Inside WashU Public Health, October 20, 2025

SPH convening this week

Can we harness AI to promote healthier lives?

WashU Public Health, together with McKelvey School of Engineering, will host a symposium this week focused on artificial intelligence and its evolving role in health-care delivery and population health. The symposium — “Can we harness AI to promote healthier lives?” — will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, October 22, in person and online. 

See here to register for the event, in Whitaker 100 on WashU’s Danforth Campus and also available via livestream.

AI’s rapid transformation has prompted fundamental questions regarding how to ensure equitable access, maintain ethical standards, and translate cutting-edge algorithms into meaningful real-world impact. This symposium brings together leading experts to explore how we can harness the potential of Al while safeguarding against bias and ensuring its benefits reach all communities.

The keynote speaker is Roy Perlis, MD, MSc, director of the Center for Quantitative Health and the Ronald I. Dozoretz, MD, Endowed Chair at Massachusetts General Hospital, and a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. The physician-scientist, the inaugural editor-in-chief of JAMA+ AI, has made significant contributions to the field of psychiatry, as well as to the application of artificial intelligence in health care.

The symposium also will include two panel discussions: “Equitable & Ethical AI in Health” and “Algorithm to Impact.”

See here for the full list of presenters and panelists.

From the associate dean for faculty affairs

Faculty development opportunities

The Office of Faculty Affairs, in coordination with the Faculty Development Subcommittee, would like to share the following opportunities for faculty development. Additional opportunities will be provided when available. If you know of faculty development opportunities that our team should share in future newsletters, please email them to SPHFacultyAffairs@wustl.edu. 

Faculty leadership workshops

The Office of the Provost will host two faculty leadership workshops as part of the Bauer Leaders Academy’s WashU Leadership Week. The workshops will be Wednesday, October 22, in Simon Hall, Room 241. They are titled:

• “Communicating in Times of Conflict,” 1:30 to 3 p.m., led by Rebecca Dohrman, senior lecturer, Olin School of Business.
• “Systems Thinking for Leadership,” 3:30 to 5 p.m., led by Saras Chung, research associate professor, Brown School.

The workshops will be followed by a networking reception and closing remarks from Provost Mark West, from 5 to 6 p.m. See here more information and to RSVP.

Faculty development informational lunch

The Office of the Provost will host a Faculty Development Informational Lunch & Bingoon Monday, November 3, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Danforth University Center, Room 233. Join Assistant Vice Provost Rebecca Lester and Danforth Campus colleagues at this gathering, aimed at providing an opportunity for faculty members to network, enjoy lunch, and learn about development opportunities.  

Membership applications open for midcareer leadership institute

The Society of Behavioral Medicine’s Mid-Career Leadership Institute is accepting membership applications. Members gain access to career-building networking opportunities, leadership roles in one of 25 special-interest groups, discounts for the annual meeting, free educational programming and webinars, and tools such as the SBM Consultation Program and SciComm Toolkit. For more information, please visit the SBM membership page.

From the associate dean for education

Documenting and reporting concerns about student success

There are two main methods SPH faculty and staff should use when concerns arise about student engagement and success. These two systems offer a more reliable reporting and follow-up mechanism than sending emails. Please read about Early Alert and WashU Cares below. If you have any questions about student success, please also reach out to Katharine Pei, associate dean of student affairs. 

• Early Alert: The WashU Early Alert system should be used when faculty have identified a student in class whose attendance or academic performance warrants concern. Please submit all such concerns through Early Alert. The Office of Education will be notified and will follow up with students to share resources and support. Read more about Early Alerts on the provost’s website. 
• WashU Cares: If faculty or staff have information involving a student’s behavior, in regard to personal, physical, or emotional well-being, that is shared or observed directly in interactions with the student, please use the WashU Cares form to report concerns. A member of the WashU CARES team will reach out to the student to offer referral services.

Introducing Nurturing Future Teachers

The Office of Education is launching Nurturing Future Teachers, an innovative professional development program designed to prepare the next generation of public health educators while enriching the classroom experience. This initiative connects doctoral and second-year MPH students with structured, paid teaching assistant (TA) opportunities. The program aims to equip students with valuable skills in course facilitation, student engagement, and academic leadership through mentorship and hands-on teaching experience. 

Participating students will be paired with courses that align with their academic strengths and career aspirations. Faculty will benefit from having a streamlined process of securing a TA and additional teaching support, while students in courses will gain increased access to guidance and mentorship, strengthening the overall learning community.

Which courses are eligible for a TA?

SPH courses with enrollments of at least 20 students are eligible for a full TA. Other courses may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Who is eligible to become a TA?

MPH students are eligible to serve as TAs if they are in good academic standing; carry no incompletes from any previous semester; are in their second or greater year in the program; and are without academic integrity violations. 

PhD students who need a teaching practicum for credit, or who are eligible for paid teaching assistantships (with approval of the doctoral program), are also eligible to participate.

Time commitment and pay

TAs will be expected to commit 8-10 hours per week and will be paid at the student worker rate for their year and degree program. PhD students serving as TAs for teaching practicum credit will not be paid.

Training & assessment expectations

To participate, students in the Nurturing Future Teachers program will be expected to complete a pre- and post-semester evaluation and attend an initial training workshop, midsemester check-in meetings with the program, and weekly check-in meetings with the course instructor.

Faculty slated to teach in Spring 2026, please complete this form by November 7 so that we can gain a better understanding of your teaching assistant needs. A separate form for students to apply to the program soon will be distributed in the “Public Health Education Weekly” newsletter.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Charlene Caburnay, master’s program director; or Jonesey Johnson,master’s program manager.

From the interim associate dean for research

Update to IRB Assurance process

ORA has made some required adaptations to the IRB Assurance process guidance. The two notable changes:

• Everyone must email a copy of their myIRB application to sphresearch@wustl.edu.
• There are four different types of IRB Assurance documents based on an individual’s roles and the type of research taking place. To determine which one to use, ORA has created a flow chart on page 3 of the IRB Assurance process guidance.

We thank you all for your patience as we work to ensure the most efficient process possible. If you have any questions or feedback, please email us at sphresearch@wustl.edu.

Funding opportunities

• The WashU Office of Technology Management (OTM) is accepting applications for the GAP Fund, which provides critical early-stage funding to help bridge the gap between academic research and market-ready innovation. The program supports promising non-drug technologies developed at WashU with strong commercial or societal potential. Funding can be used to advance prototypes, validate feasibility, or gather data to attract outside investment or industry partners. Applications may be submitted at any time. 

• The 2026 William H. Danforth Confluence Award recognizes and celebrates WashU faculty whose interdisciplinary, community-engaged research creates meaningful impact in the St. Louis region. This prestigious award provides a $50,000 cash prize honoring collaborative research between academic and community partners. Awardees will present their work and share how it strengthens both scholarship and community engagement. The deadline for submissions is October 31. 
• The AICR INSPIRE Research Challenge, funded by the World Cancer Research Fund, supports early-career investigators with bold, innovative projects aimed at advancing cancer prevention, treatment, and survivorship. Institutions may nominate up to five applications. To learn more about WashU’s process, visit internal selections or email internalselections@wustl.edu. WashU’s submission deadline is October 24.

From the executive director of networks & innovation

Introducing the Data Management & Analytics team

The SPH Data Management & Analytics team provides support to School of Public Health researchers in multiple areas including data strategy, management, data visualization, and analytics. To help streamline this, the data team recently developed an intake form. Please feel free to use this to submit questions and requests, no matter how big or small. The team will follow up to find a time to discuss your needs and how they might assist you. A link to this form also will live in the SPH Toolbox at the end of the newsletter.

Access to software

WashU provides licenses to several software titles for use by faculty, staff and students, and the School of Public Health has licenses for more titles that faculty, staff and students can use. You can find the catalog of available software on the SPH website. A link to the catalog also lives in the SPH Toolbox at the end of the newsletter.

From the associate dean for administration

October SPH Compass session

For those who may have missed recent SPH Compass sessions or who would like to revisit the conversations, slides are available here. The most recent session covered badge access at 4300 Duncan; intent to hire, and position management; Shared Business Services; and Faculty Financial Reporting (FFR) 2.0 Dashboard management. 

Benefits open enrollment begins soon

Open enrollment runs November 3 to 14. This is your window to select or update benefits for the 2026 calendar year. Please ensure your teams are aware. Details on the election process will arrive by WashU email.

SPH events this week

Global Health Futures IRN discussion today

The Global Health Futures Innovation Research Network of WashU School of Public Health will host a breakfast discussion from 9 to 10 a.m. Monday, October 20, in 4300 Duncan, Room 3110. This event will feature a panel of WashU Public Health researchers — Drs. Lindsey Filiatreau, Sara Malone and Rodrigo Reis — discussing strategies to advance global public health research, as well as the role of the new School of Public Health in leading global health research. Register to attend.

Central IT workshops today and Wednesday

Central IT (ServiceNow) will hold a session from 2 to 3 p.m. Monday, October 20, in Hillman Hall, Room 210, and a second session from 2 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, October 22, in Room 3104 of the 4300 Duncan Avenue building, with Zoomavailable for remote participants. These sessions are intended to provide an overview of WashU IT services, including information on purchase orders for software licenses and computers, as well as data security, and collaboration tools. 

Thinking Public Health: Public health in the age of MAHA

This month’s Thinking Public Health will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, October 21, in the Dorris Building in the Cortex district, 20 South Sarah Street, in the Showroom on the first floor. Please note that the time has changed and that this is a new meeting spot. 

Thinking Public Health is a monthly, in-person gathering for moderated, structured conversations on pressing public health topics. Held under the Chatham House Rule, these discussions encourage open dialogue within the WashU community.

This month’s topic is “Public health in the age of MAHA.”

Public health is going through a period of unprecedented upheaval, catalyzed by policies wrought by the Trump administration, and spurred by the MAHA movement. Long-standing approaches are being reconsidered, with renewed debates around vaccines, shifting attention to unconventional areas of nutritional policy — for example, proposals to regulate ultra-processed foods or expand supplements guidance — and broader questions about the role of expertise in guiding health decisions. These developments present both challenges and opportunities, raising important questions about what drives these shifts and what they might mean for how public health thinks, prioritizes, and acts moving forward. 

Pre-reads:

Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) – Assessment Report. White House, May 2025.

Ultra-processed food exposure and adverse health outcomes: umbrella review of epidemiological meta-analyses. British Medical Journal, February 2024.

Evaluation of the evidence on acetaminophen use and neurodevelopmental disorders using the Navigation Guide methodology. Environmental Health, August 2025.

How Jessica Reed Kraus Went from Mommy Blogger to MAHA Maven. The New Yorker, September 2025.

Social media trust predicts lower COVID-19 vaccination rates and higher excess mortality over 2 years. PNAS Nexus, October 2023.

Talking Public Health with Ross Hammond

At noon Wednesday, October 22, Ross Hammond, PhD — Distinguished Professor in Public Health System Science at SPH — will speak as part of the Talking Public Health seminar series. The talk will be in the Cortex district’s Dorris Building, 20 South Sarah Street, in the first-floor Showroom. The talk also will be available over Zoom.

Other events this week

Talk on community resilience with Dr. L.J. Punch

Dr. L.J. Punch — trauma surgeon, founder of Power4STL and advocate for human-centered healing — will give the keynote address for Leadership Week, sponsored by the George and Carol Bauer Leadership Academy, on October 21 from 5 to 6 p.m. at Emerson Auditorium. His talk is titled, “Healing, Hope, and Community Resilience.” See here for details and to reserve a seat. 

New to the school

Jennifer Mandeville, MS, joins the School of Public Health as the senior network manager for the Planetary Health Innovation Research Network. She brings more than 20 years of experience working on teams focused on developing ecological solutions to the complex challenges facing our planet. Before joining SPH, she served as the project coordinator for WashU’s Living Earth Collaborative.

SPH Notables

Boyd presents research on shifting views on abortion

Ri’enna Boyd, a third-year PhD student in public health sciences, presented research at the American Political Science Association conference in Vancouver in September. Her study, conducted with faculty mentor Caitlin McMurtry, PhD, an assistant professor at the Brown School, examined how public opinion on pregnancy termination shifted following the Dobbs decision. For more, see Boyd’s synopsis of her experience presenting.

Looking ahead

SPH Convening: Science for Health Systems Conference

October 29-31 at WashU and online. As health systems face growing demands for efficiency, equity, and innovation, this conference — hosted by WashU School of Public Health in partnership with the QuEST Network and WashU Medicine — brings together global experts to explore how science can drive better performance, policy translation, and large-scale improvement. Register to attend at WashU or online.  

Skandalaris and public health entrepreneurship

On November 4, from 7 to 8 p.m., the Skandalaris Center will host an event introducing opportunities for public health students, faculty and staff to engage with WashU’s innovation and startup ecosystem. From Launchpad to the Skandalaris Venture Competition, attendees will learn how entrepreneurship can shape their practicum and career paths. The event also includes pizza and informal conversation. Register for the public health entrepreneurship meeting.

An introduction to the scholarship of WashU’s provost

On November 4 at 5:30 p.m., WashU Provost Mark D. West will give a talk at Graham Chapel. The talk is titled, “An Introduction to the Scholarship of WashU’s Provost: Life and Love; Systems and Stories — and Japanese Law.” Register here.

NASA health and air quality meeting

On November 6-7, WashU will host the NASA Health and Air Quality Applied Sciences Team meeting at the Knight Center. The team works to connect NASA satellite data and products with public health experts and air quality managers. The meeting is an opportunity for stakeholders to share their research needs and priorities, and for scientists to share their resources, insights, and new discoveries. Register here for the NASA air quality meeting. If you plan to attend in person, you must register by Tuesday, October 21.

Global Research Excellence Showcase

On November 10, from 1:30 -7 p.m., WashU will host the Global Research Excellence Showcase in Hillman Hall’s Clark-Fox Forum. The event will showcase research of WashU faculty members and researchers working across borders and disciplines to respond to humanity’s most pressing challenges. Featured presenters are recipients of Global Incubator Seed Grants, which harness the power of our international partnerships to advance innovative research in areas aligned with the university’s strategic plan. The program culminates with awards and recognitions. Register here for the global research showcase. View the full program here.

SPH Toolbox

• WashU IT support is available on the third floor of 4300 Duncan, in Suite 30 at Hillman Hall, or via SPHsupport@wustl.edu.