Welcome from the Dean

On behalf of the College of Public Health, welcome to the 2008 Summer Program in Applied Biostatistical and Epidemiological Methods. Last year, the Summer Program drew more than 200 attendees from 11 states, Puerto Rico, and five foreign countries. What a vibrant atmosphere for learning and networking! This year we are presenting 12 courses to help you expand your knowledge of statistical methodology and epidemiology as they relate to public health. The courses give you hands-on experience and tools to analyze epidemiologic data.

Every year, we strive to make the Summer Program fresh and relevant to the challenges faced by public health professionals in the fi eld. New courses for 2008 include:

• Cancer and Chronic Disease Epidemiology
• Critical Appraisal of Health-Related Scientific Information
• Health Policy Research Methods
• Social Epidemiology
• Health Survey Research Methods

Our faculty this year includes new faces and some well-known veterans. This year we will have courses taught by these illustrious new faculty: Rachid Salmi, dean of the School of Public Health at Université Victor Segalen in Bordeaux, France; Phil Nasca, dean of the School of Public Health at the State University of New York at Albany; Michael Oakes, associate professor in the Division of Epidemiology and Community Health at University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health; and Bryan Dowd, professor in the Division of Health Policy and Management at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health; and Eloise Kaizar, assistant professor of statistics at Ohio State. The Summer Program wouldn’t be the same without familiar faces like internationally known David Kleinbaum, a professor at Emory’s Rollins School of Public Health, and first winner of the Pfizer award for Teaching Excellence. Others returning include these accomplished faculty: Harvey Checkoway, Ellen Cromley, Richard Dicker, Gregory Gray and David Hosmer, Jr. We welcome the return of Elizabeth Stasny, professor of Statistics at Ohio State, after a few years away. We have put together a terrific program this year, but it won’t be successful without you, our participants. As you all know, public health research contributes to making the world around us a healthier and safer place. You are on the front lines of this effort. I applaud your pursuit of professional development to help you keep our public healthy.

We hope to see you in Columbus, Ohio, in July 2008!

Sincerely,

Stanley Lemeshow, Ph.D.  Dean, College of Public Health  The Ohio State University