Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient for Department of Health Promotion Sciences

Each year, the Office of Alumni Affairs at the Hudson College of Public Health awards an annual Distinguished Alumni Award and Young Alumni Professional Achievement Award to outstanding alumni from each Department within the College. Recipients of these prestigious awards are recognized for achieving professional and personal successes, and demonstrating exemplary service to their community and/or the University.
 

The 2022 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient for the Department of Health Promotion Sciences is Ms. Heather Ward, a 2001 MPH alumna.

Heather is a two-time OU graduate, having earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Biochemistry in 1997 and a Master's Degree in Public Health in 2001.

She began her public health career in the fall of 2001 at the Logan County Health Department. She currently holds the position of Health Educator III and provides services to eight local county health departments located in Northwest Oklahoma.

With over 20 years of experience within the Health Education discipline, Heather continues to make contributions to Oklahoma’s public health system by encouraging residents to achieve wellness where they live, work, play, and pray.

Heather has been a staple of community-based health department programs, specifically as a guiding light as a health educator. Much of her career has centered around population-based prevention efforts working directly with community partners. She has focused on tobacco use prevention, nutrition, and exercise, often working collaboratively with key statewide partners such as the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust.

Heather has been a steady mentor for health educators all across the state. She is often called upon to assist with car seat technician recertifications, or to talk through how to conduct a health promotion training, or to mentor a new health educator just getting started in the county health department system. She is always willing to help and provide her expertise with a jovial attitude.

Heather's commitment to her work, program area, and communities is what the best of public health is made of. Without a doubt, Heather will continue to make an impact as she works with community and state partners “to protect and promote health, to prevent disease and injury, and to cultivate conditions by which Oklahomans can thrive.”

Please help us congratulate Heather Ward on this amazing award!