Student Voices
Cassidy Stoddart, MPH'26
This year, Cassidy Stoddart created a brand new podcast for the Mailman Journalism Club. Kind of a Big Health Deal features Stoddart and her cohosts unpacking the state of public health with help from peers and experts.
What inspired you to create a podcast?
I have always enjoyed podcasts, but that interest really grew during COVID. I got tired of watching the same shows and movies, and I wanted something more enriching that could keep my brain busy while I worked out, drove, or did assignments.
What ultimately inspired me was the idea of reinventing how important conversations can reach younger audiences in a more playful, accessible, and freeing way. Through my academic experiences, both in grad and undergrad, I have learned how important it is to meet your audience where they are. If you are trying to emphasize the importance of an issue or get people talking, the format matters. Everyone is so busy today, and podcasts offer a low-effort but meaningful learning experience for listeners.
Can you share a favorite moment from this season?
My favorite moment from our first season was definitely our student roundtable. I was able to bring together so many amazing classmates, TAs, and peers from across our department, many of whom I have worked with or learned from in different ways.
What made the conversation so special was that everyone brought a different perspective. Some people spoke from a global health lens, while others shared experiences related to healthcare administration, public health, or their own personal and professional journeys. Everyone’s personalities blended together so naturally that, at times, we forgot we were even mic’d up.
What surprised you about the process?
What surprised me most was how challenging it was to get the first episode off the ground. Starting from scratch meant figuring out the flow, deciding what was important to keep or cut, and learning how to make the conversation feel structured but still natural. It felt like we were creating a formula for what the podcast platform would become.
Once we got the first episode out, though, everything became much easier. We gained confidence in the types of questions we were asking and in the overall direction of the podcast. We also became more comfortable shaping each episode to feel less like a lecture and more like an open conversation in order to ensure our audience could walk away with reaffirmed or new perspectives.
What lessons, skills, or experiences from making this podcast are you taking with you as you transition to post-grad life?
One of the biggest lessons I am taking from this experience is the importance of finding common ground. In any conversation, there is usually some sort of thread that connects people. It could be something as simple as being from the same region of the country, or it could be a shared professional interest, such as healthcare access, Medicaid enrollment, or how policy decisions affect communities in real time.
At the end of the day, people may not always agree on everything, and sometimes we have to agree to disagree. But it is still possible and important to find something both people care about or have experience with. That shared connection builds trust and creates a starting point for deeper, more productive conversations.
As I move into post-grad life and begin my role in public affairs consulting in DC, I know this skill will be especially valuable. Public affairs requires the ability to listen closely, understand different perspectives, build trust with clients and team members, and translate complex issues into messages that resonate with different audiences. Making this podcast strengthened those skills by teaching me how to guide conversations, ask thoughtful questions, and create space for people to connect around timely issues. It also showed me how powerful communication can be in breaking down silos and making healthcare feel relevant not just for people at Mailman but for communities everywhere.
