From the Dean

I am honored to have become the eighth dean of the Harvard School of Public Health, an institution with a venerable history of research and education spanning eighty-seven years, a brilliant faculty of interdisciplinary and collaborative problem solvers, students who bring their talents and their passion for public health here from all parts of the world, and a community of staff members who are guided by a strong sense of service. HSPH also has the good fortune to be part of a renowned university with extensive resources and activities devoted to the improvement of health.

But no institution can remain successful without embracing an agenda of permanent renewal. My own ambition for HSPH is that it should be the first school of public health for the twenty-first century: first in quality, first in its global reach and impact, and first in its ability to anticipate and innovate. In quality, the school is already a public health leader for the nation and the world. Its intellectual capacity ranges from the molecular biology of vaccines to the epidemiology of cancer; from women's and children's health to nutritional biochemistry; from health care management to human rights. Over the next few years, our goal for the school is to enforce our strengths by integrating disciplines and levels of analysis and by constantly assessing the excellence and relevance of our research and educational programs. Our strategy is to make major investments in the next generation--to identify and develop new opportunities for our students and our junior faculty. Our perspective is to see local and global health as a continuum; there are few problems in health, health policy, and health care that are not global.

We strive to provide the highest level of education for public health scientists, practitioners, and leaders. The departments and programs described in this catalog reflect the full scope of the public health enterprise and the expertise of our faculty, ranging across life sciences, quantitative methods, population-level analyses, and social and policy disciplines. All of our programs are approached with a deep sense of dedication on the part of the faculty, students, and staff and with a mutual respect for different ways of contributing to our shared purpose. In the last century the impact of public health on the quality and duration of human lives was compelling, achieving longer gains in life expectancy than during the previously accumulated history of humankind. Please join us as we confront unfolding challenges to health and work together to discover solutions that will safeguard our global community.

Julio Frenk
Dean