Dear Friends of the College,
For our students, this week is Spring Break! We are halfway through the semester and I hope this March Newsletter finds everyone healthy and engaged. After a remarkably snowy winter here in Southern Arizona, the temperatures are starting to warm up at last.

March is Women’s History Month and I’m proud to say that women have played a leading role in public health from the very beginning. The public health research and practice we pursue today builds on work accomplished by all those women who came before us, who pushed and advocated for public health measures that have dramatically improved life for millions of people. I also want to express our solidarity with women around the world who live in societies where women’s access to education, healthcare, paid work and freedom of expression is restricted. Thanks to all our amazing women students, staff, and faculty for the work you do to improve health and wellbeing across all our Arizona communities and the world!

Upcoming Events
We have already hosted several events this spring, including an Indigenous Health Community Day, a memorial for Dr. Frank Marcus, and a launch event for the Center for Firefighter Health Collaborative Research. The next presentation for our College Wide Seminar series will feature border health on March 15. The following day, our Global Health Speaker Series will focus on the fight against both infectious and chronic disease in Nigeria.

Some of us from the college will be attending the annual meetings for the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH) in Washington DC, and we’ll be hosting a reception for alumni and supporters there on the evening of March 16, please join us if you will be in DC then!

Towards the end of the month, we will host our annual Scholarship Luncheon that brings together our donors who support scholarships with the students who benefit. The event will take place on March 25, and I look forward to participating. I want to again thank all of our supporters who make our robust selection of Scholarship opportunities possible and enable us to educate so many future leaders in public health!

And at the end of this month on March 31 we will host our annual Public Health Poster Forum, organized by students to showcase student research and internship programs that advance our public health mission. Thank you to all our student organizers, and congratulations to all our participating students! I encourage everyone to attend and see the students’ research posters.

The Nosotros Annual Report
If you are not already familiar with our Nosotros Comprometidos a Su Salud program (in English: We are Committed to Your Health), I encourage you to read the Nosotros Annual Report from 2022 to see all they have accomplished. The Nosotros program fosters community-engaged research collaborations, service, and education to advance health equity in Southern Arizona. The team works closely with under-resourced and underserved Mexican-origin and other Hispanic communities who experience health inequities. I want to thank Dr. David Garcia and the whole Nosotros team for the vital and innovative work they do for public health in Arizona!

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. Please join me in congratulating the following:

• Paloma Beamer, PhD, was chosen to serve on the National Academies’ Standing Committee on the Use of Emerging Science for Environmental Health Decisions
  • nationalacademies.org/our-work/standing-committee-on-the-use-of-emerging-science-for-environmental-health-decisions/about
• Doctoral student Erika Austhof, MPH, was awarded first place for Best Oral Presentation by the American Meteorological Society (AMS) for her research Systematic Review on the Effect of Precipitation and Drought on Bacterial Foodborne Illness: Data Gaps and Integrations Across Climate and Health presented at the 103rd AMS Annual Meeting

Gratitude for Our Community
I thank all of you for your ongoing support of the College and our public health mission. We live in troubling times, and so often public health offers solutions to the widespread suffering in this world.  As we continue through the spring semester, I look forward to working with you 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

Dr. David Garcia Advocates for Significant Public Health Benefits of Arizona’s Medicaid Program

David Garcia, PhD, wrote an opinion piece calling on legislators to protect access to cancer screening and treatments by continuing Arizona’s Medicaid program. This op-ed was picked up by media outlets around the state.

UArizona National Leader in Fulbright Scholars, Including Many from Public Health

The University of Arizona was named the number one producer of Fulbright Scholar awardees in the United States, including many recipients from the Zuckerman College of Public Health.

Top Germ Hot Spots to Avoid at the Airport

As demand for air travel nears pre-pandemic levels, a radio segment lists the places in an airport that have the most germs, as identified by exposure scientist Kelly Reynolds, PhD, MSPH.