Weekly news from the School of Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis
March 3, 2025
Dear colleagues,
I hope everyone has had a fine weekend. A few happenings of the past week and in the coming week.
Joining the School of Public Health
You may have read in last week’s Record about the newest member of the School of Public Health leadership team and the first of several research networks she will oversee. Morven McLean is our Executive Director of Networks and Innovation, and a Professor of the Practice. Morven, who has a PhD in plant virology and an MSc in environmental biology, came to us from Gates Agricultural Innovations (Gates Ag One), where she was director of Global Strategy, Regulatory and Public Affairs.
Ross Brownson, PhD, joins us as the Steven H. and Susan U. Lipstein Distinguished Professor. Ross also directs the Prevention Research Center, and he previously served as a faculty member at the Brown School, where he had been for nearly 17 years. Ross will continue his work in implementation science, evidence-based public health, and chronic disease prevention and control.
Timothy McBride, PhD, the Bernard Becker Professor, also joins us from the Brown School, where he was on the faculty for 16 years, serving as the inaugural associate dean for public health when the Master’s of Public Health program began in 2008. He also serves as co-director of the Center for Advancing Health Services, Policy & Economics Research (CAHSPER), and is a health economist and health policy analyst who focuses on health insurance, rural health, health reform, Medicaid and Medicare policy, and long-term care.
Sara Malone, PhD, MSW, is joining the school as an Assistant Professor. Sara comes from the School of Medicine’s Division of Public Health Sciences. Her work focuses on improving pediatric health-care delivery, using and advancing systems science and implementation science methods.
Sarah Moreland-Russell, PhD, MPH, joins the school as an associate professor. She previously served as an associate professor of practice at the Brown School, where she had been for 15 years. Sarah will continue her research, which focuses on understanding the factors that facilitate effective public health policy implementation and sustainability to maximize the potential for equitable population health. She also will continue as a member of the Prevention Research Center.
Rodrigo Reis, PhD, joins us as a professor. He previously served as chair of the Master’s of Public Health Urban Design Concentration, associate dean for public health, and interim co-dean of the Brown School. He will continue to lead the People, Health, and Place Unit, and also will continue as a member of the Prevention Research Center. Rodrigo studies how urban design, active transportation, and community interventions can improve active living, sustainability, and population health.
The past week
Thank you to Zachary Butzin-Dozier, PhD, MPH, for joining our Talking Public Health seminar series. His and other Talking Public Health presentations are archived here.
For those who missed it, Chancellor Martin’s State of the University address is here.
The coming week
We have our monthly School Assembly on Wednesday, March 5, 10-11 a.m., Umrath Lounge, Umrath Hall. Please join us in person or on Zoom.
We welcome Elisabeth Stelson, PhD, MPH, MSW, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, for our Talking Public Health seminar this week. She will speak at noon, Wednesday, March 5, on “Advancing occupational vicarious trauma research to protect healthcare and social service workforces” in 333A Goldfarb Hall on the Danforth Campus. RSVP here to attend in person or on Zoom.
Also of note, Arts & Sciences will host a talk tonight — Monday, March 3, at 5:30 p.m. — featuring Dr. Justine Michel, a microbiology adviser at Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF). The talk, “Humanitarian Medicine: Working with Doctors Without Borders,” will be in Hurst Lounge on the second floor of Duncker Hall. See here to RSVP.
Public Health ideas
A video of my conversation with Professor Rodrigo Reis is here. We discussed a paper he co-authored, “City mobility patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic: analysis of a global natural experiment.” See here to read the paper.
Also this week
If interested, in The Healthiest Goldfish, some thoughts on the importance of freely thinking in universities.
Warmly,
Sandro
Margaret C. Ryan Dean of the School of Public Health
Eugene S. and Constance Kahn Distinguished Professor in Public Health
Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Initiatives
Washington University in St Louis
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