E-NEWS Spring/Summer 2023
Welcome to the Spring/Summer 2023 edition of PFRH E-NEWS!
I am delighted to share some of the many wonderful happenings in our PFRH community. First, congratulations to our 54 stellar graduates -- 2 MHS, 47 MSPH, and 5 PhD degrees. We couldn’t be more proud! Your successes reflect much hard work, passion, and talent. As the events of the past few years have shown, public health needs you! We are honored to welcome you to our alumni community and look forward to supporting you as your journeys continue.
A special shot out to newly appointed Assistant Professors, Drs. Celia Karp and Shannon Wood, to newly appointed Assistant Scientist Dr. Annie Smith and to Anne Lilly, recently promoted to Senior Research Associate. Our faculty, staff and students continue to engage in cutting edge research, practice, and education as evidenced by the many accolades highlighted in E-NEWS. We also are greatly humbled by the incredible contributions to the department, school and the field by seven PFRH Professors recently recognized as Emeritus - Drs. Becker, DiPietro, Duggan, Gillespie, Riley, Strobino, and Tsui. You each have created an inspiring legacy while also training the next generation of scholars.
We love remaining connected with our PFRH alumni. Special thanks to Grace Guerrero Ramirez and Drs. Nadia Diamond Smith and Lawrence Reid for sharing perspectives with us. You have pursued exciting public health careers in diverse fields. And your reflections highlight the importance of mentorship, stretching beyond our comfort zones, rigorous training and opportunities during your time at Hopkins to develop lifelong friendships, meaningful collaborations with colleagues, and enduring partnerships.
It is wonderful to be engaging with many in person through on site classes, meetings and conferences, casual conversations in the hallways, and milestone celebrations. Whether presenting at the Population Association of America Conference in Louisiana, leading the International Conference of Family Planning in Thailand, hosting a Global Early Adolescent conference, or helping launch the Early Childhood Development Council in Mississippi, PFRH colleagues continues to address health and well-being for populations across the life course. PFRH also continues to innovate and apply conceptual frameworks from the Demographic Dividend to the home visiting Precision Paradigm, thus impacting practice and research far beyond our own work.
While we continue to confront profound global public health challenges, I am buoyed by the ongoing vision and commitment of so many in PFRH and of our PFRH alumni. Wishing you each the opportunity to enjoy your own summer reset or “the chance to reflect and recharge” as noted in recent communications from Dean MacKenzie.
Cynthia Minkovitz, MD, MPP
William H. Gates, Sr. Professor and Chair
Population, Family and Reproductive Health