News from the School of Public Health

Professor Don Milton's expertise related to the airborne transmission of viruses was again referenced by the New York Times in a story about the World Health Organization's June 8 statement that transmission of the coronavirus by people without symptoms is “very rare.”

Following concerted pushback from researchers, W.H.O. officials walked back the claim, saying it was a “misunderstanding.”

Professor Hongjie Liu, chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, was appointed by Montgomery County, Maryland to serve on its advisory group of scientists and medical professionals to help with its recovery plans during the pandemic. County Health Officer Travis Gayles wrote that the COVID-19 Public Health Advisory Board would “provide guidance to the Health Officer and Public Health Services response team, particularly related to our reopening metrics.”

School of Public Health Professor Don Milton is leading a research study that brings both healthy people and people exposed to or diagnosed with COVID-19 into his research lab in the School of Public Health (SPH) building. The study is aimed at gathering new evidence related to how SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, may spread by air. Dr. Milton’s team has carefully designed the study to limit risk to those in and around the SPH building.

Jocelyn R. Smith Lee, PhD ‘13, who is assistant professor of human development and family studies at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for her project “Disrupting Dehumanizing Narratives of Black Men in Poverty.” 

The faculty, staff, and students of the Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health (MIAEH) are present in solidarity with people of color around the world as we witness the culmination of centuries of injustice and discrimination. We have seen the disproportionate impacts on persons of color from the recent novel coronavirus pandemic. We have also witnessed the injustices and horrific racial violence against historically disadvantaged and minority communities.

We, the faculty of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, stand in solidarity with Black students, faculty, and staff to end long-standing racial injustice and stop the dehumanization of Black people. We insist that Black lives matter. We condemn the ongoing racism and violence against Black people and communities, and stand by our students and colleagues who are grieving and angry right now in response to the brutal killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, Breonna Taylor, McKinsley Lincoln, Nina Pop, and so many others.