Developing Stories that Connect for USAID’s Office of HIV/AIDS

In the 35th year of World AIDS Day commemoration and the 20th year of PEPFAR programming, GHTASC team members supporting the Strategic Coordination and Communication Division (SCC) at the Bureau for Global Health’s Office of HIV/AIDS are committed to amplifying the stories and successes made possible by the dedicated work of USAID’s implementing partners and their colleagues.

In their respective positions as communications program analyst and communications advisor, Jenna Pellegrino and Becky Band Jain know the important role that health communications play in public health. From designing public education campaigns to developing and publishing stories that focus on results, health communications professionals take technical information and make it accessible and engaging for audiences around the world.

Jenna Pellegrino started her career as an Emergency Management Technician in Connecticut while attending college. “One of my favorite parts of that job was being a support to someone else who needed urgent care and treatment and then translating the situation to the reporting physician in the emergency room. Communication had to be clear and concise, as sometimes it really was life-or-death for the patient.”

In her junior year of college, Jenna found herself on a healthcare field team headed to the Dominican Republic. “We partnered with local medical students and performed various health interventions in sugar-cane communities in La Romana. I fell in love with the people of the DR and I discovered a new passion – global health – especially as it relates to women and girls.”

Continuing her focus on women’s health, Jenna earned a master’s degree in public health and then took a position supporting USAID’s Office of Population and Reproductive Health, where she worked on the design of three global family planning projects. From there, Jenna joined OHA’s Strategic Coordination and Communication Division (SCC), where she’s been since January 2023. “Health communications is the bridge that brings data to life,” she explains.

With two master’s degrees—in creative nonfiction writing and gender, development and globalization—Becky Band Jain is equally drawn to data and the “not so straightforward task of communicating technical work in plain language.” Her nearly twenty years of experience working in a variety of communications roles with grassroots NGOs, at the United Nations, and later at USAID implementing partner, Pact, equipped her with the tools to make data engaging and visual. As lead author and project manager on the Diving into DREAMS data story, Becky developed skills in “strong project management and goal setting from the outset, expecting the unexpected, and trying to predict project risks.”

Becky describes her current team as “passionate and committed” and was proud to contribute to Celi’s Story, published on USAID's Exposure platform, as well as other digital content for the annual commemoration of World AIDS Day, held on December 1.

Learn more about the Global Health Training, Advisory, and Support (GHTASC) community and learn about positions currently open on the team.