Bloomberg School of Public Health
Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
Thursday, February 26, 2004 | 3:00 p.m. | 881st Meeting

Members Absent: Drs. William Brody, Robert Black, William Eaton, John Groopman, Martha Hill, Robert Lawrence and Edward Miller.

Guests: Drs. Martin Abeloff, Ellen MacKenzie and Cecile Pickart.

Meeting Convened: Provost Steven Knapp convened the meeting at 3:00 p.m.

Approval of the Minutes: Minutes of the 880th meeting on January 29, 2004 were approved.

Remarks by the Provost

Provost Knapp commented briefly on the situation faced by the Baltimore City School system. While the University does not have a stand-alone School of Education, three "educational units" are substantially involved in Baltimore schools. A strong school system is critical for the general quality of life in the City and is an important recruitment tool for faculty, staff and students. To counter the perception that the University is able to provide financial support for the School system, Dr. Knapp noted that approximately 80% of JHU revenues are restricted to specific and widely diverse uses. However, Johns Hopkins will continue to seek ways to help City Schools solve their problems.

Dean Sommer noted that the School of Public Health, through Dr Leaf's work in the Department of Mental Health, has a substantial presence in the Baltimore City School System by facilitating mental health services for students.

Remarks by the Dean

Dean Sommer commented that the Committee on Finance has recommended a modest fixed salary adjustment for professorial faculty in 2004-05, in addition to the annual merit increase. This will continue to make School salaries, which are now at the median of salaries of schools of public health, more competitive. He noted that a fixed adjustment will benefit the most junior faculty preferentially.

Mr. Hansen commented that the underground parking garage will be ready for occupancy in a few weeks, but that due to the size of the building, which increased substantially after the parking garages were designed, the number of parking spaces will be fewer than originally planned. He will be in contact with faculty, chairs and deans.

Remarks by the Faculty Senate

Dr. Weiner reported that the revisions of the PPM on faculty titles are being finalized following wide circulation among the faculty, and a discussion with the Committee on Appointments and Promotions. The final draft will be reviewed at the March Committee of the Whole meeting.

The Senate and Committee of the Whole met to review issues and concerns related to the Faculty Effort Reporting requirement. Faculty have been asked to review several documents related to Effort Reporting. Dean Krag has volunteered to act as the School's ombudsperson by facilitating communication between faculty and chairs, and for problem-solving around this issue within the School.

Other Business

Search for a new Director of Cancer Prevention and Control at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center

Drs Abeloff and MacKenzie joined the Advisory Board. For many years, the School has been intimately involved in the Cancer Center by heading the group in Cancer Control and Prevention, a position that had been held for ten years by Dr. John Groopman. Dr. MacKenzie is co-chairing the search for Cancer Center's Associate Director for Cancer Prevention and Control, whose responsibility will be to develop a multidisciplinary cancer control and prevention research program. Dr. Abeloff commented that the vision and coordination of cancer prevention and control activities will depend on increased programmatic interaction and development of broad, rather than individual, collaborations.

Dr. MacKenzie remarked that Dr. Nancy Davidson is co-chair of the search committee, which includes representatives from the Schools of Public Health and Medicine. Advertisements have been placed and nominations are being solicited. Thus far, approximately 30 potential candidates have been identified. The position requires a top-notch scientist who will build a program across a variety of disciplines. The successful candidate will hold a primary appointment in one of several departments in the School of Public Health, depending on interests and background. Drs. Abeloff and MacKenzie indicated that this search has the highest priority.

Dr. Knapp thanked Drs. Abeloff and MacKenzie for the important update.

Follow-up to the Epidemiology Review Report

Dr. Samet reviewed the timeline of the departmental self study and review process since 2000. A number of issues initially raised during the self study included the growth the of Department, carification of its educational mission and programs, and research directions. He reported that the subsequent review raised two principal concerns. The first was related to the administration of the Department. A new administrative team is in place that is on its way to being better organized and more responsive to the needs of the faculty, and Dr. Samet announced that a search for a deputy chair of the Department will begin very soon. The second concern raised during the review related to development of a vision and strategic plan for the Department that would take into account a number of critical issues. Dr. Samet commented on several specific concerns, some of which were related to the educational programs and foci of the Department. He noted that the past three years have proved to be a useful exercise in helping the Department move forward in a strategic and deliberate fashion. In response to a question, Dr. Samet commented that the majority of new faculty recruitments will be in the tenure-track, and that the tension over the respective roles of the tenure-track and non-tenure track faculty seems to have dissipated. Dr. Sommer thanked Dr. Samet for summarizing recent activities in the Department of Epidemiology, and for outlining the Department's plans in the near future.

Other items

Dr. Yager noted that the CD-based catalog for students now being developed will capture the keywords identified by the faculty on their individual homepages. Approximately 90% of the full-time faculty have web presences, but not all have included their keywords. Dr. Yager asked the chairs to continue encouraging faculty to develop and maintain their homepages, or to designate a staff member in the department to do so on their behalf of the faculty.

Dean Sommer commented on the recent visit to the School by Dr. Michael Osterholm and noted the potential for collaborative research in bioterrorism and related areas with Dr. Osterholm and his colleagues at the University of Minnesota.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:40 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Robin Fox

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Last updated 03Apr04 by dgips@jhu.edu