Uniformed Services University 2025 Preventive Medicine Program Graduates Advance Force Health Protection

New USU graduates are poised to step into key public health and leadership roles to help protect the health and readiness of service members and their communities.

Two men show off an award in front of flags.
The Uniformed Services University's Department of Preventative Medicine and Biostatistics held its 41st
graduation ceremony on the USU campus. (Photo credit: Tom Balfour, USU)

June 20, 2025 by Sharon Holland

The Uniformed Services University’s (USU) Department of Preventive Medicine and Biostatistics (PMB) marked a significant milestone on June 18, 2025, with its 41st graduation ceremony held on the USU campus. The event celebrated the accomplishments of military and civilian students earning advanced degrees in public health, health administration and policy, and biomedical sciences—each poised to strengthen force health protection and contribute to operational readiness across the Military Health System and beyond.

In total, more than two dozen students received graduate degrees, including the Master of Public Health (MPH), Master of Public Health and Tropical Medicine (MPH&TM), Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH), Master of Health Administration and Policy (MHAP), Master of Science in Vector Biology and Parasitology, and specialized doctoral degrees. Their academic success represents not only personal achievement but a deeper commitment to service, science, and public health leadership.

“Today’s public health education is tomorrow’s force health protection and readiness,” said retired U.S. Public Health Service Capt. (Dr.) Darrell Singer, director of the MPH program, as he opened the ceremony. PMB Department Chair retired Army Col. (Dr.) James Mancuso echoed this sentiment, congratulating students for demonstrating technical competence, professionalism, and a deep sense of mission—reminding graduates that their new roles place them at the forefront of military and global public health.

Delivering the keynote address was retired Army Col. (Dr.) Mark Kortepeter, former USU Vice President for Research, and a renowned expert in biodefense and global health. Drawing on his decades-long military and public health career, Kortepeter offered graduates practical advice on leadership in crisis settings and the importance of humility, accountability, and listening—qualities that define effective leaders in medicine and public health. “You may not always feel ready to be in charge,” he said, “but no matter what you’re tasked with, you need to dive in, embrace the role, be out front, and constantly anticipate what is coming.”

The ceremony also recognized outstanding student and faculty achievements:

  • Air Force Lt Col Amanda Walsh received the Esprit de Corps Award for embodying compassion, collegiality, and public service
  • Navy Lt. Allison J. Enus earned the CAPT Richard R. Hooper Memorial Award for excellence in research 
  • Navy Lt. jg. Torrence Watkins received the Barbara Middleman Award for a standout graduate management project 
  • Navy Lt. jg. Norbert Owusu was presented the Larry Lewin Leadership Award by peer nomination
  • Navy Lt. David Jimenez was honored with the Occupational and Environmental Health Sciences Excellence Award for academic and professional leadership
  • Dr. Emily Ricotta was named the 2025 recipient of the David F. Cruess Faculty Outstanding Educator Award 

This year’s MHAP graduates were also inducted into Upsilon Phi Delta, the international honor society for healthcare administration, while two public health graduates and one faculty member were inducted into the Delta Omega Honorary Society in Public Health.

One of the MPH graduates, Capt. (Dr.) Joseph Merfeld, is the first person to graduate from three USU programs. Merfeld, a former Air Force manpower analyst, entered USU’s Enlisted to Medical Degree Preparatory Program (EMDP2) inaugural class in 2014. Merfeld successfully completed the EMDP2 program two years later, entered the university’s F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine in 2016 and graduated in 2020 with his M.D. degree. Merfeld returned to USU to pursue a residency in General Preventive Medicine, which requires residents to complete an MPH degree as part of the program.  

Many of the graduates will go on to lead public health teams, support operational units, and help shape health policy—roles essential to maintaining the health and readiness of the nation’s military and global partners.  

As Mancuso reminded them, “You are now our colleagues and peers in the practice of public health and healthcare administration.”