Investigating Air Quality and Health Equity

Project Summary

Students in an Introduction to Public Health course spent the year building foundational knowledge in public health, social determinants of health, and health inequities before designing their own research questions. In the culminating unit, they collected and analyzed real air quality data across Detroit, Dearborn, and Lansing, building their own air quality filters with a local environmental health nonprofit, and used their findings to propose interventions for the communities most affected.

Detailed Story

Maryam’s Introduction to Public Health students at University Prep Science and Math High School in Detroit spent the year building toward a final research unit on air quality. After studying public health fundamentals, social determinants of health, and health inequities, students designed their own research questions, collected air quality data, and wrote reports analyzing conditions and proposing interventions for communities including Detroit, Dearborn, and Lansing. Students partnered with the Ecology Center, an Ann Arbor-based environmental health nonprofit, to build their own air quality filters as part of the project. They were struck by how much air quality varied day to day and asked deeper questions about what drove pollution spikes in the cities they studied.

Impact Statement

Students combined a full year of coursework, research design, data collection, and analysis, to practice the kind of applied public health work professionals use to advocate for change. Hands-on data collection surfaced how much air quality varies day to day, prompting students to dig into the underlying causes of pollution spikes in the cities they studied. Building their own air quality filters alongside the Ecology Center added a tangible, hands-on component to the research.