SPHHS: School of Public Health and Health Sciences           


Dear Friends of SPHHS:

     As we approach the completion of the 2006-07 academic year, this “State of the School” message is one that I am pleased to share with you. Simply put, the School continues on its dual trajectories of renewal and excellence.  A “thank you” is owed to my predecessor, Dean Eileen Breslin, and her executive team -Associate Deans Priscilla Clarkson, Joe Hamill and Phil Nasca, - for working to secure resources, supporting faculty initiatives and setting into motion much of the activity reported below.

Renewal

     A revitalization of the faculty is most visible with the arrival of ten enthusiastic and vibrant new members. They bring energy and fresh perspectives that blend well with the established faculty who have been eagerly awaiting these new colleagues.  Searches are ongoing for five additional faculty scheduled to join us next fall. This faculty growth stems, in part, from a campus-wide “benchmarking” process initiated by Chancellor Lombardi that compares the teaching and research productivity of departments against their counterparts at “Research I” institutions as a guide for faculty resource allocations.  The School has fared very well in this productivity model.

     Faculty growth is accompanied by change.  Professors Shlomo Barnoon (Health Policy and Management) and G. Albyn Davis (Communication Disorders) have announced their retirements at the completion of this academic year.  Professors Christina Foreman, David Marquez, and Kristen Polzien have chosen to follow career paths beyond our campus. While we will miss each of them greatly we celebrate their achievements and wish them all the best.  Searches for replacement faculty to join us in the Fall are also underway.

     Re-accreditation has been a particular focus of the School this year. I urge you to visit the School’s newly redesigned website (www.umass.edu/sphhs) and review the Self-Study Report submitted to the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). A Visiting Team assembled by CEPH will be on campus May 7-9 to complete the review process.  The Strategic Planning and Evaluation Committee and other faculty committees affirmed our vision and mission - to be a leader in improving the public’s health and quality of life. They verified that core competencies are effectively taught in our curricula and documented the scholarly activities of our faculty.

     Two particular aspects of our renewal are noteworthy. One is the approval of the Bachelor of Science degree in Public Health Science. Once again the school is fully engaged in undergraduate education and is positioned to become a national leader in public health workforce education as it already is for professionals in nutrition, kinesiology, and speech-language pathology and audiology.  Second is the revitalization of the Office of Public Health Practice and Outreach staffed by Risa Silverman in collaboration with Professor Shirley Mietlicki of Community Health Education and under the supervision of Professor Idali Torres, also of Community Health Education, in her role as Acting Assistant Dean. This office facilitates faculty interactions with practicing professionals and community agencies.  It provides an avenue for our faculty to engage in participatory research including opportunities for student research and internship experiences.  

Excellence

     The Board of Trustees formally recognized the career of Professor Priscilla Clarkson of Kinesiology by conferring upon her the rank of Distinguished Professor. This rank is limited to the finest few among all faculty across the system.  This is a first of its kind achievement in the School!  However, it is a “second first” for Professor Clarkson who was recognized by the campus in 2005 with an Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and Creative Activity Award.  The Trustees also granted tenure with promotion in rank to Associate Professor to three faculty members:  Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson of Epidemiology, Elena Carbone of Nutrition, and Sarah Poissant of Communication Disorders.

     Professor Barry Braun of Kinesiology was chosen as one of this year’s three campus-wide Distinguished Teaching Award winners.  This continues a lineage from Professors Warren Litsky (’79) and Howard Peters (’88)- both of Environmental Health Sciences, Paula Stamps (’94) of Health Policy and Management, and Stella Volpe (’99) of Nutrition.  In addition, Professor Dan Gerber of Community Health Education was named a Distinguished Academic Outreach Award recipient.  He joins prior recipient Professor Nancy Cohen of Nutrition as the School’s campus-wide Outreach honorees.

     Excellence in research and scholarship continue as hallmarks of our faculty’s work.  Ongoing multi-year funded research grants are too numerous to detail here - with the exception of noting work externally funded continuously for a decade or more: NIH support of studies of spatial hearing by Professor Richard Freyman of Communication Disorders; USAF support of hormesis research by Professor Ed Calabrese of Environmental Health Sciences, and USDA support of the Family Nutrition Program (for the past nine years, but close enough).

     Recently awarded major new grants include an NIH Career Development award to Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson of Epidemiology (who joins Professor Jane Kent-Braun of Kinesiology in this category);  NIH investigator grants to Graham Caldwell of Kinesiology, Lisa Chasan-Taber of Epidemiology and Elaine Puleo of Biostatistics working with colleagues at the Dana Farber Institute; an NIH supplement to David Marquez in collaboration with Lisa Chasan-Taber, an NSF grant to Recai Yucel in Biostatistics; an American Heart Association grant to Hiromi Gunshin of Nutrition; and USDA awards to Nancy Cohen for the “HANDS” multicultural scholars program and the team of Lisa Sullivan-Werner and Jean Anliker in Nutrition.  Carol Bigelow, Susan Sturgeon, and Priscilla Clarkson also received new grant awards from various foundations.

     Our faculty also mentor graduate students and, increasingly, undergraduate students participating in research and outreach projects. The School’s annual spring Research Day poster session featured 36 posters of a caliber appropriate for national society meetings.  Selecting the three award winners - Sofija Zagarins from Public Health and Carrie Sharoff and Stephen Foulis from Kinesiology - was a difficult task for the panel of faculty judges.

     I know that you will agree that the outlook for the School is very positive as we approach the next academic year and a national search for a new Dean. The achievements and dedication of the faculty, staff and students enable each of us to be proud of our associations with the School.

Sincerely,   John Cunningham, Interim Dean

John Cunningham, Ph.D, Interim Dean, 2006-2007.