JSU to Create the 1st School of Public Health in Mississippi

Jackson State University is embarking on creating a School of Public Health — the first of its kind in Mississippi.

The Mississippi Legislature approved $2 million this past legislative session to establish the school. Last week, the Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning authorized the school to be created at JSU.

“This is a tremendous achievement for Mississippi, and we are grateful to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives and all of our Mississippi legislators for ushering this through,” said JSU President Carolyn W. Meyers.

“The action is groundbreaking. There currently is no School of Public Health in the state of Mississippi,” Meyers said. “Not only will it solidify the Capital City as a premier health care provider for the state and region, but it will provide a national model for meeting professional health care needs.”

“Health care in Mississippi is an industry of necessity. Not only can our state benefit from more health care providers and professionals, our economy can benefit from growth in the health care sector,” Gov. Phil Bryant said. “In my Executive Budget Recommendation, I recommended that the Legislature appropriate $2 million for the JSU School of Public Health, and I am very pleased that we secured this funding. This program will be a very important part of the health care landscape in Mississippi.”

“We need more public health professionals to study and practice here, particularly in the rural areas,” Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves said. “The School of Public Health at JSU will help address our challenges in building a healthy Mississippi.”

“Healthcare is one of the most important issues we deal with day to day and will drive the economy and jobs into the future,” said Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn. “Creating a School of Public Health at Jackson State University will produce students who can work in the public health arena. Representative Angela Cockerham worked closely with me to achieve the required funding and we are all proud that we got this done for our state.”

“Mississippi’s health challenges are well documented,” said Aubrey Patterson, president of the Board of Trustees. “All of our universities share the task of addressing these issues, and Jackson State University’s new School of Public Health is an excellent example of this. Through education, research and treatment, our universities are helping to improve the health and quality of life of all Mississippians.”

Creating a School of Public Health was identified in the Jake Ayers settlement as a program to be established at Jackson State.
Dr. Ricardo A. Brown, dean of the College of Public Service that oversees JSU’s allied health programs.

Dr. Ricardo A. Brown, dean of the College of Public Service that oversees JSU’s allied health programs.

“The board’s action puts into play our longstanding goal to address the health care needs of the residents of Mississippi,” said Dr. Ricardo A. Brown, dean of the College of Public Service that oversees JSU’s allied health programs. While JSU has been wanting to create such a school for the past 16 years, he said, the idea was put into action as a blueprint by President Meyers last year.

A national search is under way for the dean of the new school, Meyers said.

JSU School of Public Health dean search committee members include:

• Chair, Dr. Loretta Moore, vice president for Research and Federal Regulations, Jackson State University
• Dr. Mary Currier, director of the State Department of Health, State of Mississippi
• Dr. Manoj-Shaima, professor of Behavioral Health Promotion, College of Public Service, Jackson State University
• Dr. Issac Perkins, professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, College of Public Service, Jackson State University
• Dr. Wilbur Walters, associate dean, College of Science, Engineering and Technology, Jackson State University
• Dr. Glenda Windfield, chair of the Faculty Senate, Jackson State University
• Dr. Bettina M. Beach, associate vice chancellor of Rural Health, professor of Family Medicine, University of Mississippi Medical Center
• One undergraduate student representative to be named at a later date
• One graduate student representative to be named at a later date

The Board approved the school because of several factors that made JSU perfectly positioned to provide this critical service for Mississippi’s health care needs, according to Dr. James C. Renick, provost and senior vice president for academic and student affairs.

Those factors include:

• Jackson State offers the Masters of Public Health and the Doctorate in Public Health, the only doctoral public health degree program in the state.
• Ayers-funded and supported (1999) public health degree programs, housed in the School of Health Sciences and accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health Schools (CEPH), is structured around a core curriculum and three areas of concentration including: Health Policy and Management, Behavioral Health Promotion and Education and Epidemiology.
• Enrollment in JSU’s Masters of Public Health and the Doctorate in Public Health programs is projected to increase approximately 10 percent each year for the next five years.

“Taken as a whole, this action allows us to support moving Mississippi health care to the forefront,” Meyers said.