Martlets on the Move

Yale School of Public Health associate research scientist Sakinah Carter Suttiratana ’90 is leading efforts to overcome health disparities in Connecticut — where life expectancy for primarily white residents in affluent census tracts is more than a decade greater than for residents living in the state’s lowest-income neighborhoods. Her lab focuses primarily on disparities among members of African American, Hispanic and lower socioeconomic status communities who have difficulty accessing prevention services for noncommunicable diseases such as cancer and diabetes.

“In Connecticut, African American and Hispanic patients are often diagnosed later, when treatment options are limited,” explained Sakinah. “People don’t realize that there is a preventable element to cancer risk. They often have no clear sense of the tests that are available.” She and another researcher supervise a team of multilingual and multicultural community health educators, navigators and students who engage in direct community education to encourage timely health screenings and preventive care. “We translate scientific knowledge into practical literature or activities to support people’s efforts to live healthier or prevent or minimize the risks of cancers or chronic illnesses,” she said.

Sakinah also helps translate health science to practice by training future clinician leaders as a core faculty member for the National Clinician Scholars Program, a two-year fellowship that prepares doctors and Ph.D.-level nurses to be “change agents driving policy-relevant research and partnerships to improve health and health care.” She teaches classes in qualitative research methods and community-based participatory research. This faculty role draws on Sakinah’s past work in women’s leadership development for healthfocused nonprofits and philanthropy.

Sakinah joined the faculty of the Yale School of Public Health in 2018 after completing a Ph.D. in sociology (health and illness) from the University of California, San Francisco.

Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, her team relied on in-person health fairs and screening events that were held throughout the state to connect with residents. “We were forced to convert to online workshops, podcasts and radio interviews,” said Sakinah. “We have been producing videos on how to use the technology they possess to access telehealth services, but it’s challenging from a communication perspective. The people we work with are already on the other side of the digital divide and are more impacted by COVID.”

Sakinah came to Westminster as a Fourth Former from Jefferson Junior High School in Washington, D.C. At Westminster, she completed the most demanding academic program of study, and under the mentorship of faculty member Mike Jackson ’49, she became increasingly interested in applying her math and science studies to real-world challenges. She was also strongly influenced by Todd Eckerson’s modern European history course. “The way he taught aligned with my ethics,” recalled Sakinah. “We learned through the lens of the history, but also realized that you were creating history, so you had to think about what you wanted to create in the world. It taught me to think about social Sakinah Carter Suttiratana ’90 sciences differently and as essential for guiding scientific advancement.” Reflecting on her time as a student, “We translate scientific Sakinah said that working on the team that formalized the Westminster chapter of the knowledge into practical National Student Campaign Against Hunger literature or activities to was most predictive of the direction of her career. “Since then, I have sought to use the support people’s efforts tools I’ve had at my disposal toward things that are important to me,” she said. “I want to live healthier or to help people who are not often seen by prevent or minimize others.” Sakinah served as Westminster chapter the risks of cancers or president of Campaign Against Hunger, and coordinated weekly trips to St. Elizabeth’s chronic illnesses.” House, a Hartford shelter for the homeless. She also participated in Dramat, Chorale, Chamber Choir, the Student Activities Committee, Black and Gold, and was a staff writer for The Westminster News. She played junior varsity soccer and managed the girls’ lacrosse team. As an undergraduate at Yale, Sakinah was first a chemical engineering major, but quickly found herself with a desire to be more involved with people. While a student, she volunteered with women’s organizations in New Haven and Brazil, and earned a B.A. in Latin American studies in 1994. Between 1994 and 2018, when she joined Yale as a faculty member, Sakinah worked for various private, public and nonprofit entities in public health or health research, including positions with the World Health Organization, Gallup, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, The California Endowment and several colleges and universities. Internationally, she has partnered with groups in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Brazil, Cape Verde, Iraqi Kurdistan, China, (continued)

Mexico, India and the United Kingdom.

In addition to her B.A. and Ph.D., Sakinah earned master’s degrees from Emory University (M.P.H., international health: behavioral science and epidemiology) and Yale School of Management (MBA). Sakinah met her husband, Eddie Suttiratana, at Yale School of Management, and they married in 2007. The couple now has a 13-year-old son, Elan, and they live in North Stamford, Conn.

As Sakinah and her team prepare to return to in-person outreach, they are also testing ways to scale up programs and reach new audiences. “We are hoping to move the needle on the stage of diagnosis,” said Sakinah. “But moving that needle takes time.”

Sakinah with her son, Elan, and husband, Eddie, at a family event in Key West, Fla.

Stay still. Hold your breath: Anxiety-producing instructions for anyone undergoing a medical procedure. For a child, those instructions may be impossible. Pediatric sedation specialist Dr. Jesse Sturm ’94 makes the most difficult tests and treatments happen for his young patients at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center (CCMC) in Hartford. He leads a team that treats children who would not otherwise be able to be still for the procedures required to care for them, including children with autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome and those undergoing cancer treatments. The team’s goal is to help minimize discomfort and reduce the psychological impact for patients during procedures and tests.

CCMC’s pediatric sedation division is one of only 10 National Pediatric Society Sedation’s Centers of Excellence in the United States. “With the help of a great team, I am fortunate to help children through challenging procedures that take place outside of the operating room,” said Jesse. “Sedation allows painful procedures to occur with less anxiety and creates a more optimal environment for families.”

Jesse is board certified in both pediatrics and pediatric emergency medicine. “I worked in emergency medicine for nearly a decade,” he said. “The hours and the things that you see are difficult. While I continue to practice some emergency pediatrics, sedation is a unique place to be.”

Medicine was not an interest for Jesse while a student at Westminster. Though he did well in science and math, he did not have family members or other role models working in the medical field. Several Westminster faculty members, including chemistry teacher Deborah Foley, physics teacher David Prockop and then director of studies Greg Marco, strongly influenced Jesse’s continued work. “The classes were so small; it was easy to build a mature rapport with teachers,” he recalled. “I appreciated the one-on-one attention.”

Jesse with his family on vacation in New Jersey: Peter, Alison, Lucy, Jesse and Benjamin.

Jesse and his twin brother, Dr. Eron Sturm ’94, both came to Westminster as Fourth Formers after attending Granby Memorial High School for one year. “We had always been in school together and gravitated toward the same things,” said Jesse.

As a Westminster student, Jesse played soccer, basketball and lacrosse; was a member of the Debate Club, Chorale, Serving our Neighbors and S.P.H.E.R.E.; and was a volunteer student tutor. He received the Excellence in Chemistry and the Excellence in Science awards, as well as other academic prizes. Jesse and Eron also hold the distinction of being jointly named Outstanding Scholars, and together gave the Outstanding Scholar Address at commencement. “We each had seven minutes to speak,” said Jesse. “What I remember most is Eron’s quote that he was ‘a three-year JV sports professional.’”

Jesse said that he and Eron made an intentional decision to separate for their undergraduate studies, although they both became physicians. (Please see related story below.)

“I knew I wanted to do something in the science and math realm with a societal benefit,” said Jesse, who enrolled at Duke University as an engineering major. However, a summer experience shadowing medical staff at CCMC sparked an interest in medicine, and the following year, he had the opportunity to work with pediatric staff at Duke Children’s Hospital. He graduated from Duke with a B.S. in civil and environmental engineering in 1998 and consulted for an engineering firm in Washington, D.C., for a year while preparing to attend medical school.

“Duke has a unique medical school curriculum,” explained Jesse. “I was able to complete four years of medical school in three years with an extra year for other interests.” He earned a Master of Public Health from the University of North Carolina in 2002 and his M.D. from Duke University School of Medicine in 2003.

Jesse and his wife, Alison, a primary care pediatric physician, married in 2003 and did a couple’s match for their pediatric residencies — his at Johns Hopkins University and hers at University of Maryland Children’s Hospital. Following the end of their residencies in 2006, Jesse completed a fellowship in pediatric emergency medicine at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta.

Jesse and Alison’s family has grown with their careers: Lucy, 15, was born in Baltimore; 12-year-old Benjamin was born in Atlanta; and Peter, 8, was born in Hartford.

“I loved growing up in Connecticut,” said Jesse. “We came back when my daughter was 6, and we live four doors away from my parents in West Hartford, which allows the children to see their grandparents a lot.” Jesse also enjoys the many Westminster connections the family has nearby, including Emily Fuller Rooney ’94, Jim Heneghan ’94 and Miles Bailey ’94, who serves as dean of admissions at Westminster.

An avid fly fisherman, Jesse recently returned from a fishing trip to Colorado with Eron and Mike Gagne ’95. “My wife and children don’t fish with me, but we are big hikers,” said Jesse. “We do national park trips every year, and we have traveled to Chile to visit Patagonia.” Jesse attended his 20th Westminster reunion and has brought his family to campus for Dramat performances. He recalls his time as a day student: “There was a strong community feel between classes and after-school activities, and being so busy helped with time management in college and beyond. It was a magical experience that I value a lot.”

Dr. Eron Sturm ’94 is an interventional cardiologist and clinical assistant professor of medicine at Jefferson University Hospitals in Philadelphia. He diagnoses and treats coronary artery and peripheral arterial disease, dividing his time between performing structural heart procedures and heart stents for people having heart attacks, and working in a hospital or office setting.

“As much as we want to work in prevention, we need to be available to treat,” said Eron. “Cardiologists get called in at 2 a.m. for an emergency to save someone’s life. There is a lot of risk and a lot of reward. You need a good team you can trust. We do lifesaving procedures against the clock.”

In addition to patient care, Eron works closely with medical residents and cardiology fellows. “Of the many residents whom I train, about 60% to 70% of them have parents who are doctors,” he said. “Neither of my parents were doctors, but both my twin brother, Jesse ’94, and I are physicians. It is unusual to find two siblings with no family affiliation to medicine become physicians.” (Please see related story on opposite page and above.)

Both Eron and Jesse became Westminster students as Fourth Formers. “Kathryn Warner in admissions was a good connection and family friend who guided us through the process,” said Eron. “She was always someone whispering in our ears. It was a gut feeling that Westminster was the right place. Part of it was also logistics. Nine other students from Granby with whom I grew up also attended. We migrated en masse in the ninth and 10th grades.”

The opportunity to be a scholar-athlete at Westminster appealed to Eron. As a Martlet, he played soccer, basketball and lacrosse. He was (continued)

also a member of the Debate Club, volunteered at The Governor’s House, was editor of The Westminster News, was president of S.P.H.E.R.E. and was president of the volunteer student tutors.

His love of math and science was nurtured by faculty member Deborah Foley. “She inspired her students,” he said. “I didn’t know I loved chemistry and physics until I got to Westminster.” He received the Excellence in Chemistry, Excellence in Physics and Excellence in Mathematics awards, as well as other academic prizes. He and Jesse were jointly named the Outstanding Scholar.

“Classes at Westminster were small, conversational and intimate,” said Eron. “Teachers knew all about what was going on in our lives. My experience there was instrumental. As twins, Jesse and I already had a competitive nature. At Westminster, we were inspired to be ourselves.”

Eron earned a B.A. in economics from Yale University. “I liked the logic of economics, but I also finished my premed requirements as an undergraduate,” he explained. Following graduation, he joined Washington, D.C. -based Lewin Group as an economics and health policy consultant. “I came out of college during the time of Hillary Clinton and health care reform, and I wanted to be a part of it,” he said. “We worked with hospital associations and government agencies to deliver health care to everyone, not just the underserved.”

Though he enjoyed consulting work, he missed the human touch and gratification of teaching. After two years with Lewin Group, he enrolled at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, where he earned his M.D. in 2004.

During his internal medicine residency at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Eron almost chose pediatrics as a specialty.

“I had spent so much time with children, and you can effect a lot more change with a 10-year-old than you can with an 80-year-old. But the more time I spent with cardiology, the more I loved it. The logic is constantly evolving, and it forces you to reinvent yourself.” After completing his residency in 2007, Eron stayed at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania for a cardiology fellowship and an interventional cardiology fellowship. Eron said his time at Westminster was formative in choosing his future career, and he keeps a core group of close friendships that stemmed from his time on the Hill. He has also attended reunions. This year brought renewed travel opportunities for Eron and his family. He and his wife, Carmen, whom he met while they were students at Yale, often accompany their three children, Sophia, 14; Anna, 12; and Alexander, 10 to frequent soccer games, and tennis and lacrosse matches throughout the mid-Atlantic region. The family also traveled by RV to Grand Canyon National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park and Zion National Park this year. “Our entire family had COVID in early March 2020, and after convalescing at home and being holed up for 16 months, it was a nice way to stretch our legs,” said Eron. Eron emphasized that in terms of athletics, his children have their mother’s genetics, but the rigor of the scholar-athlete lifestyle they lead hearkens back to his time at Westminster. “It is great for the kids’ social development and self-development,” Eron with his family on a dune buggy trip in southern Utah: Sophia, Anna, Eron, he said. “We love the physical aspect of leading Carmen and Alexander. an active lifestyle.”

Dr. Eron Sturm ’94 at Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.

Inspired by Creative People and Project Possibilities

A year of travel restrictions and stay-at-home orders upended the regular course of business for Megan Van Linda ’94, the founder and creative director of MVLD Design Studio, which is based in San Francisco. Megan designs custom interiors, gardens and rooftop spaces for her residential and hospitality industry clients.

“Everyone is spending more time in their primary homes, and they want to optimize functionality in all their rooms, especially outdoor space,” said Megan. When COVID started, she anticipated a slowdown in her business. “Instead, it started like a geyser,” she said. “The collective content of my projects is the most extraordinary of my career.” But as demands on her business increased, the availability of the goods she sources for her projects became more limited, and she lost staff during quarantine.

“The supply chain issues are frustrating,” said Megan. “From Italian furniture to Indian rugs, it is challenging in every way. And there is no time to stop. It is an unsustainable level of work, but nothing is more exciting than going to a new property.”

Megan was not formally trained in design. She earned a B.A. from Columbia College in urban studies. “Urban studies was a new major at Columbia at the time,” she explained. “It encompassed many of my interests — anthropology, economics, art, political science and history. It is an interdisciplinary approach to looking at the world, and it also had the most field trips!”

After completing her undergraduate degree, Megan traveled in Asia for a year and eventually became an assistant on design projects with San Francisco designer Davis Dalbok.

Though she considered enrolling in a master’s degree program, she, instead, did additional coursework at University of California, Berkeley, as she developed her own business. She cites correlations between urban studies and design work in coalescing use of space, function and budget.

Her first interior design clients were the owners of a fully detached 1937 home designed by modernist Bay Area architect William Wurster. “The clients visited my home and hired me to do an interior project,” said Megan. “As time went on, I did more interior and exterior work for them.”

Megan designed her own garden space when she settled in a condo with a courtyard garden in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco. “I have spent the last five years putting a lot into it,” she said. “With soft furnishings and a fire pit, it is a lot more eclectic than what I do for clients. It’s filled with art, artifacts and plants.”

As a teen, Megan had long been interested in photography, and she studied photography at Westminster with faculty member Jerry Powers. After her Fifth Form year, she had an opportunity to take an internship on Martha’s Vineyard with photographer Alison Shaw that resulted in Megan having her own show at the end of the summer.

In addition to serving as a photographer at Westminster for the yearbook and The Westminster News, she participated in volleyball, cross country and lacrosse, and served as a Habitat for Humanity volunteer and an admissions tour guide.

Though she says she is not the best “keeper-in-toucher,” Megan recently connected with former cross country coach Jane Houston, and stays in touch with many classmates on social media.

Normally a voracious traveler, Megan has been working remotely for the past year but is looking forward to returning to both recreational and business travel. She has plans to return to Montana, where she spent two months early in the pandemic. She is also set to attend Maison&Objet Paris, the flagship event for the international design, home décor and lifestyle sectors to be held in Paris this winter. “Going, seeing and sourcing on behalf of clients is fun and productive,” said Megan. “Being around creative people inspires me.”

Above and below, Megan Van Linda ’94 in her garden, including with her dog, Ziggy, above.