Junwoo Park
Hello!
I’m a senior at Johns Hopkins University (Class of ’26) majoring in Public Health, with a strong focus on health policy and management.
My interest in sleep science developed through my exposure to public health issues involving high-stress environments and behavioral outcomes, particularly during my work examining gun violence and crisis response systems. In these contexts, I began to ask how factors like fatigue, emotional regulation, and decision-making are shaped by sleep, or the lack of it. Over time, this evolved into a deeper curiosity about how disrupted sleep influences the way individuals perceive and respond to stress, especially in moments of tension or vulnerability. I’m interested in how sleep connects to broader questions in public health (e.g., stress, mental health, and system-level interventions) and how understanding its role can help improve outcomes for both individuals and the institutions that serve them.
On a more personal note, I’ve experienced unusually rapid sleep onset since the height of COVID, often falling asleep within five minutes of lying down. While it might sound convenient, I’ve come to see it as a meaningful clue about how my body processes stress! Either that, or I have the superpower no one asked for...
Outside of academics, I enjoy reading, cooking, and sightseeing! I’m also a dedicated coffee enthusiast (which, I admit, probably doesn’t help my sleep habits) and have developed a fascination with oenology, recently earning certification as an intermediate wine sommelier - in case anyone ever needs a wine paring to go with a meal!
Education
Current Public Health student - Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD