Public Health Student Hollie Hagan found her calling in rural Kentucky

July 10, 2026 - 14:53

A high school internship at the Grayson County Health Department opened the door to a career Hollie Hagan never planned for. Now a student at the University of Kentucky College of Public Health, she is turning that early experience into a focused mission to serve rural communities.

Hagan grew up in a small Kentucky town, but she did not initially see public health as her future. That changed when she got a firsthand look at how local health departments work. The internship showed her the real impact of prevention, education, and community outreach in an area where access to care can be limited.

Now in college, Hagan is combining classroom learning with fieldwork in rural settings. She has taken on leadership roles and worked on projects that address the specific health needs of people living in underserved parts of the state. Her goal is to bring what she learns back to communities like the one she grew up in.

For Hagan, the work is personal. She knows the challenges rural Kentucky faces, from limited transportation to a shortage of healthcare providers. She believes that public health workers who understand those challenges from the inside can make the biggest difference.

Her story is a reminder that sometimes the best career paths start close to home.