Subscribe to the RSS feed.OSU to create an accredited college of public health
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CHP | Posted on: November 7th, 2008
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Oregon State University has announced plans to create an accredited college of public health, which would be the first of its kind in the state.
The proposal is moving forward under the leadership of Tom Eversole, hired during summer 2008 as director of Strategic Development for a College of Public Health & Human Sciences.
According to the University’s press release, Oregon is the only west coast state that lacks an accredited school or college of public health. The state does have an accredited program that awards public health degrees, but the Oregon Master of Public Health Program (OMPH) is a collaborative statewide degree program offered through Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), Oregon State University (OSU), and Portland State University (PSU).
Speaking to the Corvallis Gazette-Times, Eversole said that the proposed college would be “a drawing card for students from throughout the west and even other countries,” adding that accreditation would also result in new degree programs and boost OSU’s ability to compete for research funding.
According to a media Q&A put out by the University, collaboration would remain an important element of the proposed accreditation. “Accredited college status will increase each institution’s ability to attract new resources, students and faculty. Operations at all sites would continue.”
This underscores statements from our interview with Tammy Bray, Dean of OSU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.
In the interview, Dr. Bray said “Oregon State can take the lead in many areas, but that doesn’t mean we should go alone. We need to think about what the human needs are of the people in the state, and take a holistic approach. If we consider OSU’s areas of expertise, including agriculture and veterinary studies, and take advantage of the knowledge of urban studies that exists at Portland State, and then take full advantage of the medical expertise at OHSU, the achievements can be tremendous.”
OSU offers masters degrees in three of the five disciplines required to become an accredited institution, although one strong area of study that isn’t required is international public health.
“That’s actually our most popular area because of Oregon’s connections with Asia,” Eversole said to the Gazette Times.
According to the University, it is possible that upon accreditation, the College of Health and Human Sciences will be re-named the “College of Public Health and Human Sciences.”
According to Eversole accreditation would occur by around 2014.
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