UA SRC Trainee Yoshira Ornelas Van Horne Successfully Defends Dissertation
March 12, 2020
Yoshira Ornelas Van Horne, University of Arizona (UA) Superfund Research Center (SRC) Trainee, successfully defended her dissertation on September 26, 2019, and was awarded the College of Public Health Student Life Award in December 2019. She is the first Latina to receive her PhD in Environmental Health Sciences at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health (MEZCOPH) at the University of Arizona.
Her dissertation, entitled, “Exposure & Health Risk of Diné Communities impacted by the Gold King Mine Spill,” focused on understanding how the Gold King Mine spill (GKMS) affected the daily activities of the community members and the quality of the San Juan River, as well as investigated health risks pre- and post-spill. Dr. Paloma Beamer, a UA SRC Collaborator, and Dr. Karletta Chief, UA SRC Community Engagement Core Director, mentored Ornelas Van Horne.
In October 2019, Ornelas Van Horne moved to Los Angeles, where she is now a postdoc at the University of Southern California (USC). Her postdoc will focus on mixture modeling of particulate matter (PM), metals and pesticide exposures from ambient dust samples and their association with respiratory health symptoms in children. She hopes to understand how multi-environmental exposures are driving the disproportionate rates of respiratory health symptoms in Latino children in the Imperial Valley.
“I feel fortunate to have been able to work with the Diné communities impacted by the GKMS,” Ornelas Van Horne said. “I hope to continue working with the Diné and help them continue to address their concerns surrounding environmental contamination from legacy mining. I am excited for this new chapter in my academic career and look forward to continuing to address environmental injustices.”
Congratulations to Dr. Yoshira Ornelas Van Horne for successfully defending her dissertation! We are very proud of her and wish her much success at USC.