This week, ASPH welcomed the Georgia Southern University Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health as an associate member school.  The College, led by Dean Charles Hardy, recently began the accreditation process with the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). The college is named in honor of Dr. Jiann-Ping Hsu, a scholar-scientist whose "distinguished service in her life’s work and devotion to quality and caring in all her endeavors represent the touchstones of learning and leadership in the health professions."

The Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health is committed to increasing the capacity of the public health workforce, and is focused on enhancing health equity through improving public health practice. The college’s mission is "to enhance health and eliminate health disparities of rural communities and underserved populations in Georgia and the southeastern region, the nation and the world through excellence in public health workforce development, research, professional service and community engagement."

Located in rural South Georgia, the college partners with an expanding array of rural communities. Faculty members are engaging with multiple community and public health agencies to document best practices to increase health equity in rural communities. The college’s research and service efforts emphasize applied, collaborative projects that engage stakeholders and provide students with real world experiences.

The Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health grew from two MPH programs approved in 1998 and 2000 –community health education and biostatistics. The College was first established as a School in 2004 by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. At that time it was the first School of Public Health in the state system. The establishment of the School was made possible by a generous gift from Dr. Karl E. Peace, a biostatistician. He endowed the school in memory of his wife, Dr. Jiann-Ping Hsu, also a biostatistician, as an enduring celebration of her life. The School was supported by the University System of Georgia to address the important and increasingly severe public health concerns in Georgia. On January 1, 2006, the School transitioned to the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health. Justification for selection of a SPH at Georgia Southern University was directly related to the potential impact this institution will have on health equity among rural and underserved residents of the state and region.

The Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health offers and MPH in biostatistics, community health, environmental health, epidemiology and health policy and management and a master of health services administration (MHSA). In addition, the college offers the DrPH degree in biostatistics, community health behavior and education, and public health ;eadership. The College is home to several public health practice and research centers as well as the Karl E. Peace Center for Biostatistics and is the home of the Executive Office of the International Chinese Statistical Association.

For more information about the college, please visit http://jphcoph.georgiasouthern.edu.