HBSSO

Get to Know HBSSO

The Health, Behavior and Society Student Organization (HBSSO) is the student organization for the Department of Health, Behavior and Society. 

Mission

HBSSO represents student interests to the Department. It acts as a liaison between students and HBS leadership and cultivates student engagement across the Department. 

Scope

HBSSO serves a variety of functions, from organizing events to facilitating student mentorship programs to planning the use of the HBS student work room. The organization also coordinates student representation on HBS committees, offering the Department student perspectives on critical developments related to practice, research, and more. 

Structure

The leadership of HBSSO is made up of four co-chairs, with one representative from each HBS degree program. 

With the aim of serving and advocating for the needs of HBS students, the organization chairs coordinate the following events:

• HBSSO Meetings (HBSSO chairs and committee members), once per academic term
• General Meetings (student body), twice per academic year
• Meet-the-Chair Event (HBS chair and student body), twice per academic year
• Student Social/Development Events (student body), as requested

Current Leadership

The current HBSSO co-chairs are:

MHS Co-Chair: India Washington (she/her)

India is a second-year MHS in Health, Behavior and Society student. She earned her bachelor of science in biology and bachelor of arts in Spanish at Howard University in May 2023. India is passionate about health disparities particularly in under-resourced communities. She currently serves as a research assistant to two projects: “AdapTive Personalized Dietitian coacHing, Messaging and pRoduce prescrIption to improVE Healthy Dietary Behaviors” doing quantitative and community engagement work and “Climate Anxiety among Adolescents in Brazil” doing qualitiative work. She also serves as a senior lab assistant in the the School of Medicine’s “Oncology Tissue Lab.” India ultimately plans to use her skills developed at Johns Hopkins to become a dentist and oral health disparities researcher.

MSPH Co-Chair: Amanda Billiter (she/her)

Amanda is a second-year MSPH in Health Education and Health Communication student. She is passionate about improving maternal, child, and adolescent health outcomes and is currently serving in her field placement with the National Center for Fatality Review and Prevention, focusing on fetal and infant mortality review.

ScM Co-Chair: Shannon McKee (she/her)

Shannon is a second-year ScM in Genetic Counseling student. She earned her bachelor of science in biomedical sciences from Rochester Institute of Technology in May 2022, with minors in anthropology and sociology.  Shannon is passionate about advocacy, volunteering as a crisis counselor on the National Crisis Text Line and as an ESOL teacher in Washington, D.C. Her current thesis project explores the ethical, legal, and social implications of direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing, focusing on privacy and public health policy, reflecting her dedication to addressing critical issues in genetics and public health.

PhD Co-Chair: Forthcoming