Welcome/About
Welcome from the department chair
On behalf of the faculty, staff, and students of the Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences (BCHS), I extend an enthusiastic welcome to our Web site visitors. Our academic and research programs are state of the art, with a newly updated curriculum that incorporates the latest advances in the social and behavioral sciences. The primary educational mission is the preparation of students for positions of responsibility and leadership in public health practice, research, and training. The department has a world-class faculty that is heavily involved in teaching, research, and community service locally, nationally, and internationally. We collaborate directly with an array of local and regional public health systems, and many of the leadership staff in these organizations also have faculty appointments and teach classes in the department. Also, we are involved in numerous national and international projects funded by the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Agency for International Development. We are particularly noted for our community-based emphasis in practice, research, and evaluation. Our graduates have great success obtaining meaningful employment and are well-prepared for assuming leadership roles in public health.
The academic programs in BCHS are based on a distinct set of theories and practices in the social and behavioral sciences, with a major emphasis on social ecology. BCHS is committed to competency-based education linked directly to the Public Health Core Functions as defined in the 2003 Institute of Medicine report on Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21st Century. Graduates assume positions in a variety of public health and related organizations, including federal, state, and local governmental organizations, and a range of other public-funded agencies. They are typically responsible for community health planning, developing, implementing, and managing a range of programming directed to the improvement of the health status of populations.
We encourage you to explore our Web site. Please contact us directly with any questions that you have about our program. We look forward to hearing from you.
In the spirit of public health,
Ron Stall, PhD, MPH