When Dr. Stephanie Haridopolos ‘94 was a kid growing up in New York, she dreamed of becoming a doctor. Fast forward to her time at Stetson and the seeds were planted for her future role at the top of public health as the Acting Surgeon General of the United States. With an innate drive to not only survive but succeed, she became the first in her family to go to college and then the first to go to med school.

“I came from humble roots, so I had to do work study while I pursued my bachelor’s in chemistry at Stetson,” says Haridopolos. “I started out working in the lunchroom and then I became a teaching assistant in the chemistry lab. I also needed student loans and scholarships to get through school. It wasn’t always easy, but I gained resilience. Whenever I’d get knocked down, I came back stronger. I don’t think I would be where I am today if it wasn’t for the grounding foundation I had at Stetson.”

If you ask a doctor, a firefighter, an EMT or other first responders why they chose their calling, they usually say the career chose them. Many share experiences with the medical field at a young age through life-threatening emergencies in their immediate family. Haridopolos relates her own close call at age four when she was diagnosed with a congenital atrial septal defect, requiring open heart surgery at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan.

She credits the opportunities at Stetson for mentoring by top faculty members, small class sizes and experiential learning as the key to her decision to attend Stetson.

Stetson’s Dr. Ken Everett, professor emeritus of chemistry, was a key influence on her success. “He believed in me and told me I could do anything I wanted to do in life. We co-authored an article that got published and he even helped me with med school applications. He would ask thought-provoking questions like – if you could have the world, what would you want? I knew I wanted both a family and a career. I love the fact that I am a mother of three and married to a fellow Hatter, U.S. Rep. Mike Haridopolos ’92.”

Today, she is at the pinnacle of public health in the U.S. in multiple roles that put her at the center of national conversations on prevention, public health and health policy. As she leads the office as Acting U.S. Surgeon General, she continues to fulfill the responsibilities of the role she was originally appointed to – Director of National Health Communications for the office as well as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health Policy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Working side by side with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., she is furthering the country’s efforts at the highest levels to improve the health of the American people.

Looking back at her days in college, she also credits the opportunities to become a leader at Stetson and develop skills that still serve her today. She also needed to be able to develop and express a vision and have a strategic plan to get to the finish line. “I practiced all those skills through my leadership of the Chemistry Honorary Society, Mortar Board, Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Theta Kappa. I am also a proud Alpha Xi Delta, although I never lived in the sorority house because honestly, I lived at Sage Hall.”

Stephanie is the ultimate “connector,” a theme she readily agrees had its start at Stetson and continued through her career as a primary care doctor, medical writer, philanthropist, and now the author of a children’s book she collaborated on with Secretary Kennedy and Henrike Nelson.

“As a primary care doctor, I get to see the whole lifespan of my patients and then generations after. I sought that continuity of care because you develop wonderful relationships. You can have an amazing impact on patients. Nurturing connections was invaluable especially among specialists so that I could develop a plan of care if I diagnosed something. I loved being the quarterback of their health and honestly this is still the case today,” said Haridopolos.

In the public health field, she found a way to give back to more than just her own patients, but to the population at large by promoting evidence-based science.

Alongside Secretary Kennedy, she recently unveiled the first Surgeon General’s report warning on the harms of screentime, along with a practical toolkit for families, schools, healthcare providers, communities, policy makers and technology companies.

“The numbers explain why we acted,” said Kennedy. “Today, 16-year-olds average 8.5 hours per day onscreen. The rates of anxiety, depression, sleep disruption, obesity, cyber-bullying and isolation have risen.”

His remarks came at the close of the recent symposium hosted by Dr. Haridopolos and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services entitled, “Live Real Life – Taking Action on the Harms of Screen Use.”

Reflecting on the path that took her from Stetson’s classrooms to the nation’s highest public health office, she encourages today’s students to dream boldly. “Shoot for the stars,” she said. “Don’t ever limit yourself because you never know the journey you’re meant to be on.”

Dr. Haridopolos is an award-winning board-certified family medicine physician and serves as the Acting U.S. Surgeon General.

–Deb Lovett