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Celebrating the Success and Achievements of Edyth Schoenrich on her 90th Birthday (web article)

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On September 9 the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health along with family and friends, celebrated the 90th birthday of long-time faculty member, Edyth Schoenrich, MD, MPH ’71. In a career that has spanned more than six decades, Dr. Schoenrich has been a major force in the advancement of professional involvement in prevention and public health both at the Bloomberg School and throughout the world.

Dr. Schoenrich began her long association with the School of Public Health in 1971 when she enrolled as a part-time MPH student while working for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Prior to her tenure at the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, she began her career at the Johns Hopkins Hospital and went on to serve as the director of two tuberculosis hospitals and three chronic disease rehabilitation hospitals. In 1974 Dr. Schoenrich was appointed professor in what is now the School’s Department of Health Policy and Management and for several years served as director of the Division of Public Health Administration. From 1977 through 1986, Dr. Schoenrich served as senior associate dean at the School, eventually going on to serve as the director of Part-time Professional Programs at the Bloomberg School, and as associate chair of the MPH program.

“Dr. Schoenrich continues to be a most wonderful inspiration to not only to our students but also our faculty and staff,” said Marie Diener-West, PhD, Abbey-Merrell Professor of Biostatistics Education in the Bloomberg School’s Department of Biostatistics and chair of the MPH program. “Her achievements as both a medical and public health professional in preventive medicine have helped the School establish a stellar part-time MPH program and develop one of the nation’s premier preventive medicine programs. In 2000 the Edyth H. Schoenrich Professorship in Preventive Medicine was created to help bring her vision and dedication to preventive medicine to fruition.”

Because of her exceptional accomplishments in her field, the State of Maryland has recognized Dr. Schoenrich as an outstanding female role model and exemplary professional by inducting her into the Maryland Women’s Hall of Fame in 2005.

Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Dr. Schoenrich received her baccalaureate degree from Duke University, her medical degree from University of Chicago School of Medicine, and her Master of Public Health degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. She is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Preventive Medicine.

The Special Tribute to Dr. Edyth Schoenrich included addresses from friends and colleagues: Dean Michael J. Klag, MD, MPH; James Yager, PhD; her brother, Edward Hull; Dean Emeritus Al Sommer, MD, MHS; Jeremiah Barondess, MD, President Emeritus, New York Academy of Medicine; Shirley Griffin, friend of the School; and Dean Emeritus D. A. Henderson, MD, MPH. In addition, soprano Jennifer Edwards performed the aria from La Traviata, and Dean Klag read a proclamation from Governor Martin O'Malley naming September 9 a day to honor Edyth Schoenrich.