Dr. Regina Washington believes in faith, family, perseverance, positivity, and education. Born and raised in Martinsburg, West Virginia, her young parents raised Regina and her siblings to be life-long learners, independent, and to serve others with passion – to say yes to life, to people, and yourself.
“My cup is always half full,” says Regina. “I love to fill my mind and grow my knowledge every day.”
Growing up, Regina felt that she would become either a surgeon general or a military police officer. In high school, Regina was eager to find the right mix of these two interests. This exploration began with her volunteering at the local hospitals, the VA, and the psychiatric ward. Regina enjoyed shadowing career professionals who helped patients and their communities. She once even shadowed a chief surgeon during surgery, a memory she will never forget.
After high school Regina moved to Kentucky to attend Berea College in Berea, Kentucky. While attending Berea, Regina’s grandmother and her high school softball coach were both diagnosed with colon cancer.
“I did my research and was thinking that nobody should have to die because of colon cancer,” says Regina. “In my mind, I was going to get my MD and find the cure.”
Through Berea College’s labor program, Regina was able to learn from and work alongside several members of the college community. Shortly after graduation, Regina received a call from the Dean of Student Life asking her to return to the College and pilot new initiatives in residence life, campus activities, and student health. While this opportunity did not align with her medical school goals, Regina’s faith and family upbringing taught her to say yes to the unexpected.
After several years of working at Berea College, Regina completed her master’s degree at Eastern Kentucky University and began the journey of studying for the MCAT exam for medical school. Although she decided not to take the MCAT exam in 2000, she still attended a University of Kentucky medical school orientation with friends who did take the exam and were accepted to medical school.
It was during the medical school orientation that Regina coincidently met and struck up a conversation with the late Mr. John Wiggs, then Director of Admissions, for the university’s School of Public Health. After learning about Regina’s passion for addressing health disparities and creating healthier communities, Mr. Wiggs asked Regina, “Have you ever considered public health?”
“That’s when I said yes to the rest of my life,” says Regina. “This is a true alignment for what I want to do. I want to impact the lives around me, and I want to make their lives healthier.”
Regina said “yes” and signed up for the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)’s first cohort which consisted of 14 students. Serving as a graduate assistant for the program, Regina collaborated with faculty and other students to establish the curriculum and create policies on academics, admissions, accreditation, and student affairs.
Through the connections she made in the classroom and the help of her mentors from Berea College and Eastern Kentucky University, Regina landed herself prestigious fellowships which further advanced her research on the intersectionality of cancer, health disparities, data analytics, and patient navigation.
These fellowships included several years at the Cancer Prevention Research Center at the University of Kentucky which led to a CERTA Fellowship at the National Cancer Institute Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a couple of years at the University of Kentucky Center for Rural Health Policy which led to her being the Founder/First President of the Student Rural Health Policy Association and a member of the Foundation for Healthy Kentucky Community Advisory Council.
“There were three things that I wanted to do in public health and that’s work at the city, state, and national levels,” says Regina.
After graduating with her DrPH in 2006, Regina forged her own path and relied on her wisdom for bringing groups together to promote the health of marginalized populations. Regina was the first patient navigator at the UK Markey Cancer Center, Division Director for Prevention and Quality Improvement at the Kentucky Department for Public Health, a Public Health Consultant for the Coalition on America's Poor Health & Poverty, and Director of Development and Health Programs at CenterLink.
“This is what took me to the national level,” says Regina. “I worked as an ally with more than 250 LGBTQ+ community-based organizations through the United States to address tobacco and cancer health disparities and to expand the cultural competencies for healthcare providers and state and local health departments. Working with different communities to bring in educational tools, technical assistance, coaching, and awareness, made an impact for these communities.”
In March of 2021, Regina returned to Berea College as the Director of Rural Impact Networks in the college's Partners for Education program. In that role, Regina uses her 16 years of experience in systems administration, health promotion, chronic disease prevention, and leadership and workforce development to address the needs of rural students and communities.
“We focus on transforming learning into action for sustainable results through place-based and collective impact approaches in rural areas,” says Regina. One of the program’s most promising initiatives is the Rural Library Network, which establishes local libraries as hubs for public health education and prevention and social services, in addition to advancing educational outcomes.
“To me, public health is impacted by two major pillars which are education and income,” adds Regina. “We are here to make sure that our network has access to resources that they need to address disparities. That is what we do in public health. We advocate for positive change."
Regina is the alumni recipient of this year’s Lyman T. Johnson Torch of Excellence Award. This award recognizes one African American alum from each of the university’s academic colleges whose faith, hard work, and determination has positively affected the lives of people on UK’s campus, the city, nation, or beyond.
“Being recognized for this award gives me extraordinary joy,” says Regina. “This work is not for the timid, for those that back down. It is for those that will lead in challenging times. They sacrifice to better the conditions for others.”
Lyman T. Johnson was the first African American student to attend the University of Kentucky approximately 70 years ago. This year, the Lyman T. Johnson Torch Bearer and Torch of Excellence Awards ceremony event will occur in February of 2022.
“Lyman T. Johnson was a trailblazer,” says Regina. “I always appreciate the work of others that lead with fierce courage. This recognition shows that I have made an impact and that my work has not been in vain. I am not done yet. There is more work to do, and my work will continue.”
Regina was the first African American student to graduate from the UK College of Public Health. Being a person of color, Regina recognizes that having access to education, mentors, and resources is key.
Her advice is to ask questions, be tenacious, lead up and with your heart, have mentors, always leave things better than you found it and say “yes” to your life.
