News from the School of Public Health

The University of Maryland School of Public Health has joined CommuniVax, a new research coalition funded by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to strengthen the community’s role and involvement in an equitable vaccination campaign. 

On Wednesday, January 6th, the UMD-PRC team joined the world in watching with horror the violent mob of white nationalists attack the Capitol building in an insurrection. This event disrupted the counting of the Electoral College vote, threatening a peaceful transition of power and once again demonstrating the long history of white supremacist violence in America. 

Why is America losing the war on gun violence? A new book, co-edited by Dr. Woodie Kessel, a professor of the practice at the University of Maryland School of Public Health details why. Why We Are Losing the War on Gun Violence in the U.S. explores several “principles of war” in regards to the public health perspectives about issues and solutions amid the gun violence epidemic nationwide.

These are not normal times. On one public health front, we continue to struggle with COVID-19 infection rates, increasing deaths, and the implementation of a vaccination program. But public health action goes well beyond the response to an infectious disease pandemic.

Nature has several benefits that impact a person’s overall well-being, according to a new research article, NatureRx@UMD: A Review for Pursuing Green Space as a Health and Wellness Resource for the Body, Mind, and Soul.

School of Public Health faculty experts racked up thousands of news clips this calendar year. The interviews and stories mostly focused on helping the public understand the pandemic threat and how to stay safe and healthy, correcting misinformation whenever possible and sharing the latest science on COVID-19 transmission and vaccine development.