Note: this is the last regular newsletter of the spring semester. The next newsletter will be sent on Monday, May 27.

Dr. Nakkash will formally assume the role effective July 1, 2024. Prior to the official transition, Dr. Nakkash will participate in upcoming administrative meetings to ensure a seamless hand-off.

Thank you to Dr. Carolyn Drews-Botsch, as she transitions from her role as chair. She has been instrumental in steering the department through phases of significant growth and achievement. Her dedication has enhanced our academic environment and expanded our reach and influence in critical areas of global and community health. Dr. Drews-Botsch will continue to be a vital member of the GCH faculty, contributing to the College's success with her invaluable expertise and insight.

Just three and a half years after George Mason's College of Public Health created its PhD in Public Health in 2021, Kim McNally was the first graduate to walk across the Commencement stage last week.

CoPilot is Microsoft’s AI-driven chat bot and image generator built on ChatGPT 4.0 and DALL-E. All George Mason students and employees may access CoPilot by logging into https://copilot.micrsoft.com with their full George Mason email address and password. 

Dr. Matthew Hicks and Terri Ann Guingab are forming a workgroup to shepherd AI integration in the College. Topics to be explored include innovative uses for AI; guidelines and best practices; AI in the classroom and the workplace; and security, privacy, and ethical implications. Contact Terri Ann at tguingab@gmu.edu or Matthew at mhicks21@gmu.edu for more information. 

Qualtrics added a new security feature to the platform to assist OIT in monitoring the types of data collected by Qualtrics projects. All projects published in Qualtrics, including surveys, will require approval from Matthew Hicks or Rene Ayala. They will do approvals in 24 hours, excluding holidays and weekends. If it is an emergency approval, please contact Rene or Matthew. 

Congratulations to Professor MB (Marybeth) Mitcham in Global and Community Health on being accepted into the Culture of Health Leadership Institute for Racial Healing (cohort 4.0) an 18-month award from the National Collaborative for Health Equity. 

I’m also pleased to share that I (Alison Cuellar) will be part of a project that was awarded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to examine payment for behavioral health and primary care in Virginia.

May Writing Retreat for Faculty! I have always enjoyed the full-day faculty writing retreats where I have regularly seen other CPH faculty in attendance. Held each year in January and May, this year’s May Faculty Writing Retreat, will be Monday, May 13, and Tuesday, May 14. Give yourself permission to take more protected writing time and enjoy a collegial and supportive environment with peers. Learn more and register here.

2024 publications: Congratulations to our CPH faculty on the quality and diversity of articles that they have published so far this year. I encourage you to have a look at the list here.

June 4 | 1-3 pm | PHC Multipurpose Room

The Staff Council hopes all Staff and A/P Faculty will join them for our inaugural CPH Staff Meeting. The first hour will be mingling and snacks, followed by the general staff meeting. The agenda will be emailed out soon, along with a Zoom link for the general staff meeting for those who cannot attend in person. Please RSVP by May 24, 2024. 

Please let us know if you can attend the in-person "happy hour" and consider bringing a fun snack to share. Drinks will be provided by the Staff Council members. Staff Council looks forward to a time to get to know each other better and have some fun!   

Abstracts due May 31

The Virginia Public Health Association's 2024 Annual Conference, "Elevating Partnerships to Advance Public Health in Virginia," will be held on September 19 and  20 at Reynolds Community College - Parham Road Campus in Richmond. Learn more and submit your abstract here.

May 14 | 4-6 pm | Ornery Beer Company (3950 University Drive, Farifax)

Join college colleagues for an end-of-semester celebration at Ornery Beer Company. Please RSVP here.

New CPH branded materials can be found in this ! NEW College of Public Health Toolkit. Please download all items before editing; do not edit the documents in the linked folder. Bookmark this link! 

Note: Training on the new George Mason and CPH branding will be offered in the fall. Before you create any branded items, you must attend a training and/or work with Michelle or Mary on the materials.

Additional new materials will be rolled out incrementally throughout the summer and fall, and we will update you in this newsletter when they are available. (Hopefully, new departmental logos from OUB will be included at some point during this summer.) Marketing will take care of ordering new CPH swag in the coming months. If there is a specific item that you would like rebranded, please contact us.

Email Mary Cunningham (mcunni7@gmu.edu) if you have questions about the material in the folder. 

View the newsletter archives here.