Health Scholars

Reading, and living, ethical decision-making in public health

Kayla Williams ’19 knows her actions have profound impact.

It is a lesson she picked up in the Valeriote Goldman Public Health Leadership Program.

“It’s not just a learning opportunity, but a means for self-discovery—professionally and personally,” says Williams.

Funded by Trustee Susan Valeriote ’77 and her husband, Ken Goldman, the program pairs a select group of SCU public health majors with leaders in the field—nonprofit CEOs, public health officials, and others.

In class, the pairs discuss readings that deal with ethical issues they’ll face in the field, as well as writings from the likes of Martin Luther King Jr. and Ursula K. Le Guin. Then the students work in paid internships managed by their mentors.

Williams worked with Dolores Alvarado, CEO of Community Health Partnership, which advocates on behalf of 39 clinics that are treating 200,000 low-income residents in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.

post-image Illustration by Jon Krause
A Reflection

On Monday, April 21, 2025, after news of Pope Francis’s death arrived at Santa Clara University, Dennis C. Smolarski, S.J. stood in the Mission Church and gave a homily for Mass. His words reflected on the miracle of Easter, hope, and the example Francis gave others to follow.

Back to Basics

Bridging classrooms and living rooms, the BBILY Project helps parents help kids with math.

The Accent Artist

Turn those hard American As into proper British “ahs” with the help of dialect coach Kristin Hill ’25

Moral Dilemmas on Wheels

Anthropologist Melissa Cefkin steers us through the ethical predicaments of self-driving cars.