When Latrese Carruth became the Program Director for Flint’s Community Violence Intervention Program, it felt like a full-circle moment. A lifelong Flint resident who has lost friends to gun violence, she now leads efforts to support youth, strengthen neighborhoods, and help reduce violence in the city she calls home. “I understand this work not just from a textbook, but from lived experience,” she shared. 

Latrese’s path into public health began nearly a decade ago in Detroit through AmeriCorps, where she connected residents to food, education, and social resources. The position was largely centered around social justice in the Southwest Detroit Latinx communities. Conversations there opened her eyes to social determinants of health and sparked her commitment to community health work. After returning to Flint, she completed her bachelor’s degree in public health at University of Michigan–Flint and continued serving through AmeriCorps, eventually finding her way into local government. 

Each year, the College of Human Medicine Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health funds and awards a full scholarship to an incoming student in the Master of Public Health program. This fall, Latrese will continue her journey in public health as the recipient of the 2025 Flint Spartan Master of Public Health Scholarship, awarded annually to an incoming student who lives or works in the greater Flint community. The scholarship not only made graduate school possible, but it also lifted the financial burden that might have prevented her from pursuing an MPH while working full-time and raising a family. 

Graduate school wasn’t always part of her plan. In fact, she is the first in her family to attend Graduate school. But stepping into leadership roles changed her perspective. “I want to stay current and relevant. This work is just a steppingstone,” she said. “My end goal is federal government—and maybe even a doctorate.”

As she begins MSU’s online MPH program, Latrese is most excited to deepen her skills in biostatistics and epidemiology, areas she once expected to shy away from but now finds energizing. Most of all, she hopes to strengthen the tools she uses every day to serve her community. 

“I love Flint’s resilience,” she said. “This city raised me, and now I get to give back in ways that matter.” 

The Flint Spartan Master of Public Health Scholarship was created to offer financial support to deserving students from the greater Flint community to pursue a graduate-level degree in public health. Thanks to generous support from the Michigan State University Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health, the scholarship covers tuition and fees for our online, 43-credit MPH program.

January 15, 2026