From Rwanda to New Orleans, a Tulane Connection Comes Full Circle

Canita Brent (MPH HSM ‘09, DrPH SBPS ‘26) missed graduation when she earned her Master of Public Health from the Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in 2009.  

It wasn’t because her family couldn’t travel to see her cross the stage (they were there) or that she didn’t enjoy her time at Tulane (she went on to get another public health degree from the university). No, Brent missed her graduation because she was standing under a tin roof in East Africa, holding a stack of HIV prevention pamphlets.  

Brent returned to Tulane for a second public health degree, and in 2024, she returned to Africa—this time to Rwanda. Thankfully, that trip didn’t keep her from her diploma ceremony this past May. It did, however, lead to an important connection to her career: Adjunct Associate Professor Jeanine Condo.

Condo is also a Tulane alumna, although not from the Celia Scott Weatherhead School. She earned her Master of Science from the School of Liberal Arts and her doctorate from the Law School, both with a focus on international development.  

Condo serves as group CEO of three interconnected organizations, including Center for Impact, Innovation and Capacity Building for Health Information Systems and Nutrition (CIIC-HIN) and Platform for African Clinical Trials (PACT) Solutions.

As a doctoral student, Brent joined a cohort of Tulane students in Rwanda to work with Condo and CIIC-HIN. Brent’s appointment was supposed to last a few weeks, but in something of an echo of her previous Africa experience, she ended up staying six months.  

The country was undergoing an outbreak of Marburg virus disease (MVD). CIIC-HIN was called on by the World Health Organization (WHO) to deploy a PACT Solutions clinical research team to lead the world’s first-ever clinical trial for MVD treatment. Brent already had a background in clinical research, which quickly elevated her to the role of trial manager.

While the outbreak was the third largest on record, with 66 confirmed cases and 15 deaths, PACT’s quick response helped Rwanda bring the outbreak under control, and the outbreak was declared over in December of that year.

"Rwanda is what is called "a ‘proof-of-concept’ country,” Condo says. “You have a brilliant idea, and you know that it's going to be implemented given the leadership that runs all the way down.”

With 20 years of experience in international health and development—and deep connections to Tulane—Condo is adept at matching students who want hands-on experience with projects throughout Africa.

“We are always calling for more students, especially the ones who are a little bit advanced -- graduate students -- because we see mutual benefit to have them involved in our research projects, and they can use the experience for their practicum or any work they want to do in the in future, and the population benefits,” Condo says.

In her own graduate experience, she worked with the Bogalusa Heart Study. It was eye-opening, she says, to understand what is involved in a population-cohort study. She has maintained some of the relationships she made then with supervisors and mentors. The experience showed her the real-world impact public health research can have on a community.

Condo is now working with Tulane to turn those connections into a more sustained opportunity for students by building a course on the anatomy of health systems with Chair David Hotchkiss and Nancy Mock, both professors in the Department of International Health and Sustainable Development.

Through that course, they hope to attract more graduate students to go to Rwanda to learn how health system strengthening works in the real world. Students will also study how artificial intelligence can be implemented to reduce maternal mortality and detect early outbreaks.

“How do we actually build the skills that we are lacking [in Rwanda] to support any future research?” asks Condo. “This is one way.”

As she sees it, Rwanda is an ideal match for Tulane students looking to get experience in an international setting. It’s a place both open to and in need of disruptive innovation, especially in light of the shifting economic reality for health systems across the globe.

It’s a commitment she takes personally.

“I think that's why we're here, you know. How can we give back? How can we support our next generation of global leaders?”

With Brent, Condo took that commitment one step further. When Brent graduated in May, Condo flew to New Orleans to cheer on her mentee and celebrate her accomplishment.

“There's a relationship that even went beyond whatever academic ties that we have with Tulane University,” Condo said. “[Brent] found herself on the front lines, where she was actually in the red zone with all of us. It really strengthened those bonds.”