Meharry Medical School's new School of Global Health welcomed its inaugural class of 53 students this month, in what is the first department of its kind in the United States.
The school’s curriculum will take a multidisciplinary approach to finding solutions and responding with a global perspective to the complex and evolving health challenges of vulnerable communities.
Daniel Dawes founding dean of the School of Global Health at Meharry and senior vice president of global health, said it offers a fresh look at solutions to global health challenges.
“Our world faces unprecedented health challenges, and Meharry is uniquely positioned to lead in producing the next generation of global health leaders,” Dawes said.
Students in the program will explore topics such as mental and behavioral health, health economics, disaster management and global health security and diplomacy.
The School of Global Health’s core curriculum will integrate the political determinants of health framework, which explores how political factors such as policies, political decisions and government actions impact public health outcomes.
"This week marks another historic milestone for Meharry and our contribution to global health,” said Dr. James E.K. Hildreth Sr., Meharry's president and chief executive officer. "We are thrilled to welcome our inaugural class, comprised of exceptionally talented individuals who are eager to take part in the global effort to improve health for all. Their arrival marks a major step in our mission to actively address critical health challenges and drive transformative change globally.”
After the school said they received an overwhelming amount of student applicants, the inaugural class was chosen from 25 states.
Tennessee was one of the states with the largest enrollment numbers along with Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, Maryland, New York, Virginia, District of Columbia and California.
The inaugural class has 26 students pursuing Master of Science degrees in healthy equity, health law, policy, and management as well as Master of Public Health degrees in epidemiology and public health practice. The remaining 27 students are pursuing doctoral degrees in global health equity and health law, policy and management.
The master programs are 36 to 45 credit hours that take four semesters, or two years, to complete. The PhD program offered by the School of Global Health takes four years to complete with a required 73 credit hours.
Classes opened with an orientation that featured keynote speaker Donna Christensen, a physician and politican who served as a former congresswoman and former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Health Braintrust.
The cohort also heard from the 16 th U.S. surgeon general David Satcher, M.D., Pd.D., and Richard Besser, M.D., President and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
The School is now accepting applications for the second cohort of students for fall 2025 at https://meharryglobal.org/academics.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville's Meharry Medical School launches first-of-its-kind global-health school
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