The College of Arts and Sciences will offer Public Health as an undergraduate major starting this fall. The major will be open to all students, including the incoming class of 2015.
AU students could previously only pursue a major in Health Promotion, an aspect of public health, according to Lynne Arneson, Premedical Programs coordinator.
“Public Health focuses on maintaining and improving the health of the community,” Arneson said in an email.
Students will take courses in each one of the four cluster areas, but will choose to concentrate on one area: global health; health science; social and community health; and policy, program planning and evaluation.
Public Health incorporates classes from each of the AU schools and will allow students to have a second major and minor.
AU will offer “Introduction to Public Health” as a core class for the Public Health major in the fall, the only fall course class specifically offered for the Public Health major. Two core courses will be added in the spring: SIS 221 “Global Health” and PHIL 296 “Introduction to Bioethics.” More classes will be added in fall 2012.
Arneson said the major is not a new concept to AU.
“This major has been in the back of folks’ minds for a while,” she said.
Arneson said she feels the Public Health major is a great opportunity considering AU’s location.
“D.C. is like the Mecca for Public Health,” Arneson said.
AU will only hire a director and an assistant director for the Public Health program since more than 70 faculty members already teach courses pertaining to the major.
Arneson said the new assistant director will be hired by the start of classes on August 29, but the director will not chosen until next fall due to the long process.
“It takes more time to find a director of a program, and usually the search begins in the fall,” she said.
Arneson will act as interim director until fall 2012, in addition to her position as Premedical Programs coordinator.
pjones@theeagleonline.com
