Dear Friends of the College,
August has arrived and the Fall 2022 semester is approaching quickly! Monday, August 22 will be the first day of classes, and we are already welcoming our incoming students. We will have a busy fall semester with many webinars, lectures, and events. We hope you will join our fall events to learn what our faculty, staff, and students are doing to promote public health!
Faculty Achievements
As we approach the fall semester, I want to point you to some noteworthy stories that were published this summer related to members of our faculty. Dr. Mona Arora taught a climate change and health course in Spring 2022 that engaged students to use art as a way to express their feelings and perceptions about the climate crisis, an experience that changed student perspectives. She was also selected for the Environmental Health and Climate Workgroup for the National Network of Public Health Institutes.
Dr. Frank von Hippel and Dr. Kristen Pogreba-Brown were both featured in this story about One Health research here at the University of Arizona. They talk about the value of the One Health approach that tackles human health challenges collaboratively, and with the fundamental understanding that human health is deeply interconnected with environmental health and animal health.
Faculty, Staff, and Students: Honors, Profiles, and Awards
We are very proud of all that our students, staff, and faculty accomplish and appreciate the recognition that comes their way.
Fall Alumni Events
We hope you will join us this fall for our alumni events! This will include a speaker series from the MEZCOPH chapter of the Delta Omega Honorary Society in Public Health, kicking off in Phoenix in September, watch for the date. We will also be hosting an Arizona Town Hall event in September, again the date will come soon. And we hope many alumni, community partners, and supporters will join us for the MEZCOPH Homecoming celebration on Thursday, October 27! Watch for updates and more information about all these events in the near future.
Fall Webinar Series and Events
This fall the college will be hosting a variety of webinars, events, and lectures that will be open to everyone. In September, we’ll have an event called Feast for Your Brain that will be all about healthy aging and promote engagement with the Precision Aging Network. We’ll also have a series on Global Health, a series of college-wide webinars with presentations from each of our four departments, and more! Watch our social media and calendar for dates and information.
Gratitude for Our Community
I thank all of you for your ongoing support of the College and our public health mission. I look forward to working with you this fall to support our diverse communities, both locally and globally, with the best public health education, service, and research.
Best Wishes for your Health and Safety,
Iman
August Highlights
AZ HEROES Research Study Awarded $22M to Continue COVID Research
A third year of funding from the CDC will support continuing research on COVID-19 immunity and vaccine effectiveness by Jeff Burgess, MD, MS, MPH, and the AZ HEROES team as new variants emerge.
Dr. Brian Dodge, Leader in LGBTQ Research, Joins College
Dr. Brian Dodge, an expert in LGBTQ+ health research, has joined the Zuckerman College of Public Health as a professor, and he will lead the university’s Institute for LGBT Studies in the Office for Research, Innovation and Impact.
Dr. Zhao Chen Selected as New Associate Dean for Research
As the new Associate Dean for Research, Zhao Chen, PhD, MPH, has a vision to build on the college’s unique location in Arizona, strong partnerships with diverse regional communities, and expertise in a range of public health fields and data sciences to grow funding and expand our robust research portfolio.
Healthy Aging Research Advanced by Two Seed Grants
To pursue research on wellness for older populations, Kelly Palmer, PhD, and Nicole Yuan, PhD, MPH, both received seed grants from Innovations in Healthy Aging, a strategic initiative at the University of Arizona Health Sciences.
Mobile Health Unit Team Leads Camp for Teens to Learn About Healthcare Careers
The Youth Engagement for Success (YES) Camp in June guided Arizona teens to learn about careers in healthcare and the educational opportunities available to them to prepare for work in healthcare and health sciences.
Health Insurer Tied Executive Performance to Reducing Healthcare Disparities
SCAN Health Plan trained its pharmacists and navigators to reduce health disparities using an online education program designed by the Western Region Public Health Training Center at the Zuckerman College of Public Health.
Why Do Vaccinated and Boosted People, Like President Biden, Still Get COVID?
Joe Gerald, MD, PhD, is quoted on why an increasing number of people including, President Joe Biden, are boosted but still being infected with COVID-19.
Leslie V. Farland, ScD, MSc, is the author of a studying linking endometriosis to greater risk for stroke from a large prospective study, funded by NIH. This story was picked up by more than a dozen media outlets nationally and internationally.
Learn from current healthcare professionals, grasp how to become a competitive candidate for any graduate program from admissions representatives and advisors, network with hundreds of pre-health students around the globe, and even engage in a research expo.
Day 1: Exploring Careers in Healthcare (Part 1)
Day 2: Exploring Careers in Healthcare (Part 2)
Day 3: Application and Resume Building
Join us for this upcoming event presented by the Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Warmadewa University, Indonesia, and organized by our alumna Komang Triyani, MD, MPH. Speakers include MEZCOPH alumna and current research associate, Breanne E. Lott, PhD, MPH. The condition is known as “stunting” and refers to impaired growth and development in children due to poor nutrition.
Feast for Your Brain – Healthy Aging Engagement Event
Learn more about healthy aging, brain health, and MindCrowd, the first online research project that will help us discover how to reduce cognitive decline and disease as we age.
Enjoy a variety of activities including Mariachi music, dance performances, Tai-Chi and Qigong, health screenings and raffles for prizes. Entry is free, bring your friends and family!
September 10, 2022. 10:00am to 3:00pm
Visit mindcrowd.org/tucson to learn more about the MindCrowd project and join the study.
SEP 22
Tucson Child and Family Health and Wellness Symposium – Changing the Course Through Collaboration
Come together to re-imagine and re-energize our vibrant multi-sector coalition to address child and family health in our community. Engage with community partners and share your work to discover new opportunities for partnerships that reduce duplication and increase impact. Let’s work together to change the course!
MEZCOPH Homecoming Celebration: Honoring Our Public Health Alumni and Community Leaders
During this outdoor Homecoming event, we will highlight updates at the College of Public Health and also honor our 2022 Alumni, Faculty, Staff, and MEZCOPH Community Leaders Award Recipients. Join us to celebrate these community advocates for their outstanding service and leadership in the field of public health during this past year.
October 27, 2022
Registration and more information are coming soon, save the date!
WAYS TO GIVE
Support Our COVID-19 Research and Shape the Future
All the funds raised for the “Dean’s Fund for Excellence” go to COVID-19 research. You can support this targeted fund by going to our UA Foundation page and making a contribution.
We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples. Today, Arizona is home to 22 federally recognized tribes, with Tucson being home to the O’odham and the Yaqui. Committed to diversity and inclusion, the University strives to build sustainable relationships with sovereign Native Nations and Indigenous communities through education offerings, partnerships, and community service.
