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Miriam Montana, MPH student
Miriam is an academic candidate for the environmental health degree within the master’s program in public health. Her background extends from biomedical engineering and applied experience in environmental compliance, air quality monitoring, and occupational health. Her previous roles include contributing to regulatory investigations and air pollution data analysis at the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, as well as supporting research and laboratory operations at the University of Texas at El Paso and Ethicon (Johnson & Johnson).
Miriam's current focus is on environmental health and industrial hygiene, with experience in risk assessment, toxicology, and culturally responsive public health strategies. She is especially interested in addressing environmental justice issues and advancing health equity in underserved communities.
Miriam is actively seeking opportunities to collaborate on interdisciplinary projects that bridge science, policy, and community engagement to drive meaningful change in environmental and occupational health.
Miya Mendonsa, MPH student
Miya Mendonsa is a Master of Public Health candidate in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center – School of Public Health. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Marine and Coastal Environmental Sciences (geology concentration) from Texas A&M University at Galveston, where her undergraduate thesis reconstructed a 5,000-year record of prehistoric hurricane events through sediment and carbon analysis. She currently works as a Laboratory Assistant at Merichem Technologies, performing chemical analyses of industrial samples and supporting cross-departmental operations. Previously, she served as a Laboratory Analyst and Technician with the City of Arlington’s Microbiological and Bacteriological Laboratory, ensuring regulatory compliance with TCEQ and EPA standards to protect public drinking water. Her work involved bacteriological and chemical analyses of drinking water, wastewater, and environmental samples, as well as preparation of compliance reports. Miya holds a Class D Water Operator License and certifications in microbiology, surface water production, and emergency response.
Hannah Jirah Lacaste, MPH student
Hannah Jirah Lacaste is a Master of Public Health candidate in Environmental Sciences at UTHealth Houston, School of Public Health, and a Research Assistant in the Department of Anesthesiology at McGovern Medical School. She joined the DEEMER Lab in 2025, where her work focuses on micro- and nanoplastics research, particularly their presence in water, food, and air. Through this work, she aims to help uncover pathways of human and environmental exposure to plastic pollution and contribute to strategies that mitigate its health impacts.
Hannah earned her B.S. in Biological Sciences from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she gained field research experience with the UC Natural Reserve System and studied abroad at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. Her undergraduate training emphasized ecology, conservation, and field-based data collection, and she later broadened her research expertise through roles spanning social work, public health, and biomedical science. Her contributions have been presented nationally, including work on the role of positive childhood experiences in Black youths’ self-concept.
She has been recognized with several honors, most recently being awarded a NIOSH-funded Industrial Hygiene traineeship through the Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (SWCOEH) for the 2025–2026 academic year. This award supports her development at the intersection of environmental health and occupational safety, complementing her research on emerging contaminants.
In the DEEMER Lab, Hannah is expanding her skills in data analysis, wet-lab methods, and interdisciplinary research, with the goal of co-authoring publications and presenting findings at professional conferences. Beyond the lab, her volunteer and leadership experiences—from community hospital engagement in the Philippines to GIS-based ecological surveys and student cultural programming—reflect her commitment to bridging research with community needs. She is excited to contribute to the DEEMER Lab’s mission of addressing global environmental challenges through material innovation and sustainable engineering solutions.
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