IU announces plans for school of public health

IU’s School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation will see a transformation in the next few years.

President Michael McRobbie announced a plan Tuesday to create two new schools of public health – one at IU-Bloomington and another at IU-Purdue University Indianapolis – to help battle Indiana’s struggling public health field and address long-standing health needs.

“Indiana traditionally ranks poorly regarding major public health benchmarks, such as obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. While there are no simple solutions for these societal challenges, I believe the existence of strong and engaged schools of public health in Indiana would be a major step in the right direction,” McRobbie said in a press release. “These schools, with their unique missions, will put Indiana
University in the forefront of providing a strong academic and professional focus directed toward effective solutions to these difficult problems.”

Robert Goodman, dean of HPER, said the school is in the planning process, and he is working with other schools on campus to incorporate the disciplines the new school would require, such as epidemiology, biostatistics and public health administration, with the already established departments.

“What we have to determine is how to combine the current departments with the new ones for creative and innovative programs,” Goodman said.

The new school of public health will be based in the current school of HPER, and Goodman said the school will be seeing a name change.

“People don’t really know the school of HPER name,” he said. “We want public health represented in the name, and that should help with certain things such as applying for grants.”

Goodman said his goal is to present a plan for the board of trustee’s approval by early 2010. The proposal will include the name change, and if the board approves and then announces IU will indeed have a school of public health, the school will have two years to get up to accreditation standards set by the Council on Education for Public Health.

“I hope it will take less than two years,” Goodman said. “We’re transforming the HPER and already have some good staff and programs.”

Goodman said the need for a school of public health in Indiana is evident.

He explained that Indiana is the 50th of all states to receive funding for public health and also the 50th state with professionals trained in public health schools.

“There are advantages to having the school,” Goodman said. “When you think of what a state ought to be doing, it should be things for the welfare of the people of Indiana, such as cleaner air and safety. It’s very important for a state trying to improve its economy.”