Faculty/Staff Newsletter

Health Administration and Policy Associate Professor Hong Xue is developing an innovative, artificial intelligence-powered intervention to help reduce electronic cigarette use among Virginia youth.

This summer, Isabelle Kahng and her cohort of fellow students in the MedStar Health Future Nurse program will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Kahng was among the early groups of students accepted into the pioneering 12-month Accelerated Second Degree BSN program.

Rima Nakkash, interim Chair of the Department of Global and Community Health, convenes a youth council to inform vape prevention methods targeted towards LGBTQ+ college students in Virginia.

While completing his practicum at Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing, Master of Social Work graduate Troy Fontenot created a novel intervention to reduce the number of older residents experiencing food insecurity and loneliness.

The College of Public Health is pleased to announce two new members of the Dean's leadership team.

Anthony Piantieri joins CPH as the first-ever Chief Business Officer, a role that will be instrumental in advancing our institution's success.

Martin Binks, PhD, MBA, became the new chair of the Department of Nutrition and Food Studies. He was also recently granted Fellowship to the New York Academy of Medicine.

Congratulations to Kenneth Griffin, Professor in Global and Community Health, on his newly funded project, "A Hybrid Program to Prevent Emergent Substance Use Risk among Upper Elementary School Students Using A Positive Youth Development Approach.”

Digital healthcare interventions researchers: ARHQ is seeking applications that propose research projects that test promising digital healthcare interventions used at the point of care and aimed at improving the quality of healthcare services delivery. 
This is a Phased Innovation Award (R21/R33) mechanism providing up to 2 years of R21 support for initial developmental activities, and up to
3 years of R33 support for expanded activities. The next deadline is October 16, 2024. 

Principal Investigators, your IRB studies need your attention in RAMP. Our IRB has moved to the RAMP system and you should be able to log in and see that your studies in the new system. You also need to take action to populate the study record in RAMP IRB. The IRB has created handy tools to make this easier for you. See Converted Protocols Information and Steps and PI Guidance to Populate the Study Record for more information. 

Update on CPH Post-doctoral fellows. Did you know? CPH now has 5 post-doctoral fellows: One is working in HAP, two are in Social Work, and three are in Nursing. If you are considering a post-doc hire, consider implementing a “Compact” between postdoctoral fellow and mentor. CPH has sample mentoring agreements for you to consider. 

Traveling overseas and taking your computer? Before leaving the U.S. with your Mason-owned laptop, please contact export@gmu.edu to receive clearance or to obtain a substitute, scrubbed computer. 

Attending a conference overseas? Whether or not you take a Mason-owned computer with you, notify export@gmu.edu of your international travel and conference plans. Don’t jeopardize Mason’s federal funding. 

Starting on August 1, 2024, Faculty and staff will be responsible for emptying the individual trash can in their workspace into larger trash receptacles in common areas. Housekeeping staff will no longer empty personal trash cans located at desks/cubicles/private offices. Workspaces/offices will be cleaned weekly.

These changes support the university's efforts to increase efficiency and cut costs.

August 21 | 11:30 am | PHC Multipurpose Room 

Kick off the fall 2024 semester with the State of the College Address from Dean Melissa Perry. Then join your fellow faculty and staff for lunch in the Peterson lobby. 

August 22 | 8:30 am | Beacon Hall Conference Center, Sci-Tech Campus 

The goal of the retreat is to finalize the College's mission and values. The Dean will present some thoughts and ideas about a new vision for the College, which we will have the opportunity to discuss. Your active participation is crucial in our ongoing efforts to foster a positive and engaging environment.

For those who cannot attend in person, an online participation option will be provided. Registration link to come.

Participants may submit questions for the Dean in advance at EngagePH@gmu.edu as well as during the live event.

Agenda

Every Tuesday| 12 pm | Peterson 2800  

CPH yoga is returning on Tuesdays beginning September 17. You are welcome to stay for as much or as little of the class as you are able and we hope to see many of you there! If you have any questions, please contact Cathy Tompkins (ctompkin@gmu.edu).

August 14, 2024| 11 am | Zoom Webinar

PHCEDC invites you to the next installment of the roundtable series, "Successful Public Health Approaches in Dementia Caregiving: New York." The goal of this series is to create a public health community of practice, where agencies can share experiences and lessons learned, and find ideas of strategies they can implement to support dementia caregivers in their jurisdictions. 

Register here

This week you may notice a new look to the newsletter. We're trying out a new template with the new branding. The newsletter may change some throughout the summer. Like something about it? Find it difficult to read? Please provide feedback to jpocock@gmu.edu. Thanks!

Next newsletter is Monday, August 12.

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Access the CPH brand toolkit, including new CPH logos here.

View the newsletter archives here.