Members of the SPHHS Dean’s Advisory Council talk about the importance of raising the school’s profile and capacity to advance public health in Massachusetts and beyond. 

A global pandemic. Widespread opioid addiction. National arguments about highly processed foods and vaccine safety. For these reasons and many more public health has risen to the top of the public consciousness. 

UMass Amherst’s School of Public Health and Health Sciences (SPHHS) is exploring these and other population health issues in depth with the goal of improving quality of life across communities and supporting equitable health outcomes for all.  

The next step in elevating this work and expanding its impact is the establishment of a new building that will serve as a hub for the entire SPHHS community. The SPHHS hub will unite faculty, students, staff, and researchers who have been spread across campus for the lifespan of the school.

Alumni and donors say this modernization of public health facilities on campus is both overdue and necessary as student interest grows and society looks for solutions to public health challenges related to the environment, aging, reproductive health, and food insecurity.  

“It’s not just that these problems exist,” says Charles Pozner, MD ’84, an emergency physician who is an expert in medical simulation and education. “It’s that they’re increasing. I feel strongly we should take advantage of public health’s importance in this moment to invest in SPHHS.” 

Pozner, who serves as a member of the SPHHS Dean’s Advisory Council, views the new hub as a turning point for the school, but just the beginning in a series of improvements. 

“The faculty and students, who have been distributed throughout the UMass campus for years, need to be together in a common space,” he says. “They need access to the cross-pollination that incubates new ideas. But we need more than that to flourish.” 

“I think the idea is that the hub could become a visible catalyzing force for engaging more top-notch faculty and attracting great students,” says John Brooks ’72, MSBA ’73. “There aren't a huge number of schools of our caliber around the country. So I think we have to continue to raise the bar.” 

Brooks, a graduate of UMass Amherst’s Isenberg School of Management, is also a member of the SPHHS Dean’s Advisory Council and an emeritus member of the UMass Amherst Foundation Board of Directors. He draws on his experience running medical device companies, a venture capital firm that focused on health care and biotech, and the Joslin Diabetes Center.  

“When people invest in the hub, they’re not investing in bricks and mortar,” he says. “They’re investing in this community, and scholarship opportunities, and the connections we want people to make.” 

Those investments include higher capacity to collaborate with industry partners and centralized student support within the hub. 

“We need to provide more opportunities for students to participate in internships so they can use these experiences as springboards for further advancement,” says Pozner. “We want to support students in early research projects and other activities that will be beneficial to their careers.” 

Both Pozner and Brooks are getting the word out to fellow alumni and friends about the hub and the advancement it will drive. SPHHS Dean Anna Maria Siega-Riz says she appreciates their commitment. 

"The philanthropic support of our advisory board members who are alumni, such as Chuck and John, helps to empower innovation, foster impactful research, and enhance educational excellence, ultimately driving healthier communities and a brighter future for all. They are paying it forward in an exemplary fashion." 

“This is a great opportunity,” Brooks says. “This year people can come for Homecoming and see construction and progress. In the spring, the hub will be up and running and really doing all that we envision it to do. I think people will be excited that we’ve physically come into the mainstream and raised our profile across alumni, industry, and other entities that will see us as a resource. They’ll see something revolutionary is going on with public health here.” 

Interested in supporting public health at UMass Amherst? Make a gift today to the SPHHS Priorities Fund.