Shelby Fenton ’25 B.S. (PH) has spent the fall 2025 semester working with local medical providers to improve the pathway from newborn hearing screening to timely diagnostic evaluation and referral.

She collaborated with members of SUNY Upstate University Hospital’s pediatric ear, nose and throat (ENT) team and audiology department to map workflows, track key process measures, and reduce time to definitive testing and early intervention.

“This has been a great fit with my interests in maternal-child health, quality improvement and patient-centered systems, and I know these skills will carry into my future clinical training,” says Fenton.

Her work at Upstate was part of an Applied Practice Experience (APE) in the Public Health Department’s five-year, combined degree program that culminates in a master of public health (MPH). Fenton completed an undergraduate degree in public health in three years.

She expects to receive an MPH this summer.

“I’m getting a jump on med school,” she says. “I’m interested in both the science and practice of public health.”

In the summer of 2024, Fenton interned at St. Mary’s Hospital and Healthcare Network in her hometown, Amsterdam, New York. She focused on infant care and worked to implement baby-friendly hospital initiatives, and the following academic year continued with related research, ultimately writing a paper she hopes to publish in a journal.

She has also gained experience as a volunteer at Global Medical Brigades and SUNY Upstate University Hospital.

Fenton lauds Syracuse for the experiential learning opportunities. She says, “My internships have strengthened my leadership, problem solving and patient advocacy skills.”

Fiercely committed to wiping out health inequities while finding ways for physicians and public health practitioners to collaborate more effectively, she is also grateful for the department’s social justice approach to public health.

“Public health involves diverse voices, experiences and perspectives,” Fenton observes. “I’m honored to see some of my ideas already take shape within hospital policy.”

Includes reporting by Jay Cox