University of Florida to establish a college of public health

December 5, 2003

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — In an effort to improve the overall health and quality of life for Floridians, the University of Florida will establish a new college of public health, school officials announced today.

The new unit, to be called the College of Public Health and Health Professions, will be integrated into the well-established and complementary foundation at the UF College of Health Professions, said Provost David Colburn. It is expected to open in the fall of 2004.

Capitalizing on UF’s rare combination of existing expertise and established reputation in the health sciences and agriculture, the college will focus on aging and rural health issues, both key in Florida, which not only has the nation’s largest elderly population, but major agricultural and rural communities as well.

“The broad scope of public health challenges facing Florida demands a highly educated citizenship.” Colburn said. “Expertise in public health fields, ranging from aging and disability to environmental safety to measuring the effectiveness of health interventions and health policy, are more critical than ever for the well-being of our citizens.”

The college will encompass all six existing Health Professions programs, as well as additional elements in epidemiology, biostatistics and environmental health needed to create a public health program. It will offer the master of public health degree with a specialty in any of five tracks: health services administration, social and behavioral sciences, epidemiology, biostatistics and environmental health.

A doctoral degree in public health will be offered in health services research. Undergraduate students will be able to jointly enroll in the master’s of public health program while completing their bachelor’s degrees. Students will be able to subspecialize in aging or rural health, and aging or rural health tracks spanning the five core areas also will be developed.

“The expansion of our programs and our goal of attaining accreditation as a college of public health and health professions will take advantage of the significant synergies present at the University of Florida,” said Robert Frank, dean of the UF College of Health Professions. “With this growth, the University of Florida will be able to increase the collaboration among many units benefiting our students and the citizens of Florida. For example, we will partner with the Area Health Education Centers and public health departments throughout the state to provide hands-on training in real problems facing Floridians.”

Establishment of the new college is a key component of UF’s strategic plan initiative to become one of the top public research institutions in the nation, and has the support of UF’s administration and faculty. Following the UF Faculty Senate’s approval Nov. 20, the UF Board of Trustees supported the plan during its regular meeting today.

Public health research and practice in the new UF college will address a host of essential Florida issues, including agricultural bioterrorism; health-care access and use patterns; gerontological knowledge, particularly related to both positive aging and community-based prevention and management of disabling conditions; and public policy and social needs of the state’s older residents, such as safe driving, health insurance needs and accessible housing.

In order to accomplish this, the college will coordinate and build upon existing expertise and research at colleges throughout UF, including the colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry, Health and Human Performance, Liberal Arts & Sciences, and those in the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

“UF’s unique constellation of health and agricultural programs, located contiguous to the academic core of the campus, provide the perfect platform for the development of a public health college,” Colburn said. “With a very strong faculty in each of these areas, the university is in a strong position to develop a nationally recognized college of public health.”