Rhea has worked as an advocate of the underserved since she began her career in public health 13 years ago. Much of that time has been spent conducting policy analysis, research, and program development on behalf of women and children. In undergrad, she worked at the school health center conducting HIV testing and sex education. She then went on to volunteer at Planned Parenthood as a sexual health educator at inner-city Los Angeles high schools. In graduate school, Rhea focused more attention on her interest in women’s heath, particularly domestic violence prevention. In graduate school is also when she began to get more involved in children’s health. As Research Associate with the UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities, Rhea was one of the first to examine the feasibility of using Proposition 10 funds to improve the lives of children aged 0-5 in California. Rhea went on to continue her work on behalf of young children while working as Program Manager of the Los Angeles Access to Health Coverage Coalition. Rhea also sat on the advisory committee for the Healthy Kids program- a program that now provides health coverage to children 0-18 years of age living in Los Angeles whose families earn up to 300% of federal poverty level. Currently, Rhea works for the City of San Francisco Department of Public Health. She coordinates mental health services for low-income children aged 0-5 who are being cared for in child care settings or who are in homeless and domestic violence shelters. Rhea received her B.S. in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention from the University of Southern California (1999), as well as a Masters in Public Health from the University of California, Los Angeles (2001). She also completed a fellowship with the California State Senate working as a Legislative Aide in the Office of Senator Sheila Kuehl.