Announcing Our 2026 Commencement Gonfalonier: Emma Lou Leary

We are proud to announce Emma Lou Leary as our 2026 Commencement Gonfalonier and warmly congratulate her on this well-deserved honor. We are excited to celebrate Emma’s outstanding achievements and the dedication she brings to public health and community impact.

Emma Lou Leary is a first-generation student from rural Colorado, graduating with a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health, earning a perfect 4.0 GPA. Building upon a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Fort Lewis College, she has seamlessly bridged laboratory science with population health. Professionally, she serves as a Quality Assurance Laboratory Technician at International Flavors & Fragrances and as an OHSU student worker within an epidemiological research team. In this role, she cleans and analyzes complex secondary data using Stata and RStudio, translates advanced technical findings into accessible language, and synthesizes literature on adolescent mental health, precarious employment, and social determinants of health. Her previous tenure as a collegiate Biology Laboratory Coordinator further highlights her skill in developing inclusive, technology-driven curricula and expanding STEM accessibility for local youth.

Driven by a deep commitment to equal opportunity within institutions and inclusive advocacy, Emma actively channels her public health expertise into meaningful community leadership. She currently serves as the Co-Director of QUEEN (Queer Unity for an Equitable Empowerment Network), fostering vital campus spaces for LGBTQ+ students and staff, and has dedicated time to educating Portland-area youth on disease prevention with On Track OHSU. Her core research interests span adolescent mental health, employment quality, infectious disease, and LGBTQ+ and women’s studies. Outside of her academic and professional pursuits—which began at the age of 15—she has been happily married to her wife, August, for six years, sharing their home with their beloved dog, Waffles, and cat, Fish. An avid outdoors enthusiast passionate about conservation, she looks forward to celebrating graduation by returning to backpacking, fishing, snowboarding, and camping.

Please join us in congratulating Emma Lou Leary on this exceptional achievement and well-earned recognition.