Pamela Ambundo-Onduso
Pamela Ambundo-Onduso
1989 (MPH - Industrial Health Education);
1987 (BSc - Patient Health Education (major); Dental Hygiene (minor);
1985 (Associate of Science - Dental Hygiene)
Currently:
Senior Adviser – Youth, Advocacy & Partnership
"I wish I had known then just how blessed I was to have been taught by some of the most respected Professors in their respective disciplines at ETSU’s School of Public & Allied Health."
Question: How did your education prepare you for the real world?
My education at ETSU gave me real life, hands-on experience in health service delivery, preparing me for a career in public health globally. I’ve had opportunity to develop and support health programs in my native country of Kenya; sub Saharan Africa (i.e Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Botswana, Ghana, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Lesotho and Swaziland) and internationally (in the USA, Spain, Mexico and Germany).
My daughter, Bertha Onduso, is following in mum’s footsteps and aiming for a future in healthcare. A medical student at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Bertha aspires to join ESTU’s Quillen Medical School and specialise in Paediatrics when she graduates in 2021. As parents, her father and I are working hard to enable her to have the same world class education that I received.
Professional Affiliations/Board Memberships:
- African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP)
- Center for the Study of Adolescence (CSA)
Question: What is something you wish you had known when you were a student?
I wish I had known then just how blessed I was to have been taught by some of the most respected pioneer public health professionals and Professors in their respective disciplines at ETSU’s School of Public & Allied Health. In particular, my Professor in the School of Public Health, Dr M.T. Morgan, a native of Tennessee, who, I learned later, actually initiated and helped ensure accreditation of Environmental Health as a field of specialization within ETSU's Masters in Public Health program back in the 1960’s! He also consulted with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, travelling all over the world, including my native, Kenya.
His wife, Dr Shirley Morgan, who received her doctorate from UNC Chapel Hill, North Carolina, also taught me in the Department of Public Health. This precious couple ensured that all their students -- including the foreign/international students like myself -- were made to feel welcome and part of the ETSU family. Their kindness helped us settle in, and settle down to graduate studies. God bless them both wherever they are.
Any other thoughts?
As a three time alumnus, I wear my ETSU colors and heritage with PRIDE!! I have no hesitation in recommending ETSU to prospective international students. It has a warm, hospitable environment, and excellent, accredited courses conducive for tertiary education. ETSU has great educational and recreational amenities – including warm, southern hospitality!