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The new academic year is upon
us, bringing us 300 new students. It's uplifting to see so many enthusiastic
faces, and it's a little daunting to think we have to meet their needs
and counsel them well. It is a charge all faculty take seriously. The
number of students in each department is as follows: Biostatistics,
6; Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, 56; Career MPH, 35; Environmental
and Occupational Health, 12; Epidemiology, 72; Environmental and Occupational
Health/Epidemiology Program, 1; Health Policy and Management, 66; and
International Health, 52. In addition, 11 students who are physicians
began the master's of clinical research programÑthe largest group ever.
It's not too late to extend congratulations to those who graduated this
past spring, when a total of 293 degrees were awarded, including three
PhDs in epidemiology and three in biostatistics. It was the largest
graduating class to date.
I am proud to announce that
our own William Foege, Presidential Distinguished Professor of International
Health, was recently selected for the prestigious Mary Woodard Lasker
Award for Public Service in Support of Medical Research and the Health
Sciences. Often called "America's Nobels," the Lasker Award has been
given to 63 scientists who went on to receive the Nobel Prize. Next
month, he will receive the Wittenberg Award, bestowed by the Luther
Institute, for distinguished service to church and society. Perhaps
best known as the mastermind behind the global eradication of smallpox,
Bill has been guided throughout his career by a humanitarian vision
that all peopleÑregardless of socioeconomic status, nationality, or
ageÑshould live long and healthy lives.
Several
important national public health meetings will be held in Atlanta this
fall. More than 75 faculty members will present at the American Public
Health Association's annual meeting, October 21 to 25, at the Georgia
World Congress Center, and the school will host an enchanted evening
for alumni, faculty, and friends at the fabulous Fox Theater on Peachtree
Street October 22 from 6 to 8 pm. Reply to Ann Walker at 404-727-5460
or alumni@sph.emory.edu if you plan to attend. The Association of Schools
of Public Health will meet October 20 to 23, just after the annual meeting
of the Society for Public Health Education, from October 19 to 21. On
November 11 to 15, the 50th annual meeting of the American Society of
Tropical Medicine and Hygiene will be held in Atlanta as well. See these
web sites for more information:
www.apha.org,
www.asph.org,
www.sophe.org,
www.astmh.org.
Please welcome the following new
members of our faculty:
- Kimberly Arriola, PhD, MPH, assistant professor
in Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, is the principal investigator
of a study on the relationships between systems of oppression, resiliency
factors, and high-risk sexual behaviors among black women.
- Ruth berkelman, MD, research professor in Epidemiology,
was previously at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
where she was assistant surgeon general and senior adviser to the
director. She is board certified in pediatrics and internal medicine
and studies emerging infections, AIDS, and disease surveillance.
- Jay Bernhardt, PhD, MPH, assistant professor in
Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, founded the Public Health
Information Technology Laboratory at the University of Georgia. His
specialty is using new technology to promote health and evaluating
technologically enhanced community interventions. He is now investigating
the Internet's influence on teen sexual activity.
- Richard Crosby, PhD, assistant professor in Behavioral
Sciences and Health Education, was named the RSPH Student Government
Professor of the Year this past May while an adjunct professor and
employee of CDC.
- Ann DiGirolamo, PhD, MPH, research assistant professor
in International Health, most recently served as an epidemic intelligence
officer for CDC. She recently received a highly competitive International
Research Scientist Development Award from the Fogarty Center of NIH
to support her own program of research and will direct NIH-funded
research in Guatemala and Mexico.
- Rafael Flores, DrPH, research associate professor
in International Health, is trained in nutrition and biostatistics.
He worked for many years at the Instituto de Nutricion de Centro America
y Panama and is now the acting director of food consumption and nutrition
at the International Food Policy and Research Institute.
- John Ford, PhD, MSW, MPH, professor and Emory
University Vice President for Campus Life, comes to Emory from Cornell
University, where he was dean of students and a professor of policy
analysis and management. He was previously a Robert Wood Johnson faculty
fellow in health care finance at Johns Hopkins. He is interested in
the study of alcohol use on college campuses and hopes to establish
a statewide alcohol abuse prevention education project.
- Howard Kushner, PhD, professor in Behavioral Sciences and
Health Education, holds his primary appointment as the Robertson Distinguished
Visiting Professor of Science and Society in Emory's History Department.
A prolific writer, he has published on issues of psychiatry, addictive
disorders, neurology, and infectious diseases.
- Eric Ottesen, MD, research professor in International
Health, will direct the RSPH Lymphatic Filariasis Support Center funded
by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. A board-certified pediatrician
specializing in immunology, he was most recently the project leader
for the Filariasis Elimination Programme at the World Health Organization.
Students in the Emory chapter
of the Georgia Public Health Association are looking for ways to reach
out to HIV-positive minorities during the coming academic year. The
group recently completed a community assessment of DeKalb County HIV
Services, and the president of the student APHA chapter, Bianca
Chung, is organizing training sessions for students who would
like to become Red Cross certified HIV counselors. Keep up the good
work!
Last semester, the Public
Health Employment Connection hosted its 1 millionth user in less than
three years of operation. Run by John Youngblood in
Student Services, it is a great web resource for students and alumni,
posting job opportunities in Atlanta, across the country, and around
the world. The site has grown from only a few postings per day to 19
or 20 new positions. Universities, health departments, HMOs, and nongovernmental
organizations all regularly post jobs on the site.
An expanded snack bar on the
plaza level will offer faculty and students tables and chairs and a
more extensive menu. It should be open for business by October 1. Also
much improved is the teaching lab. It has been redecorated, and new
equipment has been installed.
Congratulations to the following
faculty members who are distinguishing themselves on campus, nationwide,
and internationally:
- Kathy Miner, associate dean for applied public
health, has been selected for the 2001 Distinguished Career Award
by the Public Health Education and Health Promotion Section of the
American Public Health Association. The award, which recognizes the
outstanding contributions of a health educator with 20 or more years
of professional practice, will be presented at the annual APHA meeting.
- Carol Hogue, Jules and Deen Terry Professor of
Maternal and Child Health and professor in Epidemiology, has been
elected president of the American College of Epidemiology. She also
represents the RSPH on the Emory University Advisory Council on Teaching.
- A research proposal by Robert Lyles, professor
of Biostatistics, was selected for an Early Career Award in Epidemiologic
Methods by the American College of Epidemiology and the American Chemistry
Council. His study, which focuses on issues of measurement error in
epidemiologic studies, received a $100,000 grant over two years, beginning
last July.
- Howard Frumkin, professor and chair of Environmental
and Occupational Health, has been appointed to the Emory University
Task Force for Environmental Mission Statement Implementation. This
group, appointed by Emory President Bill Chace, is charged with developing
a workable plan to guide the university's commitment to the environment.
- Adele Cohen, an adjunct faculty member in Health
Policy and Management, was recently appointed executive director of
CHARGe, the Coalition for a Healthy and Responsible Georgia. The group,
a partnership of the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association,
and the American Lung Association, aims to reduce tobacco use in Georgia.
Visit its web site at www.chargecoalition.org. It's great to have
state health leaders here working with our students.
- Claire Sterk, professor and chair of Behavioral
Sciences and Health Education, was recently named chair of the Emory
University Research Commission.
E. Anne Peterson,
MD, 94MPH, was recently appointed assistant administrator for
global health at USAID. Formerly state health commissioner for the state
of Virginia, she also spent several years in sub-Saharan Africa doing
AIDS prevention and community development work.
We have all been deeply
touched and dismayed by our recent national tragedy, and I extend my
deepest condolences to all faculty, staff, and students who may have
lost anyone dear to them in New York City or Washington. Let us reach
out to each other and those in need during these difficult and uncertain
times.
James W. Curran, MD, MPH
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