School Work
Ron Brookmeyer Named Interim Dean
DR. RON BROOKMEYER, Fielding School of Public Health professor of biostatistics, began his service as interim dean of FSPH on November 1.
Brookmeyer, who joined UCLA in 2010 as a professor of biostatistics, uses the tools of the statistical, informational and mathematical sciences to address global public health problems. Over a span of more than three decades, he has developed statistical methods that sound the alarm to help address major global health challenges. Among Brookmeyer’s many accomplishments, he earned worldwide recognition for predicting the magnitude of the impending HIV/AIDS epidemic with work beginning in the mid-1980s, and, through widely cited studies, he called attention to the looming Alzheimer’s epidemic.
Brookmeyer’s numerous honors include being an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, recipient of the American Public Health Association’s Mortimer Spiegelman Gold Medal in health statistics, and holder of the American Statistical Association’s Nathan Mantel Lifetime Achievement Award and the Karl E. Peace Award for outstanding statistical contributions for the betterment of society. He has served on numerous editorial boards and scientific panels and is currently a member of the Board of Reviewing Editors for the journal Science.
FSPH Signs MOU with Shandong University School of Public Health in China
REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE FIELDING SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH and the Shandong University School of Public Health in China signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) at a ceremony hosted by FSPH on October 8. The MOU is a symbolic agreement between the two schools to facilitate joint scientific research and training opportunities in global health. The Fielding School has 19 active MOUs with institutions throughout the world.
Jonathan and Karin Fielding Establish 5 Student Fellowships
LONGTIME PUBLIC HEALTH ADVOCATES Dr. Jonathan Fielding and Karin Fielding and their sons have established five fellowships for outstanding, newly admitted UCLA Fielding School of Public Health students.
Called the Fielding Fellowships, the awards will provide up to $40,000 per year for tuition and living expenses beginning with the 2019-20 academic year. All students pursuing a master’s in public health degree at the Fielding School are eligible if their interests align with one or more of the Fellowships.
The Fielding Fellowships cover public health issues that each member of the Fielding family cares deeply about and include:
- The Andrew B. Fielding Fellowship in Mental Health
- The Preston J. Fielding Fellowship in Environmental Health
- The Jonathan E. Fielding Fellowship in Health Policy
- The Karin B. Fielding Fellowship in Maternal and Child Health
- The Jonathan E. and Karin B. Fielding Family Fellowship in Nutrition.
Leadership Announcements
DR. YIFANG ZHU, professor of environmental health sciences, was appointed associate dean for academic programs at the Fielding School, effective July 1. Zhu, an alum of the Fielding School, was appointed to the California Air Resource Board’s Research Screening Committee in January 2014 and is collaborating with Chinese researchers to address critical air pollution faced by Chinese cities and to advocate for measures to improve air quality in China. Zhu served as acting dean of FSPH from September 1 through October 31 of this year.
DR. ALINA DORIAN, adjunct assistant professor of community health sciences, was named associate dean for public health practice, effective July 1. Much of Dorian’s public health practice experience has focused on the role of domestic and international public health systems in planning for and responding to public health emergencies, and the development of tools and policies to decrease the impact of disasters.
DR. ANNE RIMOIN, associate professor of epidemiology, was appointed director of the Fielding School’s Center for Global and Immigrant Health in September. Rimoin has conducted research in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for the past 16 years and her work has yielded important findings, including the emergence of monkeypox since the cessation of smallpox vaccination and the identification of new pathogens in animals and humans.
FSPH Receives $2 Million to Support Students with Financial Need
A $2 MILLION GIFT from Jean Balgrosky and Parker Hinshaw will make it possible for more aspiring public health students to pursue their academic goals at UCLA.
Beginning with the 2019-20 academic year, the Jean Balgrosky and Parker Hinshaw Fellowship will provide assistance with tuition and living expenses for incoming students with financial need at the FSPH. The gift to establish the fellowship will be matched by an additional $1 million from the UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match.
Balgrosky, who earned her bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in public health from UCLA, was the first recipient of the Fielding School’s Raymond D. Goodman Scholarship, in 1981. The award propelled her journey to becoming a chief information officer for large health systems, including Scripps Health, Holy Cross Health (now Trinity Health) and, currently, MD Revolution and MintHealth. She continues to be active in the Fielding School community, serving on the school’s advisory board and teaching a course on health information technology in the Department of Health Policy and Management. Hinshaw also has a successful career in health. He is the founder of several health information technology consulting firms and has developed technology systems for Eli Lilly and Co. and Community Hospitals of Indianapolis.
Welcoming New Faculty
ROCH A. NIANOGO (MPH ’13, PhD ’17), assistant professor of epidemiology
Nianogo’s combined public health and medicine expertise inform his research, which focuses on preventing chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and obesity, both globally and in the U.S.
HILARY ARALIS (PhD ’16), adjunct assistant professor of biostatistics
Aralis applies sophisticated methodological approaches to studying a wide variety of public health issues, including psychological and behavioral health, HIV/AIDS, aging and Alzheimer’s disease, military health, family- and community-based interventions, and environmental effects on maternal and child health.
ILAN MEYER, adjunct professor of community health sciences
Meyer studies public health issues related to sexual and gender minorities. He is the principal investigator of two large population health studies, including the TransPop Study, which aims to describe health and stressors of transgender people in the U.S. using a national probability sample.
ELIZABETH YZQUIERDO, adjunct assistant professor of community health sciences
Yzquierdo has served as the Fielding School’s assistant dean for student affairs since 2016, and has worked for more than 16 years to identify, support, recruit and retain promising individuals from diverse educational and socioeconomic backgrounds who are interested in health careers.
Alumni-Student Mentorship Program
THE FIELDING SCHOOL’S MENTORSHIP PROGRAM has matched more than 200 students with alumni to form pairings that will last throughout the academic year. The FSPH alumni mentors represent a cross-section of public health specialties and work for leading companies and organizations, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Environmental Protection Agency, Cedars-Sinai, the United Nations and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
For more information about the program, please email FSPHalumni@support.ucla.edu.
Faculty Referenced by this Article
Associate Professor for Industrial Hygiene and Environmental Health Sciences
Industrial Hygiene & Analytical Chemistry
Automated and accessible artificial intelligence methods and software for biomedical data science.
Dr. Hankinson is a Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and of EHS, and Chair of the Molecular Toxicology IDP
Robert J. Kim-Farley, MD, MPH, is a Professor-in-Residence with joint appointments in the Departments of Epidemiology and Community Health Sciences
Assistant Dean for Research & Adjunct Associate Professor of Community Health Sciences
Associate Professor for Industrial Hygiene and Environmental Health Sciences
Professor of Community Health Sciences & Health Policy and Management, and Associate Dean for Research
Director of Field Studies and Applied Professional Training
Industrial Hygiene & Analytical Chemistry
Dr. Hankinson is a Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and of EHS, and Chair of the Molecular Toxicology IDP
Nationally recognized health services researcher and sociomedical scientist with 25+ years' experience in effectiveness and implementation research.
Robert J. Kim-Farley, MD, MPH, is a Professor-in-Residence with joint appointments in the Departments of Epidemiology and Community Health Sciences
Dr. Ron Andersen is the Wasserman Professor Emeritus in the UCLA Departments of Health Policy and Management.
Dr. Michelle S. Keller is a health services researcher whose research focuses on the use and prescribing of high-risk medications.
EMPH Academic Program Director with expertise in healthcare marketing, finance, and reproductive health policy, teaching in the EMPH, MPH, MHA program
Dr. Joseph Davey is an infectious disease epidemiologist with over 20 years' experience leading research on HIV/STI services for women and children.
Professor of Community Health Sciences & Health Policy and Management, and Associate Dean for Research
Assistant Dean for Research & Adjunct Associate Professor of Community Health Sciences
Professor of Community Health Sciences & Health Policy and Management, and Associate Dean for Research
Robert J. Kim-Farley, MD, MPH, is a Professor-in-Residence with joint appointments in the Departments of Epidemiology and Community Health Sciences
Director of Field Studies and Applied Professional Training
Automated and accessible artificial intelligence methods and software for biomedical data science.
Professor of Community Health Sciences & Health Policy and Management, and Associate Dean for Research
Robert J. Kim-Farley, MD, MPH, is a Professor-in-Residence with joint appointments in the Departments of Epidemiology and Community Health Sciences
Assistant Dean for Research & Adjunct Associate Professor of Community Health Sciences
Director of Field Studies and Applied Professional Training