AI for Public Health
Public Health & AI Summer School
The Public Health & AI Summer School is an intensive, hands-on program for graduate students, research staff, faculty and public health professionals who need practical skills in artificial intelligence and digital public health. It is built for people who will use these tools in their work, not for people who will build the models. No coding background is required to begin.
The Summer School has been offered on campus each June since 2025. From 2026 it also runs an online track, which is free and open to anyone.
Online Track
The demand told us something we did not expect. More than three thousand people from every region wrote in asking for a way to take part without traveling to Tucson. So we built one.
The online track is a curated selection of themes from the Summer School, delivered as 14 recorded lessons taught by the same faculty who teach on campus. It is free. Registration takes a minute and there is no fee.
What is covered
The selection is built to be useful on its own, and it follows the same logic as the on-campus program: foundations first, then the tools.
- Prompt engineering for scientific research
- Agentic AI and agentic coding
- Visualization foundations for public health
- AI assistance for developing interactive visualizations
- Data management for AI in public and global health, with attention to low-resource settings
- Digital biomarkers and sensing technologies in health
- Plus further lessons released through October
On-Campus Program
Four days on the University of Arizona campus, in two tracks that meet people at different stages of AI engagement. Participants deepen their understanding of artificial intelligence while working out practical strategies for responsible implementation in public health settings.
Two Tracks. One Integrated Experience.
Shared Components
AI Maker Space. Collaborative afternoon lab sessions where participants build and test real projects. This is where the co-builder pillar lives.
Expert panels. Discussions with leaders in health AI on governance, modernization, environmental impact and applied innovation.
Professional community. Connection to a growing network of practitioners integrating AI into public health practice.
Recognition. Participants who meet the completion criteria receive a University of Arizona micro-credential and a digital badge.
Financial support through the Dean's Fund is available for students. The Summer School is supported by the Zuckerman College of Public Health, the Global Health Institute and the Data Science Institute.
2027 Edition
Dates for the third edition will be announced here.
Sign up to receive updates and be notified when registration opens.
Program Archive
2026
June 8–11, 2026, Grand Challenges Research Building
The second edition introduced the two-track structure, separating AI literacy from applied AI fluency, and added the online track. Sessions covered generative AI in research workflows, agentic AI, data management for low-resource settings, digital biomarkers and wearable sensing, geospatial approaches, visualization, and responsible AI frameworks, alongside AI Maker Space labs and panels with practitioners.
2025
June 9–12, 2025, Health Sciences Innovation Building (HSIB)
The inaugural Summer School introduced participants to generative AI tools for public health research and practice. Over four days, attendees explored foundational and advanced topics including digital epidemiology, AI and machine learning fundamentals, generative AI applications, digital biomarkers, precision public health and ethical AI integration. AI Maker Space sessions gave hands-on experience with data management, visualization, spatial epidemiology and AI-assisted analysis on low-code and no-code platforms. The program emphasized critical thinking, responsible governance and equity-centered implementation throughout.