{"id":30716,"date":"2025-10-07T12:06:56","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T18:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/spph\/?p=30716"},"modified":"2026-01-08T11:01:38","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T18:01:38","slug":"from-health-studies-to-asbsu-lei-dribben-aims-to-advocate-for-others","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/spph\/from-health-studies-to-asbsu-lei-dribben-aims-to-advocate-for-others\/","title":{"rendered":"From Health Studies to ASBSU, Lei Dribben Aims to Advocate for Others"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Although Lei Dribben didn\u2019t start her Boise State journey as a health studies student, she has always been passionate about caring for and advocating for others.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"668\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/spph\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/99\/2025\/10\/LeiDribben-668x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Lei Dribben\" class=\"wp-image-30717\" style=\"width:344px;height:auto\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lei Dribben, SPPH Student &amp; ASBSU Academic Senator<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dribben\u2019s high school biology class piqued her interest in health and how humans are shaped by their DNA. Being adopted at an early age, Dribben said she doesn\u2019t know much about her genetic makeup, but through her studies, she hopes to one day find out more for herself and help others to do the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s really interesting being able to find out so much about yourself just through your genetics and how your environment can shape your epigenetics,\u201d Dribben said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a lifelong Idahoan, choosing Boise State came easily. However, with an interest in exploring a variety of majors, Dribben took a short detour on her way to health studies. It didn\u2019t take long, however, for Dribben\u2019s love for health and her budding interest in genetics to bring her to the School of Public and Population Health.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis program encompasses my love for biology, genetics, learning about healthcare systems and all the policy and legislation that surrounds public health,\u201d Dribben said.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-a-passion-for-action-and-advocacy\">A Passion for Action and Advocacy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When she isn\u2019t in class, Dribben works as an undergraduate research technician with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/chp\/\">Center for Health Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dribben said her time with the Center has given her an appreciation for and a better understanding of all that goes into health policy and legislation. Being part of the research with the Center, Dribben says, has reinforced her drive to build a career in health.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As an academic senator representing the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/healthsciences\/\">College of Health Sciences<\/a>, Dribben is getting a crash course in governing. Alongside her passion to advocate for others, Dribben said she is building a community she didn\u2019t think would be part of her academic experience.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPublic service and advocacy have been a really important part of my life since high school, but I kind of felt that I was missing that here until I joined ASBSU,\u201d Dribben said. \u201cIt\u2019s really important to me that I have a connection with my peers and build a community for myself and others. ASBSU is a really great way to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While Dribben\u2019s work with ASBSU has just begun for the school year, she hopes to connect students with more opportunities for career development and promote more affordable materials for classes such as lab coats, books and other items that add to the cost load for students.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIn this role, I can better see our successes and our downfalls,\u201d Dribben said. \u201cThe more I talk with other students, the more I learn about what needs to be improved, what is going well and what the overall feeling of being part of this university is for others.\u201d&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After graduating in May 2026, Dribben hopes to gain a masters degree in genetic counseling.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAll these experiences have been really helpful for me and will be helpful in my future career,\u201d Dribben said. \u201cI\u2019ve really seen first hand where we can be better, where we\u2019ll get better by advocating for others and that making change at the individual level is possible.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Although Lei Dribben didn\u2019t start her Boise State journey as a health studies student, she&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2296,"featured_media":30717,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1774,1773],"tags":[5104],"class_list":["post-30716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-public-and-population-health","category-student-spotlight","tag-school-of-public-and-population-health"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.2 (Yoast SEO v28.2) - 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