Bloomberg School of Public Health
Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
Thursday, March 30, 2006 | 3:00 p.m. | 906th Meeting

Members Absent: Drs. William Brody, Steven Knapp, Robert Blum, Martha Hill, Robert Lawrence, Edward Miller, and Jonathan Samet.

Guests: Drs. Elizabeth Holt, Sharon Krag and Donna Strobino; Mr. Herbert Hansen; and Ms. Diane Glover.

Meeting Convened: Dean Michael Klag convened the meeting at 3 p.m.

Approval of the Minutes: Minutes of the 905th Advisory Board meeting of February 23, 2006 were approved.

Remarks by the Dean

Dean Klag remarked that Provost Knapp was not able to attend the Advisory Board meeting. He then reported on the most recent regional University development conference that was held in Los Angeles. Dr. Klag commented on the critical importance of feedback and input from faculty, staff and students regarding the draft self study for the School's reaccreditation by CEPH. Dr. Holt demonstrated the new website which is linked directly to the School homepage and also demonstrated how the feedback will be directed. Several members of the Advisory Board made helpful suggestions to improve the ease with which comments can be transmitted. The website link has been send to faculty, staff, students and alumni, and deadlines for comments on individual chapters have been provided as well. The dates for the CEPH site visit (October 11-13, 2006) have been shared with deans, chairs and the Faculty Senate leadership. As soon as the draft site self study report has been finalized in early May, a site visit schedule will be drafted.

Dr. Groopman announced the death of Dr. Donald Proctor, professor emeritus in Environmental Health Sciences. He further reported on an upcoming visit by the president of the National University of Singapore who has indicated to Dr. Groopman an interest in developing an MPH program.

Report of the Faculty Senate

Dr. Diener-West reported that the Senate continues to polish the faculty quality of life survey for final review at the April 6 joint Faculty Senate/Committee of the Whole meeting.

Other Business

Update on the Applied Public Health Program

Dr. Goldman reviewed the background of and motivation for developing the Interdepartmental Program in Applied Public Health (APH) a year ago, as well as the present organization of the Program. She reported that a number of part-time, volunteer faculty affiliates have been appointed, several part-time paid faculty have been appointed, and one full-time junior faculty position remains vacant. The program bridges the gap between the public health work force and academia, and serves principally the mid-Atlantic geographic area. The most immediate need to bridge that gap is with continuing education and short courses with long-term goal of some students pursuing formal degree programs; however Dr. Goldman noted that the training certificates that have been developed thus far have not been very successful.

The APH program's focus is presently on developing practice-based field placements and internship opportunities for our students in Baltimore City and surrounding counties and at the State level. Initially, internships will be tapped into by MPH students and eventually by other students. Practice-based activities in the School are not limited to the APH program, in fact, several funded training centers in the School have diverse practice portfolios, including the Preparedness Center and the Center for Injury Control and Policy. Through the SOURCE program, which serves students in the Schools of Public Health, Medicine and Nursing, Ms. Mindi Levin is helping to identify some community organizations that might also be able to provide formal internship opportunities. Dr. Goldman commented that it is important to have one interface that will facilitate practice-based internships for students. While SOURCE provides a structure for linking students and community service organizations, its mission does not include developing internships and placements that are part of an academic program and under faculty oversight.

Dr. Goldman remarked that the APH program can act as the impetus to bring all School-based practice activities together in one website that would serve to link faculty, students and practitioners and describe and showcase their activities. The APH program also plans to develop a seminar series. Future expansion and development may be problematic due to decreases in external funding opportunities for practice-oriented activities, particularly from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Zeger suggested seeking support from the Department of Defense.

Dr. Goldman reported that the School's curriculum contains a number of practice-oriented courses and that some departments are formalizing practice-based MHS internships. She has held back on making decisions that have longer-term implications for the APH program, including faculty recruitment, pending formal evaluation of the program at the end of its first year. She further suggested that the full-time position be divided into several positions that could be shared among several departments. In this way, practice-oriented faculty would work closely with faculty from across the School to engage in scholarly activities and seek sponsored funds. Dean Klag asked Dr. Goldman to draft a position description (s) for review by the Advisory Board, after which searches would begin. If the position was split, new faculty could be recruited at both junior and senior levels. Dr. Griffin commented that our students have shown increased interest in working in health departments at the local, regional and state levels. This may in turn affect student interest in seeking internships and curricula that will help them find such positions.

Dean Klag thanked Dr. Goldman for updating the Advisory Board on the past and future activities of the APH program.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:20 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Robin Fox

© 2006 The Johns Hopkins University. Baltimore, Maryland. All rights reserved.
Last updated 26Jun06 by dgips@jhu.edu