April 8, 2025
Initiative announces selection of summer 2025 cohort of Applied Research Fellows
The University of Washington Population Health Initiative has selected three graduate students and two undergraduate students as the 2025 cohort of the summer Applied Research Fellowship program.
The Applied Research Fellowship, which launched in 2019, is run in partnership with the University of Washington’s Center for Studies in Demography & Ecology. The program seeks to offer students training in data analysis, critical thinking and team science skills that will help them solve complex population health challenges on their way to becoming future leaders in population health.
The cohort of five students selected for this year’s fellowship program are:
| Name | Degree Program | School |
| Annie Xu | Psychology (doctoral) | Arts & Sciences |
| Mark Nepf | Public Policy and Management (doctoral) | Evans School of Public Policy & Governance |
| Xinyuan Hao | Environmental Health Sciences (graduate) | Public Health |
| Nupur Gorkar | Human Centered Design & Engineering (undergraduate) | Engineering |
| Sarah Desai | Anthropology, Environmental Studies (undergraduate) | Arts & Sciences, Environment |
The Summer 2025 Population Health Applied Research Fellowship team will collaborate with the King County Demographer and King County Parks to assess park accessibility. The team will analyze existing data on public land locations and gather publicly available demographic and transportation data. They will compare the distribution of individuals with disabilities, youth and schools to the location, attributes and transportation options of King County parks. Additionally, they will conduct on-site research at one or two urban, unincorporated King County parks to evaluate their physical and perceived accessibility, focusing on sidewalk conditions, ramps, visibility and street lighting to ensure safe access for all community members.
Learn more about this fellowship program by visiting its web page.