USD School of Health Science Success Spotlight: Jennifer Bailey, MPH

By Alex Strauss

Jennifer Bailey's path to public health has been an unusual one. 

A native of Vermillion, Bailey studied biology as an undergraduate at USD. For more than two decades, she has been a fish biologist at the La Crosse Fish Health Center, a US Fish and Wildlife facility in Onalaska, Wisconsin, where she focused on the health of fish populations across the Midwest.

"I was interested in the epidemiology of fish populations and started to think about how I could make the biggest impact," says Bailey. "That got me thinking more about the environment and what fish and people need to be healthy. So my perspective began to change."

When she found out that her Alma Mater had started a public health program, and that she could earn a master's degree remotely without uprooting her family, she knew it was the right next step. 

"Since I was juggling my full time job and my kids, it was great to be able to take it slow," says Bailey. "The professors were wonderful, but what really surprised me was the genuine connections I made with my fellow students."

Bailey says she especially appreciated the ability to choose electives that would support her unique approach to public health. She recently accepted a new job as an environmental protection specialist with the Veterans Health Administration. 

Although some might see it as a departure from her work with wildlife, Bailey sees her new position as a natural evolution of her interest in the environment, one that she could not have accomplished without the USD School of Health Sciences. 

"My focus has moved from fish and wildlife to environmental health to human health," she says. "It is really my studies in public health that pushed me in this new direction."