Sharon O'Hara, DrPH, MPH, MS
She/Her/Hers
Areas of Expertise
- Commercial, political, and structural determinants of health
- Ethics in public health research and practice
- Community-based program planning and evaluation
- Community organizing
- Policy development, advocacy, and implementation
- Translational research.
Biography
Sharon O’Hara, DrPH, MPH, MS (she/her) is an Assistant Professor in the Public Health Program at Touro University California’s College of Health Sciences. In over 30 years in the public health field, her research and practice interests have focused on community-based processes, policy, and advocacy to address commercial and other structural determinants and equity in health. She teaches a course in Public Health Program Evaluation and Needs Assessment, and coordinates MPH students’ capstone thesis projects Sharon is also a Research Scientist at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation's Prevention Research Center (PRC) in Berkeley, California.
She previously worked with a team at the University of California, Berkeley and the Innovative Genomics Institute to conduct research exploring ethical, societal, and human rights impacts of human genome editing. Sharon received Master and Doctoral degrees in Public Health from UC Berkeley. She previously received a Master of Science degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from California Lutheran University. Sharon is married with 3 grown children and one grandbaby. In her spare time, she enjoys yoga, hiking, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.
Education
- Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) - University of California, Berkeley
- Master in Public Health (MPH) - University of California, Berkeley
- Master of Science (MS), Marriage and Family Therapy - California Lutheran University
Recent Publications
Teaching Responsibilities
- Program Evaluation and Needs Assessment
- MPH Capstone Project