Spring 2026 Graduating Student Profile
Damaris Lent
BS in Public Health, One Health
Public Health undergraduate advances Native American cancer prevention
Damaris Lent graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Public Health with an emphasis in One Health and a minor in American Indian Studies. One Health and a minor in American Indian Studies. A member of the Mescalero Apache tribe, she served as Vice President of the American Indian and Indigenous Health Alliance, supporting Indigenous student engagement and leadership on campus. She won the Spring 2026 Public Health Service Award.
Damaris Lent
BS in Public Health with an emphasis in One Health and a minor in American Indian Studies
Damaris Lent, Mescalero Apache, received her Bachelor of Science in Public Health with an emphasis in One Health and a minor in American Indian Studies. She plans to pursue an MPH at UC San Diego after completing her undergraduate degree in just three years.
Damaris earned multiple scholarships while demonstrating a strong commitment to the MEZCOPH mission of health equity through work with the Partnership for Native American Cancer Prevention, including culturally tailored outreach, cancer navigation support, and presenting her research at the American Indian Cancer Foundation conference.
She also served as Vice President of the American Indian and Indigenous Health Alliance, supporting Indigenous student engagement and leadership on campus.
Damaris’s extensive community service includes mentoring Native youth through Coming-of-Age ceremonies, tutoring, caregiving for elders, supporting Native student programs and serving meals at Casa Maria Soup Kitchen.
Damaris won the 2026 Public Health Service Award.
Thank you Damaris for your service and congratulations!
For this profile, we asked Damaris about what shaped her undergraduate experience in the college.
Q: In addition to your classes, what projects or programs (often internships) did you work on while earning your degree?
A: In addition to my classes, I worked with the Partnership for Native American Cancer Prevention – Outreach and Engagement Core (NACP-OEC) at the UA Cancer Center where I worked to increase cancer navigation capacity among Community Health Representatives (CHRs). One of the most influential projects was creating a comprehensive environmental scan about Community Health Representatives that focused on their current and potential roles as cancer navigators.
The CHR scan project was a major contribution to the NACP-OEC’s goal to increase cancer navigation capacity among CHRs. There was a clear community desire for CHRs to play a role, but we needed a resource that pulled together the existing evidence and resources available to support this work.
I was fortunate enough to attend the American Indian Cancer Foundation meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota to present my work to a national audience of researchers, health care providers, and tribal health advocates. I received funding from the UA Undergraduate Biomedical Research Program (UBRP) to help support my travel to the conference. I learned the importance of community transparency, working as a team, and listening to the community’s needs.
Q: Did you have a teacher or mentor who especially inspired you?
A: A mentor who especially inspired me was Dr. Julie Armin at the UA Cancer Center. She helped me build the confidence to become a researcher in the public health field. From the moment I joined NACP, she helped guide me and had the confidence in me to present at meetings and complete projects. I will forever be grateful for working alongside her.
Q: What else would you like to add? Please share anything that was not addressed in the other questions.
A: One experience that I will forever be grateful for was joining the American Indian and Indigenous Health Alliance, which is an academic club in the College of Public Health. This club helped me form a community and blessed me with lifetime friendships. I served as the Public Relations Coordinator and Vice President. These experiences helped prepare me for my academic and professional goals in life.