The Pat Tillman Foundation selected University of Washington PhD student Stephanie Mitchell as a 2025 Tillman Scholar, the organization announced Thursday. This honor is bestowed on military veterans, service members and spouses who exemplify the values Pat Tillman stood for: leadership, service, scholarship and impact.
Selected from a highly competitive pool of applicants, the 42 new scholars join a community of changemakers dedicated to making a positive difference across fields such as medicine, law, education, public policy, technology and the arts.
Mitchell is a third-year doctoral student in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences and a military spouse. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on global health and conservation.
“One of the pillars of this scholarship is humble leadership, and that really aligns with my values,” Mitchell said. “I’m always a guest in these communities where I do global health research, and I try to keep that mindset of leading with humility.”
Pat Tillman's legacy
Major Alex Mitchell, her husband, served in the U.S. Army for 12 years and is now a physician at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma. He was discharged in 2022, and Mitchell said she welcomes the opportunity to stay connected to the military community through the Pat Tillman Foundation.
The Chicago-based foundation upholds the legacy of Pat Tillman, professional football player and U.S. Army corporal who was killed while serving with the Army Rangers in Afghanistan.
In 2002, Pat Tillman put his NFL career with the Arizona Cardinals on hold to serve his country. In 2004, his family and friends started the Pat Tillman Foundation to carry forward that legacy. The foundation provides academic scholarships and support to elite military service members, veterans and spouses to help them reach their fullest potential as leaders — no matter how they choose to serve.
“We are honored to welcome this new class of Tillman Scholars and support them as they pursue bold goals and create meaningful change in their communities and around the world,” said Dr. Katherine Steele, CEO of the Pat Tillman Foundation and 2014 Tillman Scholar. “Their passion, vision and commitment to service embody what it means to be a Tillman Scholar, and we are excited to see the impact they will make.”
Global experience studying One Health
Growing up loving animals, Mitchell aspired to become a wildlife veterinarian. Her academic journey led her to One Health, a field that recognizes the connection between human, animal and environmental health. Mitchell earned two degrees — an MPH from the University of California Berkeley and an MS in nutrition from the University of the Incarnate Word in Texas — and completed impactful scientific research while her spouse was on active duty.
Her global experience has spanned over 10 countries, where she has focused on women’s health, emerging infectious diseases and wildlife conservation. In 2020, she began working with the Smithsonian National Zoo to integrate conservation into her One Health efforts, focusing on improving wildlife health to prevent disease outbreaks.
At the UW, she works with Adjunct Assistant Professor Julianne Meisner and the Center for One Health Research on her dissertation, which will focus on potential interventions to reduce the transmission of rabies and anthrax among domestic livestock, wildlife and people in Kenya. Her dissertation is titled: “The TRACE Study: A One Health Approach to Tracking Zoonotic Spillover Risk through Modeling Animal Movement, Community Knowledge, and Environmental Data in Kenya’s Rangelands.”
“As a woman in science, I generate solutions to protect both human and animal health while closing the STEM gender gap and empowering the next generation of leaders,” she said.
Through her research, Mitchell develops mathematical and contact network models to predict zoonotic disease patterns, focusing on interspecies disease transmission and outbreak containment. She’s committed to elevating Indigenous knowledge to strengthen One Health approaches.
Scholarship benefits
Tillman Scholars receive:
- Financial assistance (average is $10,000 each year) for academic expenses, including tuition, books and living expenses.
- Access to a broad and diverse network of high-performing peers, mentors and industry leaders.
- Leadership development through opportunities to advance their knowledge, skills and experience.
“Each new class of Tillman Scholars reminds us why we started this foundation: to honor Pat’s example by empowering remarkable individuals who choose to lead and serve,” said Marie Tillman Shenton, board chair and co-founder of the Pat Tillman Foundation. “We’re inspired by the 2025 class and look forward to seeing how they will create lasting change in their communities and beyond.”
After completing her PhD, Mitchell aims to join multidisciplinary research teams dedicated to protecting wildlife, strengthening human–wildlife relationships, empowering communities and reducing global health threats. A strong advocate for closing the gender gap in STEM, Mitchell is passionate about mentoring women in science. She recognizes the unique challenges women face balancing STEM careers with military life and is committed to building inclusive spaces that empower the next generation of scientific leaders.
