Terence “Terry” Chan is in his final semester of the Master of Public Health (MPH) program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, while his daughter, Cynthia Chan, has just started the same degree.
“As a parent, it’s great and you can be supportive. Having gone through the classes prior, you can put things into perspective,” said Terry. “For example, biostatistics was tough so mentally I want to prepare her for that.”
Both are enrolled in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the Thompson School of Social Work & Public Health, but from different places: Terry is earning his degree 5,000 miles away in Michigan through the Distance Education (DE) program, and Cynthia attends classes on the UH Mānoa campus.
Family commitment to keep community health
Terry, a pediatric dentist of 25 years, joined the inaugural DE cohort in 2022 to expand his understanding of health beyond clinical practice. Cynthia, who earned her BS in psychology at UH Mānoa in 2024, pursued the MPH to pair clinical knowledge with a population–level perspective.
He originally hoped to graduate alongside Cynthia, but the pandemic, his dental practice and securing a practicum site extended his timeline. He ultimately completed his practicum with the Pacific Institute of Hawaiʻi on the Big Island, examining oral health outcomes and the dental workforce.
Cynthia, still completing coursework, plans to focus her career on the intersections of clinical care and public health. Her year at the Hawaiʻi State Department of Health helped shape that interest, but watching her father advance through the program also strengthened her decision.
“It was motivating to see him do that and that I could do that too,” said Cynthia.
Despite holding multiple advanced degrees, Terry says the MPH broadened his understanding of the systems that keep communities healthy.
“The public health program has been eye opening,” he said. “A big takeaway is the need to work with legislators and being a voice in the community and a champion for causes… It’s pretty intense.”
Having attended three other higher education institutions, Terry also credits UH for providing his most meaningful academic experience. “People can say Hawaiʻi has the ʻohana spirit, but here at Mānoa you can really feel it,” he said.
