PopFam Future Changemaker Scholarship

A Chair's Initiative: Investing in the Next Generation 

For more than five decades, PopFam has helped launch the careers of over 2,000 public health leaders around the world. Our alumni are scientists, educators, policymakers, advocates, and innovators -working on the frontlines to drive change and make lives better for all people everywhere. 

As Chair, one of my greatest responsibilities—and privileges—is to invest in the next generation of leaders who will take this work further. 

In 2025, I launched the PopFam Future Changemaker Scholarship, committing $50,000 each academic year through the Chair's Fund to support outstanding students who demonstrate academic excellence, leadership potential, meaningful professional experience, and a deep commitment to improving the health and well-being of communities around the world. 

These scholarships are about investing in bold thinkers, emerging leaders, and changemakers who will shape the future in and through public health. 

I invite our PopFam alumni, partners, and friends to help grow this fund by supporting future cohorts of Changemaker Scholars. 

Together, we can broaden our impact and shape the future of public health leadership here in New York City, across the United States, and throughout the world. 

In solidarity,

Thoại D. Ngô, PhD, MHS (he/him)
Harriet and Robert H. Heilbrunn Professor and Chair