you can. The connections you can grow, the relationships that you make - it's so worth it.

You probably recognize Luke and Leia, T'Challa and Shuri, and Ron and Ginny. But if you’re part of the West Virginia University School of Public Health, you might be more familiar with Harry and Lakin. It’s been less than two years since the pair met during their first semester in the Master of Public Health in Social and Behavioral Sciences program. In that short time, they’ve not only found their place in a program they didn’t initially plan on joining, but they’ve also become leaders. As president and vice president of the Student Association of Public Health, they’ve been able to build relationships and keep fellow students connected while spending most of their graduate school experience online. Now that the pair is getting ready walk across the stage at Commencement, we look back at their journey to public health and how they became the dynamic duo

Heading in Opposite Directions

Let’s start before the beginning. Prior to setting out on their academic journeys in public health, it seemed like this duo would never cross paths. Harry comes from a family of dentists and thought he would be headed in that direction after earning his undergraduate degree from Radford University. Lakin completed her undergraduate degree in criminology and passed the LSAT, heading in the direction of law school.

But after some discussion, a little googling and campus visits for different programs (dentistry and law), their internal GPSes rerouted them to the School of Public Health.

Converging Paths

After navigating their way to the Master of Public Health program, Harry and Lakin found themselves in the same classroom … then the same group chat … then the same campus job … then the same leadership team. They started the master’s program in fall of 2019, so after just one full semester of classes and a couple of additional months of on-campus classes, they shifted to online classes as the world started to respond to COVID-19. Looking back, Lakin says starting that group chat was one of their best decisions.

Following the Leader

The road to president and vice president of the Student Association of Public Health (SAPH) was paved with pizza. With the promise of free food, Harry and Lakin attended their first SAPH meeting just a few weeks into their first semester in the School of Public Health. The organization was one more way for them to get to know their fellow students and it would become a shared growth opportunity. Harry was the first one to dive into a leadership role as president and soon called on Lakin to serve by his side.

Arriving at the Final Destination

Although this dynamic duo (yes, people really do say that about them) has arrived at graduation, they won’t be splitting up anytime soon. Lakin has accepted a position in the Office of Health Services Research as a research assistant and Harry is ready for dental school. Their journeys to public health might have started on different paths, but they were able to grow together and develop a lifelong connection.

Taking the Road Less Traveled

Looking back on their journeys and thinking about advice for those who might be considering a degree in public health, Harry and Lakin both say to follow your dreams. Although they didn’t follow their initial plan – law school and dental school – they’re achieving their goals and say they’ve “come full circle.”

For your convenience, below are each of the audio clips from above with transcripts. Clips are available for download.

Audio Clips

What made you interested in studying public health?

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Transcript

Harry Russell

I'm interested in becoming a dentist and I want to work in rural health. Dentistry has always been something in my family. My dad's a dentist. I have three cousins who are dentists and all of them are really active in outreach. And so I kind of got introduced to it that way. And my dad actually ended up getting his MPH right before his dental degree. And we were kind of talking about what I should do after undergrad, because honestly, I didn't really know what direction I wanted to go in. So I was told him I was interested in, you know, working in rural public health dentistry. And then, we kind of just came up with the idea of, you know, getting my MPH before I went off and did dental school. So that's kind of the direction I went in with it.

Lakin Davis

And I am a totally different direction. So a year before graduating my undergrad, I had no idea what I wanted my next steps to be. I know I wanted to do something that helped people and I wanted to see an impact on the lives that I was working with. So I decided I was going to law school and I got all the way up until WVU law day, which is right before you start applying and you get to take like mock classes and tour the building and everything. And I was super excited to go. But as soon as I walked in, I was like, this just doesn't feel right. This isn't, this isn't the kind of work that I want to be doing. I want to make a really big impact. And while, you know, like defending someone in court is a very important job. It just wasn't for me. And I kind of knew that as soon as I walked through those doors, so that night I was panicking, I was doing a bunch of research. And the school of public health popped up on my like search history. And so I started scrolling through it and I fell onto the social and behavioral emphasis and I completely fell in love. I was like, this is exactly to a T what I want to do. And I was super excited about it. I chose social behavioral because that is the emphasis that is the boots on the ground. You're actually going to be in the field, implementing and talking with community ambassadors and things of that nature. And that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to be the person they could go to for help, the person that they could lean on for help.

Why did you choose WVU?

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Transcript

Lakin Davis

From a very early point in my academic career, I knew I was going to end up one day doing something that helped people. And when I was growing up, my parents had us involved in a lot of volunteer things. One specifically called Stepping Stones, which is local here. So I always knew that I wanted to give back to the community that's basically literally has given me my entire life. I've done so many things here and I've seen firsthand some of the issues that are going on in the area. And I just feel like since I have this background that I could do something to really make a difference. So WVU was the only choice for me really. I only wanted to go here.

Harry Russell

For me, coming out of undergrad I knew I kind of wanted to venture out, but I also wanted to stay in kind of that rural cause that's where I want to have my emphasis in is rural areas. I just kind of fell in love with the area, reminds me of home while being a little ways from home. It just felt like the perfect spot for me.

How have you been able to build relationships with your fellow classmates?

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Transcript

Lakin Davis

I think the best thing that we did pre COVID was our first week of school. We started a massive group message with not just SBHS, but our whole MPH cohort that had just started. So getting in contact with your fellow classmates, as soon as possible, and starting that connection was super helpful for us, especially since we didn't know COVID was coming. So when it hit, it was kind of sudden and had we not had those connections already started, I don't know if things would be different or not. I really enjoy how small our SBHS cohort is just because, I mean, Harry and I are very close, but we're also very close with the rest of our members. I feel like all of our personalities align very well. We get each other's sarcasm. We get each other's humor and everything. We can feel very comfortable with each other. And confident we can get criticism without feeling like attacked or anything of that nature. Also the MPH program does a really great job at fostering an outside environment for you to get to know your classmates. There was a lot of opportunities for us to go to picnics together, and there was a Halloween event. And even in between classes, we would go and have lunch together the whole time. And just talk about where we're from and our aspirations, our interests.

Harry Russell

Definitely agree. And it's kind of one of those situations where you think you're going to get through this program by yourself without talking to anybody. No. So much of our work is centered around group work, and it's just really important to make those like Lakin said, we made that group message and we still talk in it. Even if it's not about , it's not about schoolwork or anything, we're just talking and just chatting and checking up on each other. And, you know, help each other out any way we can. So it's definitely important to make those connections with your classmates. And that Halloween social was really fun, Lakin had to miss. I remember, uh, it was an SBHS social and me and my cohort all dressed up as M&Ms. That was fun to just go to, and that was, you know, early on in our first year. So we were able to get to know teachers and we had Dr. Clayton at that time, she was one of the few teachers we knew there. And so she introduced us to other professors there. And so definitely just making those connections and kind of like stepping out of your comfort zone.

Lakin

And get creative, especially with COVID. Uh, we've had to get creative on like ways that we can contact each other and even through SAPH, uh, we did a night where we made pepperoni rolls together through zoom and Harry and I did it at my house and we got all the wrong ingredients and it was terrible. It was a hot mess, everyone laughed at us. It was a great time. We did trivia together. Yeah. We made it work. We made it fun. Like you just got to get creative and like don't be shy to join. This program does a really good job of picking out the best applicants, not just academic wise, but personality wise, because you gotta be able to like talk to people. You gotta be able to figure out a way to connect with someone. And that's really big in a lot of our classes is figuring out how you can connect with basically anybody of any walk of life.

How have the faculty made an impact on your experience?

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Lakin Davis

I would definitely say Scot McIntosh the past year, especially he's helped me conquer mountains. He's helped me become a leader. He's helped me start my career. He's helped me when I'm freaking out about the future and crying in the parking lot of Kroger. He's been like my shoulder to lean on, but faculty, I would hands down have to say Dr. Elizabeth Claydon. From day one when I met her first semester, she was someone that I looked up to. That's exactly what I wanted to be like. I wanted to be an inspiring role model for the community and bring a light into whatever room she walks into.

Harry Russell

Yeah, similar answer. Faculty, Scot McIntosh's amazing. That dude is awesome. Especially helping out with SAPH so much and Lakin and I being both the president and vice-president. He's always there to help. Can't say enough great things about him. Again, Dr. Elizabeth Claydon, she’s amazing too. Like Lakin said, she's just, she's someone you definitely look up to. I remember, uh, I kind of had this crisis going on like mid quarantine and I was like, what am I going to do with my life? What direction should I go in? I think I ended up emailing her in the middle of the night, like, Hey, I really need to talk. And she was willing to talk. I think it was like a weekend too. And she's an amazing person, but honestly all the faculty and all the professors are amazing. That's a big reason why I've fallen in love with this place is the relationships that you're able to create. I can start naming. I mean, Dr. Alexander's amazing. She's just like my mother always looking out for us. She's perfect in every way. Dr. Abildso's awesome. I just could go on and name them all. It's a great, just a great environment to help grow relationships and,

Lakin

It's really great because of the like level of respect they give you, um, they treat you like an equal, rather than someone studying under them. Like Dr. Abildso yesterday was talking about how excited he is. He's like, I decided that I'm going to see you guys walk at graduation. I'm so happy. I got my vaccines and everything. It means a lot that they care about where we're going and like how we end up.

Harry

Yeah. And Dr. Zullig's awesome, Dr. Kristjansson.

Lakin

And they definitely try to make us feel as comfortable and as confident as possible. There's several points in every single class that we've had, where the professor will sit down and be like, okay, how do you feel about this? Do you feel good about this? I don't know how many times I've told Dr. Abildso that I feel like I have imposter syndrome and he's like, be confident. You guys know exactly what you're doing. You know what you're talking about. You're very savvy with the information that you've been given. So it's very relieving when. You're reminded of that.

Harry

I feel like quarantine took away some of those person-to-person interactions. I remember Dr. Alfgeir Kristjansson and we had him right when quarantine happen. So we saw him for like two weeks. And then we had them for the next semester, like in the heat of quarantine, he was always checking in. So I really wish I could have had more of those person to person interactions, but the fact that I was still able to make them through a computer screens, I know they would all reach their neck out for me in any way possible.

How did you get involved in a leadership role with SAPH?

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Transcript

Harry Russell

I think we got an email. Was it email? I'm pretty sure it was an email from Scott about it. I think he came into our classrooms to check on us, like first week of class.

Lakin Davis

He gave us a snack from SAPH. I remember that he gave us like goodie bags via SAPH.

Harry

Yeah. And, uh, so he told us about it and I was like, okay, I'll go to this meeting. I didn't know anybody, honestly. I didn't know Lakin. I was new to the area, so I had no connections whatsoever. So I was like, okay, I'll go. Maybe make some connections and kind of realize what they were about and what they were doing. I thought it was really cool. And so I ended up joining my first year here and then again, COVID hit, so it kind of switched up everything. And, uh, you know, they sent out the elections for, um, SAPH and it was done a little bit differently because of COVID and I was really interested. I wanted to go and do it. So that's when I sent in my application, uh, and I've loved working with it.

Lakin

So I was kind of in the same boat as Harry. Except for the fact [00:01:00] I had, uh, leadership positions in undergrad. I was definitely interested, but I did not want to do it my first year there because I like him, I didn't know anyone. I was new to the field. So when Scot came and was like, Hey, we're doing this meeting at lunchtime and there's going to be pizza. I was like, okay, like free lunch. I get to meet some people. This could work. And I went and to be honest, I missed the elections completely. I didn't see any of the emails. I wasn't paying attention. So I get a message from Harry one day, and this was after we got pretty close and he's like, Hey, how do you feel about being my VP? And I was like, didn't even know he was president yet. Like he had not told anyone. And I was just like, what, and, um, I had a few meetings with Scot about it and the rest is history. We're like the dynamic dynamic duo. Some many people have called us that, and I was like, how many people know about us? Like are we really like those people that are just like, so annoyingly, like friends with each other.

Harry

Yeah, definitely. Uh, definitely the dynamic duo in the program, for sure. All, I feel like people, yeah, we can't shut up, it's always us like together. I mean, we worked together before Lakin got her, her big girl job, but we were working together in HSC printing and honestly it worked out perfect because that's how we did a lot of our SAPH meetings. So we were able to do them together and we were able to, um, at least be in the same room and help coordinate stuff and plan things. It honestly made things so much easier.

Why is it important to get involved?

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Transcript

Harry Russell

So I made mistake my freshman year of undergrad, I didn't join any organizations at all. It's definitely a message I want to get out to incoming freshmen, or honestly, anyone. Get involved, just get involved any way you can. The connections you can grow, the relationships that you make. It's so worth it.

Lakin Davis

Everyone in SAPH definitely has a voice, whether you're a general member or a team member, but I think it definitely gives you that next step up to put your voice forward, to put your opinions out there in a way that you can make that connection between the students, faculty, and staff, more coherent and succinct with each other. So, you do get to have more of a constant connection with them as a SAPH team member, which I think is very great. And it honestly prepares you for the work-life because the way I do SAPH is very much how I do my current job now, which I wasn't expecting. I thought it was just going to be another leadership position that you don't really do much. This one really does prepare you for the future and lets you put your ideas forward.

Harry

Yeah, everything Lakin said is honestly spot on. And one thing I'll say over and over again, is taking on these leadership roles, you end up growing, honestly, as a person and you start developing skills you thought you didn't have, or growing on ones that you already had, but you just didn't use a whole lot. And I think those organizations, I mean, I've changed so much as a person, just because of the leadership roles I've taken and the different connections I've had to make. And SAPH is definitely one of those organizations that's helped me. It's definitely a rewarding in the end.

What’s something you’ll miss after graduating?

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Harry Russell

Lakin and I definitely, uh, we definitely complain to each other, a lot of venting goes on.

Lakin Davis

Yep. We definitely rely on each other for like 90% of our human interaction, for sure. Like even outside of class, I feel like if we could call each other on FaceTime or something half the time, we're not talking, we're just sitting there on the phone, just complaining or it's just crazy talking about something dumb, unrelated to school or work at all.

Harry

You just need those outlets, especially during a time like this, just quarantine in general has brought me close to a lot of my friends that I didn't stay in touch with that much. It's just kind of opened up different outlets and kind of made me realize how much I definitely need these people by my side.

Lakin

Harry, if you leave, I swear.

Harry

My goal is to stay here. I want to go to dental school here and I love the area. I've fallen in love with the area. And I know I can pick up the phone or get on my email and contact any of the friends I made or any of the connections and relationships I made with professors and faculty. They want to talk to you. They want to keep in touch. Even though things might be busy and you might go a little bit without some form of communication, like you can always pick up the phone or pick up or email someone and they'd be more than happy to meet with you. So that was my biggest fear. I think that's what I'm going to miss the most, is that constant connection with everyone.

Lakin

Yeah, I would definitely agree. That's my biggest fear is whenever I leave. Everyone's going on separate paths and I'm super proud of them, but I also don't want my people to leave me.

Why should someone choose public health?

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Harry Russell

You know, I didn't get into dental school right out of undergrad. And that was when I sat down with my dad and I told him I want to work in rural health. I want to do more outreach. And that's where we kind of landed on public health because I actually came up to West Virginia to tour the dental school. And while we were up here, my dad was like, why don't we just check out the public health school? So, we went and checked it out and I kind of fell in love with the area I fell in love with the program. Just the idea of being able to work in rural settings and, you know, deal with populations as a whole. And my biggest thing is preventative dentistry. I think preventative dentistry is crucial, which requires a lot of education to the populations. And so, I thought this was a perfect fit and, you know, everything was kinda, kinda went perfectly after that.

Lakin Davis

For like, whoever's thinking about doing public health, don't let your undergrad degree scare you away. It's okay if you don't have a traditional like medical background or public health background. Mine has nothing to do with public health. All I knew is I wanted to help people. Don't let that scare you away from doing it. There's so many people with crazy different degrees in this program that we all have the same goal. And I was really scared about that, but they welcome you with open arms.

Harry

100%. Yeah, I definitely agree with that. And I think that's one of the most rewarding parts about being in this program is you have so many different experiences. You have so many different viewpoints because of how different it is. It honestly opens up the eyes of everyone, I think.

Lakin

It all, it's full circle. Everything comes full circle.