NHC San Francisco is kicking off our annual Humans of NHC Campaign by highlighting one of our staff, Alan Arroyo-Chavez! Alan has been one of the NHC San Francisco Program Coordinators since 2020, and has continued to support members throughout their time with the program!
NHC San Francisco member, Laurel Wong, sat down with Alan and asked questions about his career path and his experiences. Read about what drives Alan and his work below!
“I had never imagined myself in the public health field. But when the COVID-19 pandemic started, and everything became virtual, one of my close friends, a member of NHC SF, informed me about this open position. They described it as an opportunity for a person with a passion for community impact, who is highly organized, and loves mentorship. I thought to myself, as my first job out of Stanford, this would help me give back to the Bay Area, something that I never had had the chance to do.
In my role, it was odd at first, being a leader to members who were all of similar age, especially after being virtual for so long. When we were finally able to close that physical distance and see the members in person, I felt like I was finally able to get to know them, see what drove them, and hear about their different experiences. When the members started to ask questions about new requirements and policies, I started to sit down and reflect. How does my role as a mentor play into this? Every year, I am surprised at how much I love connecting with members of my cohort, hearing their perspectives, and finding new ways to help them grow.
Now, mentoring the members is what brings me the most amount of joy in this program. New people come in every year, and while it can be challenging to constantly be recruiting and thinking about the wheel of things that need to happen, each new cohort comes with a new set of ideas, dreams, goals, and experiences. I feel like I have never stopped learning in the four years since I’ve been here. What keeps me here is the members. What they bring to the table and the changes that they implement–whatever small–at their host sites.”
to support members throughout their time with the program!
