The University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State (MPower) has appointed Amy R. Sapkota, professor of environmental health science with the Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health, as an MPower Professor.

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences recently awarded Devon Payne-Sturges a $3.7 million grant (R01) to study structural racism and health among Black and LatinX migrant and seasonal farmworkers. The grant will support her team’s efforts to better understand health disparities facing these essential but marginalized workers.

On September 24, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced creation of the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights, a new national office charged with advancing environmental justice and civil rights. SPH's Dr. Sacoby Wilson shares the significance of the event and the impact the office will have on local EJ initiatives.

The School of Public Health would like to recognize and welcome the following faculty and staff to our community. Some are already part of our community and are being recognized for new roles/titles, while others are joining us this academic year. Welcome and congratulations to all!

Kevin M. Roy, Ph.D., was elected member-at-large of the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR) Board of Directors.  Dr. Roy is professor of family science in the UMD School of Public Health and a recognized expert in the field of fatherhood research, with two decades of experience working with low-income families and community-based parenting programs.

A School of Public Health assistant professor whose research focuses on understanding and addressing the mental health needs of young LGBTQ people has been recognized by the National Institutes of Health with an Early-Stage Investigator Award. 

Boris D. Lushniak, dean of the University of Maryland School of Public Health, has been appointed to serve on the Board of Directors for the National Fitness Foundation by Xavier Becerra, Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Shanéa Thomas, Ed.D., LICSW (he/him; she/her; Dr.), assistant clinical research professor in the Department of Behavioral and Community Health, recently joined the University of Maryland Prevention Research Center (UMD-PRC) as an LGBTQ+ training specialist.

Alice Horowitz, who retires from the University of Maryland this summer at age 89, has been a leading advocate and researcher in dental public health and in health literacy efforts. One of her crowning achievements was establishing SPH’s Herschel S. Horowitz Center for Health Literacy (HCHL), named after her late husband, an internationally renowned dental epidemiologist, educator and public health advocate. 

Beginning July 1, Dr. Tracy Zeeger will serve as Assistant Dean for Public Health Practice and Dr. Sylvette La Touche-Howard will serve as Assistant Dean for Community Engagement for the new Office of Public Health Practice and Community Engagement. With Dr. Zeeger and Dr. La Touche-Howard’s leadership, the School will expand opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to gain practical experiences in public health.