Carnegie Mellon University

Peer Health Advocates

students supporting students

Peer Health Advocates

Peer Health Advocates (PHAs) are a team of NASPA-Certified Peer Educators supporting and encouraging holistic student health and well-being across campus through culturally responsive programming, projects, and one-on-one meetings. Email us at cmupha@andrew.cmu.edu


SCHEDULE WITH A PHA OR REQUEST A PROGRAMFall 2026 drop-in schedule coming soon! 

Our guiding values are:

Honesty
Empathy
Autonomy
Respect
Teamwork

Peer Support Meetings

Students can meet with a Peer Health Advocate for things like:

  • Practice setting and communicating boundaries
  • Navigating on and off campus resources 
  • Brainstorming mindfulness and meditation tools
  • Reviewing and demonstrating safer sex tools 
  • Generating tasty, satisfying, and accessible meal and snack ideas 

PHAs can also schedule to meet with you wherever feels most comfortable - be it a coffee shop, walking around the track, a private room in the Health Promotion office, or on Zoom.


SCHEDULE WITH A PHA OR REQUEST A PROGRAM

Meet the Undergraduate PHAs

Undergraduate and graduate students can schedule with whomever they prefer. Undergrads can schedule with grads and vice versa!

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Aliya Ojuade
Junior, Biological Sciences and Psychology
Languages: English
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Amara Vergara Agyakwa (she/her)
Senior, Business Administration Business and Technology Policy
Languages: English
Interests: Travel, Dance, Nature, Animals, Reading, Family
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Cash Reid (he/him)
Senior, Neuroscience - Dietrich 
Languages: English
InterestsMartial Arts and old movies

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Hannah Vuong (she/her)
Sophomore, Dietrich
Languages: Vietnamese/English
InterestsBaking, Reading, and I recently took up stamp carving!
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Mackenzie Devereux (she/her)
Junior, Biophysics
Languages: English, American Sign Language 
InterestsDisability Access, Mental Health Awareness, SA Survivor Advocacy, Rural and Minority Population Equity and Education
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Sophia Gebreegziabher
Sophomore, Computational Neuroscience

Languages: English
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Madeline Ellinghaus (she/her)
Sophomore, CFA School of Drama
Languages: English
InterestsTheater, Movies, Music, Animals, Food, Exercise, Comedy, Lemurs, TV, Anthony Bourdain, Yoga, Improv, True Crime, Laughing, Sweet Potato Fries, and wearing sunglasses inside.

Meet the Graduate PHAs

Graduate and undergraduate students can schedule with whomever they prefer. Grads can schedule with undergrads and vice versa!

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Ashna Surana
 Computational Biology
Languages: English
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Eileen Kabi Blessing
Information Technology
Languages: English
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Fatima Shah
Computational Design
Languages: English
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Imama Zahoor (she/her)
 MS Healthcare Analytics and Information Technology
Languages: English, Urdu, Punjabi
Interests: Reading fiction and artsy hobbies (currently oil pastels). I'm also learning Spanish these days!
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Jasleen Arora
Transition Design (PhD)
Languages: English
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Motolani Oladitan (she/her)
Masters of Integrated Innovation for Products & Services
Languages: English
Interests: Formula 1, Gym, Baking, Listening to music

Highlights of the PHA Program

The PHA program began as a student organization and has evolved over the years with input from students. PHAs are now paid employees of University Health Services, working as liaisons and a resource for campus health and well-being. 

Additionally, the program has shifted from group education to a one-on-one support model via drop-in visits and scheduled consultations.

In addition to the undergraduate program, graduate students are now active in PHA roles to support graduate student health and wellbeing.