Epidemiology Unmasked

Location: USA

front cover - Stephanie Wang.png

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve been a first-hand witness to the tremendous amount of misconception and lack of urgency circulating amongst several communities, including my own. I also remember being witness to a rapid infestation of the COVID-19 misinformation epidemic spreading simultaneously with the disease itself. This de-emphasized sense of responsibility and a lack of true understanding of the crisis has placed much of the public in a vulnerable, gullible, dangerous state.

That led me to wonder: Why is it that public health and epidemiology are so de-emphasized in the traditional educational curriculum? If our younger generation understood the mechanisms of disease transmission and the characteristics of epidemics, wouldn’t our situation be much less bleak? I knew I had to bridge this educational inefficiency. But how? At the moment, I couldn’t exactly change the K-12 curriculum, but I realized that I could create my own. And so began my 4-month-long journey to bring Epidemiology Unmasked to fruition.

Writing a book was hands down the most significant academic challenge I have ever experienced. I began writing Epidemiology Unmasked in early April and completed the first draft in late May. I already had prior knowledge on epidemiology, as I have been competing in the Science Olympiad Disease Detectives event for four years and was ranked national runner-up in 2019. However, I had to overcome the challenge of transforming theoretical, abstract epidemiological concepts into something concrete, something worth learning to readers of all ages and knowledge levels. In the end, I opted for an investigation-based learning approach where I placed the reader in the shoes of the epidemiologist investigating an outbreak and built upon their knowledge base. I carefully curated each graphic to appeal to children, teenagers, and adults; I made sure to make each page look as visually appealing as possible. I used bright, bold colors and flowing text that made reading the book an experience worth cherishing. The end result was a 117-page US letter-sized beauty.

Aside from releasing my book to the public, I partnered with Kid Teach Kid, a national nonprofit educational organization to teach over 1,000 elementary, middle, and high school students from all across the world about the essentials of public health, using Epidemiology Unmasked as the curriculum guide. Throughout the course of the class, students investigated the outbreak in the book and I ended the course with a session on staying safe during COVID-19 and guiding them to create their own impactful project. Epidemiology Unmasked has been reviewed and endorsed by three professors, including the Director of Infection Control at MD Anderson, featured by the Katy Magazine, the Los Angeles Times, the World Science Festival, and is currently being indexed in libraries across the state. I received the Certificate of Congressional Recognition from Congressman Pete Olson, a prestigious award presented on behalf of the US House of Representatives for “heroic efforts helping Texans in need.” Recently, I was contacted by the CEO of Science Olympiad who thanked me for my contributions to society and featured my story as a hallmark of an outstanding Science Olympian. Subsequently, I was contacted by public health professionals from the CDC who have applauded my work.

It’s been about three months since the initial publication of my book. As I look back to reflect on my late nights of brainstorming, disheartening bouts of rejection, and tedious dedication to formatting, there is still not a single shred of regret in my mind that I could have spent those long hours in a better, more rewarding way.

Support: Access to information, Space for online convenings (e.g. GoToMeeting), A Broader Reach

See more:

For more information, contact youthactionplatform@unmgcy.org

Information Sharing, Europe and OthersAdmin TeamEnglish, Access to information, Other