USD School of Health Sciences Success Spotlight: Jason Simon-Ressler
By Alex Strauss
Degree: Master of Public Health (In Progress), BS in Kinesiology/Sports Management
Jason Simon-Ressler
Current Position: Child Health Coordinator, Title 5 Program, South Dakota State Health Department
Although he could not have known it at the time, Jason Simon-Ressler's path to a career in public health began with a high school research paper on childhood obesity. Later, while playing football for USD and pursuing his Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and Sports Management, he remembered that experience and began to think more broadly about health impact.
"I started thinking more 'big picture' about public health," says Simon-Ressler. "My goal became 'how could I support more chronic disease prevention?' Public health was an avenue I felt would help me have more impact."
That revelation led him to add psychology and public health minors to his undergraduate studies, laying the groundwork for a future Master of Public Health degree. Then, during the summer of his junior year, Simon-Ressler secured a CDC undergraduate public health traineeship at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, an opportunity that proved pivotal.
When he returned to South Dakota later that summer, he worked with the Sioux Falls Health Department through USD's Center for Disabilities as part of the same program. "This gave me the opportunity to train in leadership and public health alongside some great multidisciplinary talent," he says. "That really did solidify my idea of going into public health and continuing with a graduate degree."
Now wrapping up his Master of Public Health degree at the USD School of Health Sciences while working full-time at the South Dakota State Health Department, Simon-Ressler says he especially appreciates the program's practical applications. "Just about every class that I take, I can immediately translate the lesson into my job," he says. "When you can immediately apply what you're learning to your career, it's easy to see the value."
For Simon-Ressler, the fact that USD's MPH program is offered online, is fully accredited, and costs less than many other programs made it an easy choice to continue his education there. "I don't think I could have done it had I gone to any other university," he says. "It wasn't easy but it was manageable. I could see that it was going to work for me."