Alanna Kate Cruz is the Program Manager for the Center for Health Equity, Education, and Advocacy (CHEEA) at Cambridge Health Alliance following her time in the Health Equity Scholars Program (HES) in 2020-21 and as a HES coach in 2021-22. She also currently works as a Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist with a focus on feeding and swallowing/dysphagia at Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation at NYU Langone Health. She is an incoming doctoral student in the Doctor of Public Health Program at Boston University School of Public Health and will serve as a Teaching Assistant at Harvard Medical School during the Fall 2024 semester and Assistant Editor with the Journal of Human Lactation. She serves as a Governing Councilor for the Maternal and Health Child Section at the American Public Health Association. She is also an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. 

She has worked as a Program Manager for Partnerships and Volunteer Services at HIAS and managed public health-focused projects in New York City, including an ongoing study examining healthcare access and segregation in hospitals to inform policy and planning at the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Previously, she worked for 6+ years as speech-language pathologist with pediatric populations with a focus on pediatric feeding disorders. She was recognized by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association in 2020 as a Distinguished Early Career Professional. 

She completed her graduate thesis at the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, with a focus on Global and Migrant Health Policy and lactation support in refugee settlements globally. In her career, she hopes to continue working towards health equity and healthcare innovation on both community-level and global scales.