The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs has expanded its vast expertise on health and health policy with the long-planned addition of Syracuse University’s Public Health Department to its academic departments on July 1, 2025. The move added 14 faculty, three staff members and hundreds of undergraduate and graduate students to the Maxwell community, along with the department’s degree programs.

“This is a natural fit for the Public Health Department and for the Maxwell School,” said Maxwell Dean David M. Van Slyke, who pointed out that the school’s academic strategic plan includes a focus on addressing health and health disparities. “Adding these experts in global and environmental health, infectious disease and other top public health issues to our community of world-class scholars on population health, aging and health policy, as well as our health scholars across the social sciences, will further enhance our vital voice in the study of health and in the development of health policy.”

Established as a stand-alone department in 2018, public health is among the newest departments at Syracuse University. The department offers bachelor of science of public health (B.S.P.H.) and master of public health (M.P.H.) degrees, both accredited by the Council for Education of Public Health. There are also options for undergraduate minors in public health, as well as a dual degree program with the Whitman School of Management.

Faculty in the department have varied research interests and expertise, including public health communications, environmental health determinants, social disparities in health outcomes, drug use and addictions, trauma and violence, health policy, and infectious disease epidemiology. They have received numerous grants for their research from major organizations, including the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, among others. And their research regularly appears in top academic journals, including the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Science of The Total Environment, PLOS Global Public Health and the American Journal of Epidemiology.

“We are thrilled with the move to the Maxwell School,” said Dave Larsen, chair of the Public Health Department. “Our programs, students and research in public health align well with Maxwell’s mission and goals. We anticipate synergies in our teaching and research across the other programs and departments that will greatly enhance our efforts. Maxwell will be a great place where we can continue to grow the public health program here at Syracuse University.”

In preparation for the addition of the academic public health department, a delegation of Maxwell School representatives, including Van Slyke; Shana Gadarian, associate dean for research; and Dan Nelson, director of accelerated learning and global engagement, visited Albany, New York, this spring to meet with Dr. James McDonald, commissioner of the New York State Department of Health (DOH), and members of his senior leadership team. Larsen has partnered closely with the DOH for many years, most notably on establishing the state’s wastewater surveillance network during the COVID-19 pandemic to prepare for emerging infectious diseases such as the polio outbreak of 2022 and avian influenza in 2024. The dean and McDonald discussed ways to develop further partnerships, and how the Maxwell School could help address the pressing challenges in public health.

“The historic accomplishments of public health over the last century have made our lives safer and healthier—yet this work is never done,” said McDonald. “Future advancements and breakthroughs in all aspects of public health depend on continued education and research. I look forward to a continued partnership with Syracuse University’s Maxwell School as they help prepare the next generation of public health professionals.”

Van Slyke said the school’s larger footprint in the public health research space and expertise in health policy, makes Maxwell uniquely positioned to provide evidence-based solutions to the challenges facing public health leaders and practitioners, from the battle against disinformation to improving care delivery to underserved communities in urban and rural settings.  

The addition of the Public Health Department to the school comes following the transition of the department’s former home, the Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics, to the Falk College of Sport. A task force established in the spring of 2024 determined where each of the human dynamics programs should reside, with Maxwell being the clear recommendation for public health. Other programs were recommended to be moved to the School of Education and the College of Arts and Sciences.

Many Public Health Department faculty members have worked with other Maxwell School researchers for years due to existing partnerships through the Lerner Center for Public Health Promotion and Population Health, the Aging Studies Institute, and the Policy, Place, and Population Health Lab, among others. New interdisciplinary partnerships are expected to grow as faculty learn more about each other’s work and about the capabilities of Maxwell’s 15 research centers and institutes.  

“The Lerner Center at Maxwell is delighted to have the Public Health Department join the school,” said Lerner Center Director Rebekah Lewis. “Several of the public health faculty are already affiliated with our center and we look forward to increased collaboration and the expansion of public health expertise at Maxwell.”

The Maxwell School had previously offered public health graduate degrees, partnering with SUNY Upstate Medical University on a joint master’s program beginning in 2008. Maxwell exited that partnership 10 years later as the University turned its focus to growing a new public health department and the M.P.H. program at Falk. That program now joins the school known for its interdisciplinary approach, collaborative environment and global reputation for public affairs.

“Public Health and public policy affect every one of us,” Van Slyke concluded. “I cannot think of more important convergence of issues for the Maxwell School to focus on as we strive to leave our communities and our world better than we found it.”

The 14 public health faculty who have joined Maxwell are: Assistant Professor Bernard Appiah; Professor Dessa Bergen-Cico; Professor of Practice Luvenia Cowart; Falk Family Endowed Professor Brooks B. Gump; Associate Professor Bryce Hruska; Teaching Professor Ignatius N. Ijere; Associate Professor Brittany Kmush; Professor and Chair David Larsen; Professor Katherine McDonald; Associate Professor Miriam Mutambudzi; Professor Lutchmie Narine; Teaching Professor Lisa Olson-Gugerty; Associate Professor Maureen Thompson; and Associate Professor Bhavneet Walia.

The staff who have joined Maxwell are: Internship Coordinator Susan Coots; Administrative Assistant Laura Sauta; and Internship Coordinator Megan Snow.

By Cort Ruddy