Claire Penzel

A strong advocate for children, Claire found her "spark" in teaching early childhood education during her undergraduate years. She taught predominantly preschool and pre-kindergarten and enjoyed every minute of it. Teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic was no easy feat, however, and Claire realized during this time that there was a gap in support for families with young children with special healthcare needs— across all fields, not just in education. This prompted Claire to pivot to public health, where she discovered her passion for health equity and accessibility. Her particular interests lie in maternal and child health, nutrition, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH).

Claire received a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in Public Health Nutrition at the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to attending UCB, she earned a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Politics, Economics, Policy, and Law (PEPL - with a focus in Economic Analysis) from Mills College in Oakland, California.

As part of her MPH practicum work, Claire interned with SFDPH, supporting the Veggie Meter Calibration Study. In this role, she engaged with community members and local organizations, implemented study protocol, and performed data entry and analysis. Claire was also trained to use Power BI and assisted with data collection and data analysis for the Community Health Needs Assessment.