Archive - Message from the Dean
Summer 2026
Even though summer is officially underway, I want to take a moment to reflect on the many accomplishments and milestones across our SPHIS community this past spring. We proudly celebrated more than 100 graduates as they completed their degrees and prepared to make meaningful contributions to public health. Their dedication and passion give us great confidence in the future of our field.
I’m also happy to share the announcement of the endowed Heidi S. Margulis Scholarship, which was made possible through the generosity of Humana’s $300,000 starting gift. This investment will directly support our students and expand access to public health education. In the coming weeks, SPHIS will select the first recipient of a full-ride scholarship, and I look forward to sharing that announcement with you.
This spring also marked a significant step forward for our campus with the groundbreaking of the new Health Sciences Center building. This state-of-the-art facility will become the future home of SPHIS, with an anticipated opening in Fall 2029. We are eager to see how this new space will enhance collaboration, learning and innovation across the health sciences campus.
Since construction is underway, the Gray Street Farmers Market has relocated just down the street to LOUMED Commons at 316 E. Chestnut Street. While we will certainly miss having it right outside our doors, the new location offers a vibrant and welcoming space for the market to thrive. The dates and hours remain the same. It is still open rain or shine on Thursdays from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. through the end of September. If you have some free time, I encourage you to visit the market this summer to support our vendors and community partners.
I’m also pleased to report that the search for the next Dean of SPHIS is well underway. We recently welcomed candidates to campus, where they engaged with faculty, staff and students. We look forward to announcing new leadership later this year.
Finally, SPHIS is beginning the reaccreditation process with the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). This important process ensures that we continue to meet the highest standards in public health education and remain well-positioned to serve our students and community.
I hope you have a wonderful and restorative summer, and I look forward to sharing even more exciting updates with you in the months ahead.
Kathy B. Baumgartner, MA, MS, PhD
Interim Dean & Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health
UofL School of Public Health and Information Sciences
Spring 2026
With spring’s arrival comes a season of new beginnings, and the School of Public Health and Information Sciences is entering an exciting period of transition and growth. I want to share several important developments that will shape our future in the years ahead, including our search for a new dean, the groundbreaking of a new Health Sciences Center building that will become the school’s future home, and the start of the CEPH reaccreditation process.
The search for the next dean of SPHIS is currently underway, with the goal of welcoming new leadership by fall. This search represents an opportunity to build on the school’s strong foundation while advancing our mission of pursuing bold, collaborative approaches to education, research, practice and policy that strengthen public health locally, nationally and internationally. I am confident this process will draw outstanding candidates who share our dedication to innovation and advancing public health.
Another milestone for our school is the upcoming groundbreaking for the new Health Sciences Center building. This state-of-the-art facility will eventually become the future home of SPHIS when it opens in 2029. We’re excited to share more information in the coming months and look forward to the opportunities this new space will provide for collaboration, learning and discovery.
Additionally, SPHIS has begun the process of reaccreditation through the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) and will soon be reaching out to departments with details. The school received reaccreditation in March 2021 for a period of seven years, the maximum length of time the CEPH will reaccredit schools of public health. This important process allows us to reflect on our progress, evaluate our programs and ensure we continue to meet the highest standards in public health education.
These milestones signal an exciting chapter for SPHIS, one defined by growth, reflection and forward momentum. I remain deeply thankful for the energy and support of our faculty, staff, students, alumni and community, and I am excited for the future of public health that we are building together.
Kathy B. Baumgartner, MA, MS, PhD
Interim Dean & Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health
UofL School of Public Health and Information Sciences
Spring 2025
Dear Cardinal Community,
I was deeply honored to be asked to step into the role of Interim Dean and represent the school’s faculty, staff, students, alumni and partners. I will leverage my experience and passion for excellence to continue advancing the school's priorities established under the leadership of Dean Cardarelli. I’m proud to highlight our recent public health graduates, recognize our outstanding alumni and celebrate the varied events, achievements and scholarship of the SPHIS community.
I want to recognize my colleagues who have also taken on new responsibilities during this transitional period. K.B. Kulasekera has agreed to serve as Interim Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, in addition to his role as Chair of the Department of Bioinformatics and Biostatistics. New to SPHIS is Ted Smith, who has accepted the position of Interim Associate Dean for Research. Smith is a Professor of Environmental Medicine at the UofL School of Medicine, Director of UofL’s Center for Healthy Air Water and Soil housed within the Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute and co-directs the Humana Community Health Research Center. He also holds leadership roles in the community engagement cores of the UofL’s Superfund Research Center and the Center for Integrated Environmental Health Sciences. Please join me in thanking Drs. Kulasekera and Smith.
The SPHIS community gathered on May 6 to celebrate our 2025 graduates and student award winners. We also recognized our inaugural 2025 employee award nominees and winners. We honored the memory of Riten Mitra, who posthumously received the 2025 Outstanding Faculty Award for his contribution to the field of bioinformatics, biostatistics and public health. Lisa Bell, Program Coordinator, Deptartment of Bioinformatics and Biostatistics, was the recipient of the 2025 Outstanding Staff Award. View images from the event. The celebration continued later that week with Doctoral Hooding on Friday, May 9, and Commencement on Saturday, May 10. Congratulations to the Class of 2025.
I hosted schoolwide forums to provide faculty and staff with updates on several important topics, including strategic planning, the annual budget process, and a timeline for CEPH reaccreditation.
We have lots to look forward to over the coming months. The Gray Street Farmers Market is open every Thursday from 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. through the end of September. We’re excited to announce that the speaker for our 2025 Woodson Lecture will be Dean Megan L. Ranney, MD, MPH, Yale School of Public Health. Registration is open, and we hope you’ll join us on Tuesday, Sept. 16 from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the University Club.
Sincerely,
Kathy B. Baumgartner, MA, MS, PhD
Interim Dean & Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health
UofL School of Public Health and Information Sciences