Outstanding DEOHS undergrad praised for dedication to equity and service

Kaidan St Louis signed up to major in environmental public health at the UW without knowing exactly what that meant but figuring it had something to do with forestry. That idea was garbage.

Quite literally, it was a class about solid waste — and another introduction to environmental public health class — that made St Louis realize the major was nothing like what they imagined and everything they wanted.

“It sounds so funny, like what is there to learn about garbage?” they said. “But environmental health really is the nitty-gritty stuff. It’s about taking care of people just because they’re being people, in these everyday ways. It’s like a silent science.”

Now, as St Louis prepares to graduate, they have been named the 2025 Outstanding Undergraduate Student for the UW Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS) for their commitment to public health, their leadership skills and their academic excellence.

Internships and activities

In their time as a UW undergraduate student, St Louis has fostered community within the department, co-chaired the Student Environmental Health Association, led hiking trips as part of the group Peaks and Professors, and completed internships with King County’s biomedical waste program and Waste Management’s Recycle Corps program.

They also took on a second degree, simultaneously earning a bachelor’s in Community, Environment and Planning.

DEOHS Assistant Teaching Professor Emily Hovis advised St Louis on their capstone project, which evaluated the nutritional quality and safety of food offered through community fridges and free micro pantries in Seattle.

The project “addresses a pressing public health issue and tackles issues of food equity, security and safety,” Hovis said, praising St Louis’s dedication to service and equity. “Their empathy and ability to connect with diverse populations highlight their suitability for this prestigious award.”

‘A place of real care’

R. Tyler Babbie, a lecturer in the UW English department as well as DEOHS, said St Louis was a “standout student” in the environmental health class that Babbie taught. Their “warmth and charisma come from a place of real care, which is in turn informed by an ever-present scientific perspective.”

St Louis is not just a thoughtful scientist but also a skilled writer. “I can see them thriving in the future by using their communication skills, genuine engagement and intellectual ability as an ambassador for science-informed public health outreach in the community,” Babbie said.

Student research

The capstone project, which combined concepts from both of St Louis’s bachelor’s degree programs, sparked an interest in field-based community work and food systems as a potential career path. They also presented the work at a poster session at the Washington State Environmental Health Association conference.

“This research has been a highlight of my time at UW and has opened a lot of doors for me,” St Louis said. “I really enjoyed the interactive component of the work.”

As the recipient of the DEOHS Outstanding Undergraduate Award, St Louis said they felt overwhelmed with gratitude. “It’s a huge honor to be recognized by such an amazing department, and everyone I look up to. This department has become such a community for me.”