Academic Program Review

Masters of Public Health (general)

Master of Public Health with Environmental Health Concentration

Graduate Certificates: Community Health Education,

Environmental Health, Epidemiology, Emergency Preparedness and

Homeland Security, and Risk Assessment

Joint Degrees MPH/MPA and MPH/HMS

University: University of Illinois at Springfield

College: College of Public Affairs and Administration

Program: Public Health Department

CIPS

Classification Code: 51.2201 (Public Health, General (MPH, DPH) Classification Definition: “A program that generally prepares individuals to

plan, manage, and evaluate public health care services and to function as public

health officers. Includes instruction in epidemiology, biostatistics, public health

principles, preventive medicine, health policy and regulations, health care

services and related administrative functions, public health law enforcement,

health economics and budgeting, public communications, and professional

standards and ethics.” (IES National Center for Educational Statistics).

CIPS applies to all degrees and certificates offered by department.

Submitted for: Results Report 2001 – 2008 with 2009-spring 2011

amendments

Preparation

Coordinator: Sharron LaFollette, Ph.D. fall 2007 forward Associate Professor and Chair Public Health Department

Remi Imeokparia, Ph.D. summer 2007 and before (now emeritus)

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I. Program Objectives and Structure

Date of Initiation: (fall 1991)

Program faculty history: The Public Health Department was initiated in the fall of 1991. The

original faculty consisted of: Dr. Michael Quam (2/3 appointment), Margie Williams (1/3

appointment), and Dr. James Veselenak (adjunct) and relied on adjunct faculty to fill in teaching

voids in the curriculum. Dr. Remi Imeokparia (full time), was hired fall 1993 and a 1/6

appointment was granted to Dr. Jim Veselenak in 2000. Margie Williams left the department

with the move of the nursing curriculum to Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville in 1999.

Dr. Kathy DeBarr and Dr. Shahram Heshmat joined the department with the dissolution of the

Department of Health Services Administration in 1999. Dr. Quam retired in 2002. With the

retirement of Dr. Imeokparia in spring 2007, Dr. Sharron LaFollette was relocated from the

Department of Environmental Studies (ENS) and became chair fall 2007. Dr. Mark Edgar was

hired as visiting instructor fall 2007, became full-time tenure track assistant professor fall 2008,

and left fall of 2010. Josiah Alamu was hired as instructor fall 2008 and after degree completion

became full-time tenure track assistant professor fall 2009. The four current faculty (spring

2011) in the department are joined by semi-permanent adjuncts (Lenore Killam, Ken Runkle and

Greg Michaud) and a number of rotating adjuncts to meet the needs of the curriculum. During

the spring 2011 semester, the department is searching for two new faculty positions: Assistant

Professor of Public Health Policy and Clinical Instructor of Environmental Health and Internship

Coordinator.

Program degree history: The original New Academic Program Request envisioned a generalist

Master of Public Health (MPH) degree with an additional emphasis on Environmental Health. In

fall 2007, the department added an official MPH with Environmental Health concentration

(MPH-EH) with the move of the risk sciences courses from the Department of Environmental

Studies to the Public Health Department (PH). From the beginning, the MPH-EH concentration

has been offered on campus and online. Beginning fall 2011, the general MPH degree will also

be offered on campus and online. The department teamed in 2003 with the departments of

Human Management Services (HMS) and Public Administration (MPA) to offer joint degrees,

MPH/HMS and MPH/MPA respectively. In addition to the two MPH degrees and the two joint

degrees, the department offers five graduate certificates online and on campus. Three were

added in fall 2007: Epidemiology, Community Health, and Environmental Health. In fall 2007,

two certificates were relocated from the Department of Environmental Studies: Risk Sciences

and Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security. Beginning fall 2011, the department will

also offer an undergraduate minor in public health.

Conceptual Design:

The goal of the Public Health Department is to prepare graduates as competent public health

practitioners. Public health professionals must deal with a myriad of issues: access to quality

health care, prevention and control of disease, environmental protection, the health needs of

special populations, data analysis and evaluation, policy planning and administration, and health

promotion.

Draft 4-22-2011 3

From fall 2007- spring 2011, the department offered two options for graduate-level study in

public health (48 credit hours): a generalist MPH degree with a strong interdisciplinary

foundation for practice in public health, and an MPH with a Environmental Health Concentration

within which a student may generalize (fall 2007 - spring 2011; dropped beginning fall 2011) or

may choose to emphasize preparation in risk assessment or emergency preparedness. In

preparation for accreditation of both degrees by the Council on Education for Public Health

(CEPH) and reaccreditation of the MPH-EH concentration by the National Environmental Health

Science and Protection Accreditation Council (EHAC), the department spent the last three and ½

years aligning the curriculum with accreditation guidelines; streamlining the electives available

to the graduate student; and developing appropriate mission, measurable goals, and competencies

for directing curriculum and assessment of student learning (see attached mission, goals,

competencies, and the 2011-2012 catalog copy).

For fall 2011, all degree-seeking students, will take the required core as outlined by the CEPH

criteria: MPH 503 Biostatistics for the Health Professional (prerequisite not core in AY 2008-

2011 catalogs), MPH 506 Community Health Research, MPH 511 Foundations of Epidemiology,

MPH 521 Environmental and Occupational Health, MPH 531 Public Health Policy and

Administration, MPH 561 Community Health Education, and MPH 581 Internship (core hours =

28 hours). The general MPH student takes five elective courses (20 hours) guided by categories

consistent with training a general public health practitioner. The MPH-EH students have two

additional EH core courses (8 hours): MPH 527 Environmental Risk Assessment and MPH 449

Environmental Toxicology. Beginning fall 2011, the MPH-EH concentration students must

select from option A: Risk Sciences or option B: Emergency Preparedness and Homeland

Security, which contain three courses each (12 hours).

Through the years, the curriculum has grown and changed, reflecting greater maturity in the field

of environmental and public health. Curricular modifications have been made with the ultimate

goal of obtaining professional accreditation for both degrees. Along with curricular

modifications, the accreditation goal has required formalized development of competencies

mapped with course learning objectives and development and implementation of regular

assessment. In addition, CEPH requires three faculty for each degree option, which has resulted

in a corresponding growth in faculty hires to represent all the core areas of public health. The

department was formally accepted into CEPH accreditation cycle fall 2009 and is currently on

target for accreditation site visit spring 2012, with the initial draft of the self- study due spring

2011 and final draft of the self-study due October 2011. The MPH-EH originally obtained

accreditation through the EHAC in June 2006 as an M.S. in Environmental Risk Sciences and

was housed in the Department of Environmental Studies. In June 2007, in anticipation of the

move of the curricular home from ENS to Public Health and revision of the curriculum

consistent with a sound foundation in public health, the department petitioned and received

approval to maintain accreditation for the revised curriculum. The MPH-EH degree is up for

reaccreditation June 2012 with the self-study due December 2011

The general MPH and MPH with EH concentration require 48 hours of coursework, including

internship. Professionals with terminal degrees in their fields (e.g., MD, DVD, DDS, Ph.D.) may

petition for the professional degree option. These students take the public health core courses

and fewer electives for a total of 36 hours instead of the standard 48 hours. The professional

Draft 4-22-2011 4

option (general MPH and MPH-EH) is intended to focus research and health backgrounds on the

applied field of public health.

The department offers two joint degrees initiated in fall 2003. The joint degree between MPH

and MPA (Public Administration) is designed for students interested in public health

administration. The MPH and HMS (Human Services) is designed for students interested in a

strong public health focus combined with social services positions. Joint degrees require all core

courses within each major and complementary electives for broad, interdisciplinary preparation

(68 hours). To date the MPH/MPA has garnered better visibility and therefore has more students

and alumni. In December 2008, current faculty in MPH and HMS discussed better marketing of

the joint MPH/HMS degree, which began during the spring 2009 semester. The first two

MPH/HMS joint majors were admitted for spring 2011.

The department offers five graduate certificates: Community Health Education (fall 2007),

Environmental Health (fall 2007), Epidemiology (fall 2007), Emergency Preparedness and

Homeland Security (fall 2006 housed in ENS and moved to MPH fall 2007), and Risk

Assessment (fall 1992 housed in ENS and moved to MPH fall 2007). Certificate work may be

used toward either the MPH general degree or the MPH with Environmental Health

Concentration, as standalone certificate, or with another graduate degree. Students seeking

certificate and an MPH degree may need to take additional courses to satisfy both requirements.

Several students over the last 3 years have sought multiple certificates in addition to their MPH

degree.

Traditionally all courses were offered on campus. Beginning fall 2007, all core courses are

offered in on campus, blended (MPH 506) and online format (see sample 2-year course rotation

attached). Since fall 2007, the MPH with Environmental Health concentration can be taken as a

degree on campus or qualifies for e-tuition as a recognized online degree. Four of the graduate

certificates can be taken on campus or qualify for e-tuition as recognized online certificates:

Community Health Education, Environmental Health, Emergency Preparedness and Homeland

Security, and Risk Assessment. Starting fall 2011 the general MPH and the Epidemiology

Certificate may be taken on campus or online. The Epidemiology Certificate had originally been

limited to on campus because ENS 404 Fundamentals of Geographic Information System was

taught on campus only. This changed in spring 2011, which now allows for an online

Epidemiology Certificate as well.

Program Objectives:

The curriculum is designed for students to gain an understanding and knowledge of the five

disciplines core to public health: biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health sciences,

health policy and management, and social and behavioral sciences (Calhoun et al. 2008, p.

1599). In addition, the curriculum helps students to become aware of the role of values in issue

formulation and policy making. The MPH and MPH-EH curricula enable students to

understand: 1) the various factors that affect the health of a community; 2) the methods to

identify and measure community and environmental health; and 3) the components that comprise

public health services delivery systems (cost, planning, and administration).

Draft 4-22-2011 5

During fall 2010, strategic planning developed a mission and measurable goals for the

department (see attachment). During fall 2009 and spring and fall 2010 in preparation for the

upcoming CEPH accreditation, the department identified 13 core competencies for the

curriculum (attached) and specialized competencies for the MPH-EH concentration and general

MPH elective categories (attached). The competencies are the result of serious evaluation of

competencies proposed by the Association of Schools of Public Health Competency Model and

the Council on Linkages’ Public Health Competencies. The UIS competencies evolved from the

initial mapping of the UIS curriculum with the above models and identifying the strengths of the

UIS curriculum. Each of over 150 competencies were ranked from 0-3, with three representing

“major component” in a course and zero representing “not covered” in a course to identify

competency strengths in the curriculum. The department piloted several assessment strategies

around the initial competencies before adopting the final competencies and assessment strategy.

The final competencies adopted by the department are currently being mapped with the learning

objectives in each course and the comprehensive exam to facilitate assessment across students.

The department will use the first department meeting each semester to discuss the data collected

the previous semester to address changes needed to courses and the curriculum.

A movement within the public health community toward certification of practitioners has

culminated in a mechanism for certification through the National Board of Public Health

Examiners (NBPHE). Beginning in 2008, public health professionals with graduate degrees in

public health from a school or program with accreditation from CEPH are able to sit for the

Certification in Public Health (CPH) exam. Of interest to the UIS program and our students is

the NBPHE position on graduates of programs that were not CEPH accredited at the time that the

student graduated but subsequently gained CEPH accreditation. Students who graduate within

three years of the program gaining CEPH accreditation are allowed to sit for the CPH exam.

Therefore, once the UIS program gains accreditation students who have graduated within three

years prior to that date will be eligible to sit for the voluntary certification exam. Performance

on the exam will provide another data point to assess the competency of our graduates.

During the 2006-2007 academic year, the department conducted strategic planning in light of Dr.

Remi Imeokparia’s retirement and in anticipation of the transfer of Dr. Sharron LaFollette from

ENS to Public Health. The department had not gone through a formal strategic planning or

curricular assessment during the previous program review. During the first five years of the

current review period, the department discussed merger with the UI-Chicago School of Public

Health MPH program. That route was abandoned and formal strategic plan initiated late fall

2006. During the 2006-2007 strategic planning and assessment activities, the department

considered the following priorities during the development of a working curriculum:

1. Delivery of curriculum to students over a two-year rotation allowing for the addition of

an MPH with EH concentration, online delivery, and undergraduate minor (completed),

2. Revision of core curriculum to better meet the needs of students while reducing faculty

advising loads (completed).

3. Development of standardized assessment criteria, and appropriate student guidance

documents and faculty advising guides (completed).

4. Development of learning objectives for all courses (completed).

5. Development of competencies and assessment strategy (completed).

Draft 4-22-2011 6

6. Mapping learning objectives with competencies (under construction).

7. Assessment of electives offered. Re-align elective options under each option or core as

appropriate (completed).

8. UG minor (completed, approved, and in fall 2011 catalog).

9. Accreditation (MPH-EH concentration maintained accreditation with move from ENS

and curricular with MPH and CEPH application approved fall 2009 with self-study in

progress).

Curricular Requirements and Coherence:

The department caters to the needs of the working students and those in the Graduate Public

Service Internship program. All on campus graduate courses are offered evening hours (one day

per week, 6-9:30 pm). All core courses are offered both on campus and online each academic

year. Electives are offered at least once every other year. Some of the 400-level electives are

offered every semester because they are also popular with the undergraduate students at UIS. To

increase demand for the electives, most are offered online. This also provides a greater selection

of courses for the online students. A two-year course schedule was developed fall 2009 and was

revised spring 2011 to accommodate an UG minor in faculty schedules (attached). MPH core

courses are offered twice per year (rotating on campus and online) and MPH-EH core courses

are offered once per year. Although some electives are offered every year (higher demand, often

across campus, and perhaps cross-listed as ECCE), some electives have been phased into being

offered every other year to increase enrollment. Electives fitting certificate requirements often

fall in the every other year criteria.

Historically, students developed their educational plans during their first semester on campus.

During the fall 2008 assessment across the students, it was identified that educational plans were

developed too late and often not followed. In fall 2009, the department implemented a hold on

new students’ registration for classes until an education plan is developed. Advisors notify the

department secretary to release the hold when the education plan is completed and on file. We

have always asked that students continue to meet with advisors each semester to ensure currency

of the educational plan and satisfactory progress is being made toward completing degree

requirements, but few comply. We still have students under the old system and continue to have

advising issues come graduation time, but hope that the initial hold will instill an atmosphere of

accountability for following the educational plan so fewer students have deficiencies come

graduation time in the future. During the spring 2011 review of graduation contracts fewer

issues have arisen.

During assessment across the curriculum in spring 2007, the department identified the need to

change prerequisite for full admission into the degree. These changes were driven by

accreditation criteria and student performance and included:

Adding 30 hours of natural sciences to increase the foundational sciences feeding into

public health principles.

Adding a 300-level or higher biostatistics course with B- or better in the last three

years. MPH 503: Biostatistics for the Health Professional was dropped as a core

course, but offered for students to fulfill the prerequisite condition. For fall 2011,

Draft 4-22-2011 7

MPH 503 has been returned to the core requirements because too few students

admitted to the curriculum had undergraduate preparation in biostatistics.

Retaining GRE requirement to align the degree with CEPH accredited schools and

programs. The accredited degrees do not have uniform GRE score requirements and

some just require the GRE as a hurdle for admissions. With no clear guidance, the

department uses the GRE in combination with other criteria to place students in

conditional admission. Data are being collected to determine if a threshold GRE

should be required for our students.

Retaining an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 as a requirement.

Collectively these prerequisites enable us to select better qualified candidates and increase the

likelihood of successful completion in the MPH program of study (data being collected to

provide evidence).

The fall 2011 catalog (attached) contains the required curriculum for general MPH and MPH-EH

aligned with accreditation criteria of CEPH (ceph.org) and EHAC (ehacoffice.org) respectively.

All students take an integrative public health core (as of fall 2011 six courses = 28 hours). The

integrative core is designed for all students in the graduate curriculum and includes preparation

in the core areas of public health (public health policy and administration, epidemiology,

environmental and occupational health, community health promotion, community health

research, and biostatistics) and the internship experience. The core curriculum for the Master of

Public Health is designed for students to become competent public health generalists, prepared

for “the many career pathways and professional employment positions that make up the field of

public health” (Calhoun, et al. 2008, p. 1606). Objectives are for students to be able to undertake

“…analysis and consideration of solutions to public health problems at the community,

institutional, and societal levels…” (Calhoun et al. 2008, p. 1599).

Specifically, our student learning objectives following CEPH Guidelines include development of

knowledge and application in the following areas:

“Biostatistics – collection, storage, retrieval, analysis and interpretation of health data;

design and analysis of health-related surveys and experiments; and concepts and practice

of statistical data analysis;

Epidemiology – distributions and determinants of disease, disabilities and death in human

populations; the characteristics and dynamics of human populations; and the natural

history of disease and the biologic basis of health;

Environmental health sciences – environmental factors including biological, physical and

chemical factors that affect the health of a community;

Health services administration – planning, organization, administration, management,

evaluation and policy analysis of health and public health programs; and

Social and behavioral sciences – concepts and methods of social and behavioral sciences

relevant to the identification and solution of public health problems.” (Accreditation

Criteria: Public Health Programs, Council on Education for Public Health, Amended June

2005, p. 9,10 Accessed 120808 http://www.ceph.org/files/public/PHP-Criteria-

2005.SO5.pdf)

In addition to the integrative core required of all students, students selecting the MPH with

Environmental Health Concentration are required to take two additional concentration core

Draft 4-22-2011 8

courses: MPH 449 Environmental Toxicology and MPH 527 Environmental Risk Assessment (8

hours total). Both courses and the competencies delivered by the core courses are required for

accreditation through EHAC (http://www.ehacoffice.org/accred-guide/grad-guide.php).

Students taking the general MPH degree select electives to prepare themselves across the

discipline. In response to CEPH guidance, for fall 2011 the electives are grouped around similar

competencies and prepare the students in emerging issues, social determinants, advanced

epidemiology, and analytical tools in public health. For fall 2011, students in the MPH-EH can

select advanced preparation in either risk sciences or emergency preparedness and homeland

security. The general elective option for the MPH-EH students has been dropped in response to

CEPH guidance.

Graduate Certificates: The Department offers five competency-based graduate certificates: risk

assessment, emergency preparedness and homeland security, epidemiology, environmental

health, and community health education (see attached). Certificates may be taken by non-degree

seeking students and by MPH students and applied toward their degree requirements. The

certificates provide continuing education opportunities for health professionals without formal

public health training, for those interested in life-long learning, and for mid-career professionals.

The certificates can be pursued as a stand-alone credential or as a supplemental credential within

the degree program.

Each of the graduate certificates is aggregated from courses within the MPH degree curriculum.

Additionally, the interdisciplinary Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security Graduate

Certificate consists of courses from throughout the College of Public Affairs and Administration.

Individuals who have a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university are eligible to

apply to the certificate areas of study. A background in the biological sciences demonstrated by

transcript credit of at least three credit hours plus a strong general sciences background is

desirable. Full admission requires a GPA of 3.00 on a 4.00 point scale. Applicants with less

than the desired prerequisites may be considered for conditional admission.

Graduate certificate students who decide to pursue a full degree may apply up to 12 credit hours

of graduate certificate courses toward the degree. Applicants must meet all department

requirements before acceptance into the MPH degree program. Similarly, those who have

already completed one or more of these graduate certificates and who are interested in the full

MPH degree must meet all department requirements before acceptance into the MPH degree

program. Students presently enrolled as MPH majors must file a Change of Curriculum form

with the Office of the Registrar to add a graduate certificate program. There is no additional

charge to file the Change of Curriculum form.

Upon admission to the graduate certificate program, each student will be assigned a faculty

adviser within the appropriate area of specialty. The five graduate certificates are described in

detail in the Review of Graduate Certificates section.

Joint Degrees: The Department offers two joint degrees (MPH/MPA and MPH/HMS), each

available both on-campus and online. Students must be accepted separately by each program to

Draft 4-22-2011 9

be eligible for joint degree status, and all admission requirements for each program apply for

joint degree students.

The joint Master of Public Health/ Master of Public Administration degree (MPH/MPA) is a 68

credit hour program that requires 28 hours of MPH core, plus eight hours of MPH elective

credits (two courses) and the comprehensive exam. For student in the MPH-EH concentration,

the additional concentration core courses preclude the choice of elective courses. With respect to

the Master of Public Administration requirements, students must complete 20 credit hours of

MPA core, two MPA electives, and a four credit hour capstone closure course.

The second joint degree offered is a Master of Public Health/Master of Human Services degree

(68 credit hours). The HMS portion requires 16 credit hours of program core, 12 credit hours of

concentration core, and a four credit hour advanced research project (capstone course beginning

fall 2011). Requirements for the MPH portion of the joint degree are identical to those of the

MPH/MPA degree with the one exception that the four credit hours of internship may be taken

from either degree program and requires 400 contact hours instead of the 200 contact hours

required of the general MPH and MPH-EH degrees..

Students in the joint degree programs are assessed identically to those in the generalist and

MPH-EH concentration programs.

Accreditation (for programs with accreditation or seeking accreditation):

Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) (http://ceph.org/pdf/PHP-Criteria-redline.pdf):

The department formally applied for admission to the accreditation process fall 2009 and was

accepted. Between fall 2007 and spring 2011, the department worked extensively toward

creating curriculum, infrastructure and assessment necessary to align it with CEPH guidelines.

During spring 2011, the self-study is being written for preliminary review by CEPH. The final

self-study is due October 2011, with the site visit tentatively scheduled for April 2012.

National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council (EHAC)

(http://www.ehacoffice.org/accred-guide/grad-guide.php): In 2006, ENS MS in Environmental

Health was accredited by EHAC. In fall 2007, the risk sciences and environmental health

courses were moved to the public health curriculum. The curriculum was aligned with the core

MPH courses and transformed to an MPH-EH concentration. In June 2007, the department

received approval to call the MPH-EH an accredited EHAC graduate degree. The MPH-EH

became the first public health degree (i.e., non-M.S. environmental health degree) accredited by

EHAC. The pre-requisite of 30 semester credit hours of natural sciences was added for all

students admitted to the program. This strengthens incoming student preparation in the natural

sciences necessary to align the MPH-EH degree with the EHAC guidelines. It also strengthens

preparation for incoming students in the general degree for understanding the underlying natural

sciences inherent in the sciences of public health.

Draft 4-22-2011 10

Comparison with similar programs (for programs without accreditation):

The UIS MPH program holds a unique place within Illinois with respect to the academic purpose

of its curriculum. It is one of four schools that offer a degree with CIP 51.2201 Public Health

(General). The other schools are University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and Northern Illinois

University (NIU). Until the addition of the MPH program at the University of Illinois at

Champaign-Urbana (UIUC) in AY 2008, UIS was the smallest program of the three in the state.

The MPH program at UIS is now the second largest of the four programs in Illinois

UIC, which has a School of Public Health, requires that students choose one of four

specializations: Community Health Sciences, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Environmental and

Occupational Health Sciences, or Health Policy and Administration. NIU requires that students

specialize in either Health Promotion or Health Services Management. A generalist option is

available only to health professionals with accredited degrees in medicine or allied health

professions. The UIUC program offers a MPH degree with a concentration in Health Behavior

and Promotion, with a specialization in Health Policy and Management.

UIS is the only University of Illinois campus offering all MPH degrees and certificates online as

well as on campus. UIC has several online options, including a MPH in Public health

Informatics, a MPH in Community Health Sciences, a MPH in Health Policy and

Administration, and a DrPH in Leadership. UIC requires that all online students attend a five day

on-campus program annually. Neither UIUC nor NIU offer an online MPH option.

UIS stands alone with its generalist degree, designed to prepare well-rounded public health

practitioners. Generalist students are required to take electives from each of four electives

groupings designed to build competence within a broad range of issues. Additionally, UIS is the

only one of the four schools to offer a concentration in Environmental Health with options in risk

assessment or emergency preparedness and homeland security. UIS also has the only MPH with

concentration in Environmental Health accredited by EHAC. . There are no curriculum changes

anticipated based on comparison with the programs summarized above.

MPH Program Enrollments AY 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Northern Illinois 54 68 77 69 66 60 46 36

U of I Chicago 406 458 424 408 406 394 335 397

U of I Urbana/Champ. -- -- -- -- -- -- 0 5

U of I Springfield 47 39 37 45 41 34 55 66

According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010-2011),

careers related to the UIS masters’ curricula should grow much faster than average for all

occupations. Environmental health positions, particularly in the risk sciences, are anticipated to

grow with gear up efforts to discover new and improved ways to clean up and preserve the

environment. EH position growth should be fastest in state and local government. Growth rate

in general public health and in positions requiring epidemiology training is also expected to grow

much faster than average for all occupations.

Draft 4-22-2011 11

The department, through strategic planning and curricula assessment, will evaluate curricula

relative to preparation for long-term growth areas in the public health arena. Particular focus

will be to identify new technology and updated tools (e.g., GIS), specialized skills (e.g., risk

assessment and emergency preparedness), research methods, and critical analysis strategies

which prepare the students of our department to succeed in the fluid and interdisciplinary field of

public health in general and in environmental health.

II. Assessment of Learning Outcomes and Curricular Revisions

Assessment:

Subsequent to the strategic planning in spring 2007, assessment planning in 2007-2008, and

competency development 2009-2010, the department drafted a formal plan for assessment across

the curriculum. Assessment includes evaluating delivery of curriculum; aligning with CEPH and

EHAC accreditation guidelines; developing mission, measurable goals, competencies, and

learning objectives; and creating tools for assessment across students. Mapping of courses to

competencies and accreditation guidelines and mapping of competencies to learning objectives is

being conducted spring 2011. Since fall 2007, three iterations of competencies and mapping

have occurred in an effort to identify strengths of the curriculum and degree(s) niche among

accredited programs of environmental and public health.

The department is on target to complete mapping of learning objectives to competencies for

courses offered spring 2011. Over the summer, the department should have this task completed

for all courses. Syllabi will contain the mapping for transparency of the process to the students.

An assessment column added to the map will serve as the tool to collect, across the students, the

student achievement of competencies. The first departmental meeting each semester will review

student achievement across students based on data collected from this process and improve

courses and curriculum accordingly.

In addition to unifying assessment of all courses, the department has focused on the ability of the

comprehensive exam to evaluate student achievement of all competencies required of an entry-

level MPH practitioner. Since fall 2008, the comprehensive exam has morphed from an exam of

questions from the core curricular areas to a comprehensive exam with an applied focus built

around a case study. Student no longer come to campus for a ½ day exam. Instead, the students

use all written resources available to them for the evaluation of the case study problem, design of

intervention, and program evaluation. Performance relative to all areas of core curriculum is

assessed. Starting fall 2011, the competencies of each elective category will be evaluated.

Students are better able to demonstrate ability than previously possible with a short exam. For

spring 2011, the faculty are focusing on mapping the comprehensive exam to the core

competencies and building an appropriate evaluation rubric for the exam. Blackboard is used to

deliver the exam and evaluation material to the student. All exams must be referenced and are

scanned through Turnitin for plagiarism prior to grading.

In an effort to improve record keeping and assessment, the department began scanning all

student records into e-docs fall 2010. In addition, a Microsoft Access database was created for

Draft 4-22-2011 12

improved record evaluation and aligning education plans with courses to be offered each

semester. Spring 2011 was the first course schedule created by querying education plans for

course need within the rotation to maximize course occupancy by students.

Currently the MPH-EH graduates, as graduates from an EHAC accredited program, have the

opportunity to sit for licensure or certification exams immediately after graduation (without the

one year of practice required of graduates from non-accredited programs of environmental

health). Alumni wanting to practice in Illinois may sit for the Licensed Environmental Health

Practitioner (LEHP) exam. The LEHP is required for individuals working within some job

categories at state and local health departments. However, some of our students are working EH

professionals and already hold an LEHP because they either graduated from an EHAC accredited

undergraduate environmental health degree, or have a natural science background and have one

year of experience under the supervision of an LEHP professional. Nationally, alumni may sit

for the Registered Environmental Health Sanitarian administered by the National Environmental

Health Association. Success rate on these two exams cannot be tracked to individual students,

programs, or universities.

As discussed above, the general MPH alumni cannot currently sit for voluntary certification

(CPH). With accreditation by CEPH, all alumni graduating within three years of accreditation

may sit for this voluntary credentialing exam. Some of our general MPH alumni (and some

current students) have strong undergraduate preparation in community health education and have

taken the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) exam (offered through the National

Commission for Health Education Credentialing). Current students with CHES certification can

petition out of MPH 561 Community Health Education and substitute an additional elective.

In an effort to formally assess the curriculum in student preparation for practice in public health

arena, the department has invited key professionals in public health to serve on the department

external Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee was formally initiated spring 2011,

with 11 practitioners participating and providing valuable feedback for the department. The

Advisory Committee will meet bi-yearly to talk about curriculum and facilitate networking for

the students and faculty with the practice.

Curricular Revisions during the Review Period:

The following revisions discussed above have been made to the graduate curriculum during the

2001-2010 (mostly between 2007 and 2011).

Change prerequisites to include 30 hours of natural sciences and biostatistics (latter

removed for fall 2011).

Import from ENS the risk sciences and environmental health courses and develop an

MPH-EH degree.

Create three graduate certificates (epidemiology, community health education,

environmental health) and move two graduate certificates from ENS (risk sciences and

emergency preparedness and homeland certificate). Offer certificates on campus and

eventually online.

Offer all courses online at least once in a two-year cycle.

Draft 4-22-2011 13

Revise curriculum to align the courses with accreditation requirements by CEPH and

EHAC.

Prepare to take general MPH and epidemiology certificate online fall 2011.

Develop an undergraduate minor for fall 2011.

Participate heavily in ECCE lower and upper division courses on campus (currently offer

11 ECCE courses).

Realign Internship hours to reflect changes in GPSI course requirements for GPSI

students, i.e., change from accepting four hours of GPSI PAD coursework toward

internship requirements to using one hour PAD and three hours of MPH 581 for this

requirement. There has been no change in internship hours for non-GPSI public health

graduate students.

Career Objectives and Job Placement:

Public health careers are as diverse as the technical, social and natural sciences feeding into the

discipline. Career specialization may include Environmental Health & Protection, Public Health

Policy and Planning, Epidemiology, or Community Health Promotion (just to name a few).

These careers are constantly evolving and challenge individuals to critically evaluate issues,

problem solve, and design and implement interventive strategies. The bachelor’s degree

prepares many to begin a career in public health. For those seeking to advance their careers, a

graduate degree is imperative. The generalist MPH degree provides for a great deal of versatility

within the field, while the Environmental Health concentration affords an opportunity for those

seeking to specialize.

The UIS Public Health Department prepares students to become productive members of the

public health community to help accomplish the Healthy People (healthypeople.gov) vision of

healthy people in healthy communities at the local, state, national, and international levels.

Graduates of the department are prepared for diverse careers in the field.

Many of our past and present students hold professional positions with a large variety of private,

not-for-profit and public agencies. The following list is illustrative and not inclusive:

Local Governments (examples)

o Sangamon County Health Department

o Adams County Health Department

o Peoria County Health Department

o Bureau/Putnam County Health Department

Illinois State Government

o Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

o Illinois Emergency Management Agency (Division of Nuclear Safety)

o Department of Public Health

United States Government

o Center for Disease Control

o Food and Drug Administration

o Armed forces

Not-for-profit organizations

Draft 4-22-2011 14

o American Lung Association (and others)

Practicing physicians and veterinarians with dual MD/MPH and DVM/MPH degrees

Ph.D in public health policy

Students of the department frequently work full-time or have Graduate Public Service

Internships or Graduate Assistantships during their time of graduate study. The GPSI position

may serve as an entry point into an agency for full-time employment. It is not unusual for the

GPSI students to obtain jobs within the same or similar workplace prior to graduation, and leave

their GPSI positions early.

As of fall 2008, the department has created a database by which it can communicate with the

alumni and hopefully stay closer in touch. This database provides e-mail addressed (where

available) and street addresses for sending out the newsletter each semester. In addition,

students are now connected electronically with the department through the MPH listserv.

Students are encouraged to remain on the listserv after graduation. The department started a

Facebook site fall 2010, and is currently searching the social network site to invite alumni and

students to become friends. Although posting is currently sporadic, beginning fall 2011 the new

department graduate assistant will be responsible for regular communication through this site.

The UIS Survey Research Office has provided data describing how our graduates evaluate the

impact of the program on their career objectives. The survey reported the responses of 34

alumni who received their degrees in AYs 2002-2008. Of the 34 respondents, 7 had continued

their formal educations. Of these, five responded to the question of how well the MPH prepared

them for this endeavor. Two responded that they were very well prepared, two stated that they

were well prepared, and one stated that the degree did not provide good preparation.

The survey found that 28 (82.4%) of the respondents were employed full-time, 2 (5.9%) were

employed part-time, and 3 (8.8%) were seeking employment, and one was not seeking

employment. Most respondents reported job satisfaction; 10 (33.3%) respondents were very

satisfied, 11 (36.7%) were satisfied, 7 (23.3%) were somewhat satisfied, and 2 (6.7%) were

somewhat dissatisfied.

Due to the specialized nature of the MPH degree, it was not surprising to find a high percentage

of graduates working in the public health field. The survey stated that 12 (40%) of the employed

respondents were working in a closely related field, 15 (50%) in a related field, and 3 (10%)

chose to work in an unrelated field.

The graduates reported that the MPH provided good preparation for their careers; 4 (14.3%)

stated they were very well prepared, 11 (39.3%) stated they were well prepared, 11 (39.3) stated

they were adequately prepared, and 2 (7.1%) stated they were not adequately prepared. With

respect to specific job duties, 1 respondent (7.7%) found the degree extremely helpful, 5 (38.5%)

found the degree very helpful, and the remaining 7 respondents (53.8%) found the degree

somewhat helpful.

Additionally, a high percentage of the graduates responded that the degree had contributed to the

attainment of their career goals. There were 10 graduates (29.4%) who strongly agreed, 16

Draft 4-22-2011 15

(47.1%) who agreed, 4 (11.8%) who were neutral, 2 (5.9%) who disagreed and 2 (5.9%) who

strongly disagreed.

Student Satisfaction:

Although the department does not have independent data concerning the satisfaction of current

students, the UIS Survey Office provided us with data concerning graduate satisfaction with the

program. The survey reveals that out of 33 respondents, 10 (30.3%) have a strongly positive

attitude toward UIS, 20 (60.6%) have a positive attitude toward UIS, and 2 (6.1%) have a

somewhat positive attitude. The remaining respondent has a somewhat negative attitude toward

UIS. The survey reveals that 29 of the 33 respondents (85.3% would attend UIS again, 4 (11.8%

are undecided, and only one would not return.

Likewise, the survey reports that 11 (32.4%) of the 34 respondents have a strongly positive

attitude about the public health program, 16 (47.1%) have a positive attitude toward the program,

5 (14.7%) have a somewhat positive attitude, and the remaining two have a somewhat negative

attitude toward the program. Most alumni would repeat the program; 24 (70.6%) responded that

they would choose the same major, 2 (5.9%) would pursue a related major, 2 (5.9%) would

choose an unrelated major, and 6 (17.6%) were undecided.

Student Achievements:

While the department is pleased with the achievement of all of our students, six students are

summarized below in recognition of their accomplishments:

MPH Alumni (spring 2010), Ajay Myneni, is studying the linkages between

undermining of residential structures and indoor levels of radon using Geographic

Information System (GIS) analyses. During 2010, he received competitive scholarships

from ESRI and American Public Health Association (APHA) to present his research at

the annual conferences of each association. He has been accepted into the University at

Buffalo, School of Public Health and Health Professions, Ph.D. in Epidemiology program

for fall 2011.

MPH Student Ehab Ghandour has coauthored an Illinois Department of Public Health

report that is the end product of his internship. The surveillance report issued by IDPH

birth defect surveillance system is entitled “Trends in the Prevalence of Birth Defects in

Illinois and Chicago, 1989-2008.” The Illinois Department of Public Health has made the

report available on their website.

The Illinois Public Health Association’s 2010 Public Health Student of the Year,

Diamond Ross, continues to make remarkable achievements. Ross is a May 2011 joint

Master of Public Health and Master of Public Administration candidate. Fall 2010, Ross

was appointed a Whitney M. Young, Jr. Graduate Fellow. As a fellow, Ross maintains a

service commitment with the campus’ Diversity Center. Ross assists with the

implementation of the S.I.S.T.A. Project at the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS).

This peer-led intervention assembles young women who are UIS students in five weekly

two-hour sessions on campus, highlighting cultural pride and pride in being a woman

through discussions, poetry readings, and homework assignments. Ross is fascinated by

Draft 4-22-2011 16

this opportunity to apply the skills from her MPH course work and focus on the two

health promotion theories from which the S.I.S.T.A. Project Intervention was adapted;

The Social Cognitive Theory and Theory of Gender and Power. Lastly, Ross was named

a Presidential Management Fellowship Nominee by UIS Graduate Administrators.

Each month the Association of Environmental Health Academic Programs highlights a

student from one of the accredited programs. Anthony Nevicosi was selected for

October 2010. Anthony plans to graduate in spring 2011.

Ashley Boateng, MPH 2009, was the recipient of the 2008 Illinois Environmental Health

Association O.L. Meyer Student Stipend Award.

Keesa Stinebaker was the recipient of the 2008 IEHA stipend to attend the 2009

American Environmental Health Association annual meeting in Atlanta GA.

The department highlights students and their accomplishments on the “Points of Pride” page of

the MPH website.

III. Student Characteristics and Academic Support

Demographics:

The demographics for the department can be evaluated only as a total student body, not separated

into MPH and MPH-EH concentration students (see table I).

By Gender:

MPH program gender distribution in the fall 2010 term was approximately 2/3 female (66%).

This is nearly the same percentage as in AYs 2003 and 2004 (66-67% female). The highest

percentage of females in the reporting period was 74% in AY 2002. During AYs 2005-2007, the

percentage of males in the program increased to a high of 61%, after which the percentage of

females again began to steadily increase to 66% in AY 2011.

By Race:

The number of Hispanic students has remained quite low, with one or none enrolled in each of

the years. The number of Asian students has also remained low, with a maximum of 4 in AY

2004 and 2011. The percentage of Black students suffered a brief decline during AY 2005-2007,

but has remained steady at 14-15% during the AY 2008-2011 period. The percentage of white

students has roughly doubled from the low of 32% in AY 2007-2008 to 67% in AY 2011. Most

notably, the percentage of students coded as “other/unknown” has decreased from 56% in AY

2007 to 17% in AY 2011 and may partially be explained by the decline in international students

from India.

By Part-time/Full-time Status

While no definite pattern of increase or decrease in the percentage of part-time/full-time students

is discernable, most of the years have seen a slight preference for part-time enrollment. The

exceptions to this preference were AY 2006 (51% full-time) and AY 2008 (53% full-time

enrollment). AY 2003 saw the greatest percentage of part-time students at 66%.

Draft 4-22-2011 17

By Age:

The greatest number of students has been in the 22-29 year age range, followed by the 30-39

year age range. In only one year, AY 2005, were there more students in the 40-49 year age range

than the 30-39 year age range. There appears to be a pattern of decreasing mean age during the

reporting period, ranging from 33.5 years in AY 2005 to 28.4 years in AY 2007.

Table 1: Student Demographic Data

Graduate Students by Gender

Males Females Total

N % N %

AY 2002 11 26 32 74 43

AY 2003 16 34 31 66 47

AY 2004 13 33 26 67 39

AY 2005 19 51 18 49 37

AY 2006 23 51 22 49 45

AY 2007 25 61 16 39 41

AY 2008 20 59 14 41 34

AY 2009 25 45 30 55 55

AY 2010 27 41 39 59 66

AY 2011 28 34 54 66 82

Graduate Students by Ethnic Group

Hispanic Black Asian White Other/UNK Total

N % N % N % N % N %

AY 2002 0 0 4 9 1 2 30 70 8 19 43

AY 2003 0 0 6 13 1 2 29 62 11 23 47

AY 2004 0 0 6 15 4 10 19 49 10 26 39

AY 2005 1 3 3 8 3 8 15 40.5 15 40.5 37

AY 2006 1 2 2 4 1 2 17 38 24 54 45

AY 2007 0 0 3 7 2 5 13 32 23 56 41

AY 2008 0 0 4 12 1 3 11 32 18 53 34

AY 2009 0 0 8 15 0 0 32 58 15 27 55

AY 2010 1 1.5 10 15 1 1.5 43 65 11 17 66

AY 2011 3 4 12 14 4 5 56 67 7 8 82

Draft 4-22-2011 18

Graduate Student by Part-time/Full-time Status

Part-time Full-time Total

N % N %

AY 2002 26 60 17 40 43

AY 2003 31 66 16 34 47

AY 2004 21 54 18 46 39

AY 2005 22 59 15 41 37

AY 2006 22 49 23 51 45

AY 2007 22 54 19 46 41

AY 2008 16 47 18 53 34

AY 2009 32 58 23 42 55

AY 2010 42 64 24 36 66

AY 2011 47 57 35 43 82

Graduate Student by Age

Unknown 18-21 22-29 30-39 40-49 50-64 65+ Mean

age

Total

AY 2002 0 1 23 9 5 5 0 32.7 43

AY 2003 0 0 23 12 7 5 0 33.7 47

AY 2004 0 0 23 8 4 4 0 32.8 39

AY 2005 0 0 23 4 6 4 0 33.5 37

AY 2006 0 0 31 8 4 2 0 30.0 45

AY 2007 0 2 28 7 3 1 0 29.6 41

AY 2008 0 0 28 4 2 0 0 28.4 34

AY 2009 0 1 32 14 8 0 0 30.7 55

AY 2010 0 0 40 17 8 1 0 31.0 66

AY 2011 0 1 47 20 12 2 0 30.5 82

Transfer Characteristics/Feeder Institutions:

The department has not historically collected information as to feeder institutions. The previous

program review indicated that most of the students come from Illinois institutions. With the

online MPH-EH degree, students are now positioned throughout the U.S. The department

anticipates an increased national presence of students with the general MPH going online fall

2011. The department cannot identify a pattern of applications relative to recruiting efforts. In

the last three years, more students (informal data collection at time of setting up educational

plans) are mentioning that they visited the web site as their first contact with department

information. Beginning fall 2010, the department inserted a question on the departmental

application form to track how applicants heard of the UIS MPH curriculum. The department will

use this information to target recruiting in the future.

Public health attracts a wide array of feeder disciplines. The applications from India students

tend to represent medical and dental preparation at the undergraduate level. Our U.S. students

come primarily from the natural sciences disciplines (biology, chemistry, etc.), professional

Draft 4-22-2011 19

public health-related degrees (environmental health, community health education, kinesiology,

nursing, etc.), and social sciences (psychology, sociology/anthropology, etc).

Recruitment Activities:

The most recruiting activity has been for the online MPH-EH and graduate certificate programs.

The department has enjoyed recruitment success as an exhibitor at professional conferences and

by paid advertisements in professional publications (Journal of Environmental Health and

Illinois Environmental Health Association Newsletter). In 2010, the department began recruiting

at the UIU-C McKinley Center’s Special Populations Health Program Annual Health Fair for all

degree options and the certificates. Other attempts with recruiting at college career and

education fairs have met with limited success.

The department has recruited for on-campus students by participation in UIS on-campus career

days. Additionally, the department intends for the new public health minor to function as a

recruitment tool for the master’s level programs.

The department website is designed with an eye toward recruitment. Inquiries about the online

programs are answered by the Online Coordinator, who responds via telephone and/or e-mail and

provides inquiries with a variety of flyers with information and application instructions.

Students interested in the on-campus degrees are sent a packet of information and tracked by the

graduate assistant. A monthly summary of all inquiries is provided to the department chair, the

Dean, and the Office of Admissions.

In 2003, Dr. Sharron LaFollette (when EH was in ENS) received monies through the Association

of Environmental Health Academic Programs (AEHAP - $15,000) for recruiting and diversity

enhancement. Over 800 hours of video and photos were edited into an approximately 14 minute

DVD highlighting alumni of the program and careers within the environmental health field. The

video also provides information about the graduate program in environmental studies at UIS and

the GPSI experience. The DVDs were completed fall 2004 and mailed to targeted institutions

and made available to perspective students during career fairs. AEHAP also distributes the

DVDs through exhibits at professional meetings nationwide. Since fall 2007, MPH has

distributed these videos during recruiting efforts for the MPH with concentration in

Environmental Health and Risk Assessment Certificate.

During the fall 2007, the department worked with university staff in creating new recruiting

brochures, which have been updated twice since then. During the fall 2007 semester and again

during the fall 2008 semester, the department worked with university staff to recreate the

department web site. The web site is kept up-to-date by the Online Coordinator in consultation

with the department chair.

The department has also revised the MPH Newsletter format to target alumni, not current

students. The department hopes that by keeping the alumni current as to changes in the

department, alumni will assist in the recruiting efforts.

Draft 4-22-2011 20

Admissions Criteria:

Admissions criteria changed for fall 2007 and again for fall 2011 in order to maintain

EHAC accreditation for EH concentration with the move from ENS to the MPH degree and in

preparation for accreditation through CEPH. The chair of the department serves as the admitting

official for the department.

Minimum requirements for full admission (AY2008) included:

A bachelors degree from an accredited college or university,

A GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale,

A letter of application which describes the student’s academic and career goals

GRE

Three letters of recommendation from an educator or employer

30 hours natural sciences

Biostatics 300-level within the last 3 years

Minimum requirements for full admission beginning AY 2012 will be:

A bachelors degree from an accredited college or university

A GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale

A letter of application which answers the following three questions (serves as writing

sample:

o What are the most urgent public health problems facing your community today?

o How will a master’s degree in public health help prepare you to address these

problems?

o Which area of public health specialization appeals most to you?

GRE

Three letters of recommendation from an educator or employer

30 hours natural sciences

The requirement for Graduate Record Exam scores is consistent with all CEPH school/programs,

with a total verbal and math of 1000 suggested. The department does not currently use the GRE

score to exclude students; however, we are looking at the ability of the GRE to predict student

success in the degree program. Students with terminal degrees, e.g., Ph.D., and professional

degrees, e.g., MD, DDS, and DVM, do not need the GRE for admissions. Students without

advanced degrees who hold licensure or certification which require sitting for a qualifying exam

may petition to substitute the licensure or certification for the GRE.

Each student’s transcripts and work experience are examined to evaluate competency in natural

sciences. Thirty semester hours in natural sciences represents minimum preparation in the

natural sciences needed to sit for licensure exams in environmental health (e.g., Registered

Sanitarian, Licensed Environmental Health Practitioner) required for practice in environmental

health in many state and local health departments. Health and public health science courses may

substitute for missing biology, chemistry, physics, etc. course work. Students with weak science

backgrounds are required to take additional natural sciences coursework before being admitted

fully to the degree.

Draft 4-22-2011 21

For fall 2007, the department tried to make biostatistics a prerequisite for full admission to the

degree. Preparation in biostatistics is considered crucial for research and practice in the public

health arena. However, it was determined that too few applicatants had undergraduate statistics

or biostatistics and most students were admitted needing to meet this condition. Therefore, for

fall 2011, biostatistics has been moved from a prerequisite to a core course in the curriculum.

Students with a GPA between 2.75 and 3.0 will be considered for conditional admission, in

conjunction with strength of the rest of the applicant’s admissions paperwork. To continue in the

program, they must complete 8-12 hours of core coursework with a B or better grade during their

first year. Three core courses are used as testing grounds for these students: MPH 531 Public

Health Policy and Administration, MPH 503 Biostatistics, and MPH 511 Foundation of

Epidemiology.

The department switched from a general goal statement to a guided set of questions in the fall of

2010. This move has reduced the number of similarly written goal statements often seen, in

particular from our international applicants. The questions require students to think locally and

demonstrate knowledge of public health issues in their respective communities. These questions

also serve as a measure of the students’ written communication skills.

Students in the joint MPH/MPA and MPH/HMS must meet the admissions criteria of each

program. Students admitted by one program are not guaranteed admissions by the other

program.

Advising and Other Communications to/with Students:

The online students are kept in contact with the department through frequent contact by the

Online Coordinator. The Online Coordinator sends e-mails informing the online students of

important dates, such as the opening of registration, program and university deadlines, and online

seminar opportunities. Additionally, the Online Coordinator tracks individual enrollments, and

contacts online students who have not enrolled. The Online Coordinator stresses that online

students should not hesitate to contact her for help with any administrative hurdle they face.

Academic advisors are assigned upon student’s admission into the program. An effort is made to

place students with a faculty advisor with expertise in each student’s area of interest, which is

not always feasible when trying to maintain equal advising load among the faculty. Academic

advisors work with incoming students to develop an education plan to facility selection of

courses based on catalog requirements and accommodating limited offering of some courses (see

2-year course rotation). Beginning fall 2010, student records were scanned into folders within e-

docs to help facilitate recordkeeping and file review by all faculty of the department.

Historically, the department had trouble getting students to develop an education plan early in

their studies and then follow the plan. Beginning fall 2009, students are blocked from registering

until they have met with their advisor and have prepared an approved education plan. This has

increased the number of students complying with the conditions outlined in the letter of

admission, failure of which has complicated financial aid and graduation in the past. Graduation

contracts identified students without required courses after taking 48 credit hours. Advisees are

Draft 4-22-2011 22

encouraged to meet with their advisors each semester to revisit the education plan and determine

if changes should be made, process necessary WPI, and review progress toward degree

completion.

To ensure similar advising by faculty, the department developed advising tools which include:

master advisor list, advisor graduation/advising checklist, ed plan templates for general MPH and

MPH-EH, individually tailored ed plan templates for each certificate and joint degrees, and two-

year rotation of courses template., All advising material is located on the department Blackboard

for the faculty. In addition, student versions are available on the department web site.

The department developed an internship guidance document to assist students preparing to

identify a site for the internship and negotiate the experience for the internship. The guidance

also includes directions for writing a contract for the internship. In addition, the department has

a standard MOU developed for locations requiring a more formal agreement with the university.

Faculty of the department currently share responsibility for advising interns, usually their

academic advisees. The department is currently searching for a Clinical Instructor who will

assume the responsibility of advising and coordinating the internships for the department. This

individual will be researching best practices to establish a well guided internship experience for

our students.

Core courses are offered alternate semesters online and on campus (or blended for MPH 506).

On campus students are encouraged to take the courses on campus. To help online students, all

online core courses have restricted registration until two weeks out from a semester, at which

time registration is open to all department students. Non-degree seeking students and those from

outside the department must obtain permission to enroll in the MPH core courses.

Beginning fall 2007, the department started a listserv to facilitate communication between

students and faculty. Announcements of programmatic importance, job postings,

workshops/seminars, student club activities, and other important information are channeled

through the listserv to the students. Graduating students may continue to participate in the

listserv to stay in touch with the department.

Retention:

Data from the UIS Office of Institutional Research show that the department suffered its poorest

retention rates in AY 2002, retaining only 52% of second-year students, 48%of the third-year,

39% of the fourth year students, and 43.5% of the fifth, sixth, and seventh-year students. AY

2003 showed a dramatic improvement, retaining 88% of the second year students, 83% of the

third-year students, 79% of the fourth-year students, and 75% of the fifth through eighth-year

students. Retention rates eroded in AYs 2005-2006, and were addressed as part of the strategic

plan developed in AY 2007. The rates were identical in AY 2007-2008, retaining 83% of the

second year students, and 67% of all others. In AY 2009, the two-year retention rate hit it highest

mark ever with 92% retention.

Draft 4-22-2011 23

Part of the reason for the increase in retention is believed to be due to the role of the Online

Coordinator, better advising tools, listserv correspondence, and more frequent contact with the

students.

IV. Faculty

Demographics:

History of faculty appointments for the department is reviewed at the beginning of the program

review. As of spring 2011, there are four full-time faculty assigned to the department, Dr. Josiah

Alamu, Dr. Kathy DeBarr, Dr. Shahram Heshmat, and Dr. Sharron LaFollette. Of these four,

three are tenured and one is tenure-track. Three are associate professors, and one holds the rank

of assistant professor. All four hold terminal degrees in their field. Two faculty members are

white, one is black, and one is “other”. There are two males and two female faculty members.

All four are full-time appointees. Funding has been available for all faculty wanting to teach

during the summer semester.

CEPH accreditation guidelines require three faculty for each discipline area. Because UIS has

two areas of study, general MPH and MPH-EH, six faculty are required. Two additional

positions have been approved for fall 2011: Clinical Instructor of Environmental Health and

Internship Coordinator, and Assistant Professor of Public Health Policy.

Active Pool of Adjunct faculty (since 2007)

Adjunct Courses taught

Dr. Dorene Campbell Global Public Health

Jennifer Davis Epidemiology

Crisis in EH

Dr. Mark Edgar* Public Health Policy

Bekky Grosboll Crisis in EH

Dr. Stu Jacobson Crisis in EH

Lenore Killam Crisis in EH

Dr. William Martz** Chemicals and the Citizen

Greg Michaud Risk Communication and Risk Management

Ken Runkle EOH

Crisis in EH

*Dr. Mark Edgar has also served in role of visiting faculty (AY 2007) and assistant professor

(AY 2008-fall 2010)

**Dr. William Martz is emeriti faculty from Department of Chemistry at UIS.

Fit with Program:

EHAC requires strong environmental health practitioner background in faculty teaching EH

coursework. Dr. LaFollette has eight years of EH practice in Illinois state government. Adjunct

faculty teaching EH courses all have practitioner experience in EH.

Draft 4-22-2011 24

CEPH requires faculty capable of teaching the core and discipline-specific area of public health

offered by the program. Specialty areas of the current faculty match the core areas of public

health: biostatistics and epidemiology (Dr. Alamu), community health promotion (Dr. DeBarr),

environmental health (Dr. LaFollette), and social determinants (Dr. Heshmat). The two new

positions will fill the gap of policy and administration and strengthen the expertise in

environmental health. Each faculty also has strengths in one or more of the elective areas

offered by the department, with adjunct faculty complementing these areas of expertise.

Faculty Achievements:

NOTE: Faculty achievements discussed below will be confined to the four faculty

assigned to the program as of spring 2011 as they represent the current generation of faculty.

Dr. Josiah Alamu (Ph.D. Epidemiology, MPH) joined the UIS Public Health Department in

fall 2008. Since joining the department, he has taught Foundations of Epidemiology,

Biostatistics for the Health Professional, Analytical Epidemiology, and Epidemiology for

Chronic and Infectious Disease at the graduate level; and Global Environmental Health, and

Epidemiology – Science of Disease Discovery at the undergraduate level. Prior to coming to

the United States, he lectured at the Gambia College School of Public Health between 1998

and 2001 where he prepared students for a diploma in public health. He worked as an

Environmental Health Officer with the Ministry of Health, Ibadan, Nigeria upon completion

of his public health training at the School of Health Technology, Ilesa, Nigeria, in 1987. His

current scholarships involve epidemiology of prescription drug misuse and abuse, hepatitis C

and its risk factors, and qualitative online education research. He was appointed as a

Research Fellow at the UIS Center for Online Learning, Research and Service because of his

research on the use of Google Wave to facilitate both synchronous and asynchronous

discussions among online students. Since joining the department, he has presented at local

and international conferences. Currently, he is preparing two manuscripts for peer-reviewed

publications and a career development grant proposal on drug abuse. He helped established a

link with the University of the Gambia where UIS students will have opportunities for

internships and international research experiences. He is a member of the university

Academic Integrity hearing pool and a member of the Illinois Asthma Partnership – Data

Management Workgroup.

Dr. Shahram Heshmat has a PhD in Managerial Economics from Rensselaer Polytechnic

Institute (RPI). He came to the UIS in the fall of 1988 and joined the Department of Health

Services Administration teaching Health Economics and Health Care Finance. In 2000, Dr.

Heshmat joined the Public Health Department as an associate professor. He currently teaches

Addiction, Health Economics, and Food and Health. His research focus is to study the

application/relevance of behavioral economics to the understanding of eating behavior and

obesity, as well as weight loss management. He has published articles in the following

academic journals: The Journal of Health Administration Education, Journal of Health Care

Management Review, Journal Health Care Finance, and Californian Journal of Health

Promotion. He has authored three books and several papers in the field of health economics.

His current book is due July 2011: Reducing Obesity through Behavioral Economics. New

Draft 4-22-2011 25

York, NY: Springer. He has also traveled extensively to the central Asia and Eastern Europe

to provide health care management workshops. He has served on numerous campus and

college level committees.

Dr. Sharron LaFollette (Ph.D. Toxicology/Pharmacology) joined the department in August

2007 and has been chair since August 2007. Previously at UIS, she taught in (FY2001-2007)

and chaired Department of Environmental Studies(from FY 2004-2007). Prior to arriving at

UIS, she taught eight years and was chair of the Environmental Health Program at Illinois

State University. Prior to joining academia, she had eight years experience with state of

Illinois agencies conducting risk assessment, risk communication, physician education and

environmental policy. Dr. LaFollette teaches the MPH - Environmental Health concentration

core environmental risk science and toxicology courses, risk science electives, and various

EH undergraduate and graduate electives. Her current scholarship is primarily in indoor air

quality, environmental health policy and workforce development. In spring 2008, she won

the Spenser Award for Outstanding Service to the university and to the profession . Her

service to her profession includes Chair of the National Environmental Health Sciences and

Protection Accreditation Council (FY 2005, 2006, 2009), President of the Illinois

Environmental Health Association (2003), President of the Association of Environmental

Health Academic Programs (2002), and many other positions within these organizations.

She has served on the Illinois Environmental Public Health Tracking Task Force and the

Illinois Asthma Partnership (Data Management Workgroup). Her service to the university

currently includes Graduate Council (chair FY2007-2011), Council for Assessment of

Student Learning, and several college-level committees.

• Dr. Kathy DeBarr (Ph.D. Health Education) joined the department in August 2000. Dr. Kathy

DeBarr is Associate Professor of Public Health at University of Illinois at Springfield in

Springfield, Illinois. She previously served as the Director of the UIS Health Services

Administration Department. She has taught numerous courses in Health Services

Administration and currently teaches Community Health Education and Research Methods,

as well as an ECCE course entitled Monsters, Medicine and Myths. She has reviewed a

number of textbooks and film for publishers. She serves as a peer reviewer for academic

journals, and is a consulting editor for American Journal of College Health. She serves on

the Research Consortium Board for the American Alliance for Health Education. She has

published articles in the following peer-reviewed academic journals: The Journal of Health

Administration Education, Journal of Safety Research, the American Journal of Health

Education, California Journal of Health Promotion, the Journal of School Health and the

Journal of American College Health. She has served on numerous campus and college level

committees. She is currently on the campus’ Committee on Academic Freedom and Tenure.

Technology:

Faculty, including adjuncts, take full advantage of UIS available technology for instruction. All

faculty use computer technology for delivery of courses, most augment on-campus delivery with

a capabilities of Blackboard. All faculty and adjunct faculty teach at least one course completely

online using a variety of innovative technologies with the assistance of Center for Online

Learning and Research (COLRS). Dr. Alamu is currently a research fellow with COLRS. All

Draft 4-22-2011 26

students are required to be proficient in Microsoft Word (or WordPerfect), Excel, and

PowerPoint (most have some proficiency in Microsoft Access); SPSS/SAS (depending on

preference of instructor of biostatistics course); and Blackboard software. All students receive

training on library databases and Internet search strategies. Risk sciences students use a number

of the databases available through the National Library of Medicine, Environmental Protection

Agency, and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

Beginning fall 2010, the department began scanning student files into folders on e-docs to

facilitate file administration. The department hopes this increases completeness of the files and

access to the files for all faculty. In addition, the department has started an Access database for

student records, especially the education plans, to facilitate planning and assessment.

Faculty Development:

Demographics. The MPH faculty currently consists of four members. One faculty member has

a 1/3 NIA for joint appointment to the Institute for Legal, Legislative and Policy Studies, The

only other standing NIA is granted for the program chair. Two faculty have received one credit

hour NIAs to serve on the DPA program committee. All NIAs are reflected below.

Table X: All NIA's (regardless of department paying) for MPH Faculty Members

Administrative

Curriculum

Development Research

Spring 2001

DeBarr, Kathy 4 Hrs.

Imeokparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

Heshmat, Shahram 4 Hrs.

Fall 2001

Heshmat, Shahram 4 Hrs.

Spring 2002

Heshmat, Shahram 4 Hrs.

Heshmat, Shahram 4 Hrs.

Imeokparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

Fall 2002

DeBarr, Kathy 4 Hrs.

Imeokparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

Spring 2003

Imeokparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

Fall 2003

DeBarr, Kathy 4 Hrs.

Spring 2004

No NIAs

Fall 2004

Imeokaparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

DeBarr, Kathy 4 Hrs.

Draft 4-22-2011 27

Spring 2005

Imeokaparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

Fall 2005

DeBarr, Kathy 4 Hrs.

Heshmat, Shahram 4 Hrs.

Spring 2006

Imeokaparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

DeBarr, Kathy 4 Hrs.

Fall 2006

Imeokaparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

DeBarr, Kathy 4 Hrs.

Spring 2007

Imeokaparia, Remi 4 Hrs.

Fall 2007

LaFollette, Sharron 5 Hrs

Heshmat 4 Hrs.

Spring 2008

LaFollette, Sharron 8 Hrs.

Fall 2008

LaFollette 5 Hrs

Edgar 4 Hrs

Alamu 4 Hrs

Spring 2009

LaFollette 5 Hrs

Fall 2009

LaFollette 9 Hrs

Edgar 1 Hr

Spring 2010

Heshmat 4 Hrs

LaFollette 13 Hrs

Edgar 1 Hr

Fall 2010

LaFollette 9Hrs

Edgar 1 Hr

Spring 2011

LaFollette, Sharron 8hrs

Faculty regularly take advantage of faculty development workshops on campus and online (e.g.,

SLOAN-C workshops, complementary and Alternative Medicine Online Series, and UIS

technology workshops). Faculty have received competitive awards for development (Dr. Alamu-

grant writing training through the National Institutes of Health (AY 2010) and Dr. LaFollette-

UIS Leadership Academy).

Draft 4-22-2011 28

V. Learning Environment and Support Services

Student Involvement with Program Activities:

The department values the role of students in department governance and curricular review.

Students elect a representative to the department committee. In addition, a student representative

actively serves on faculty search committees. The student representative, currently the graduate

assistant, regularly communicates with the student body via e-mail and listserv to actively link

students with department activities. The graduate assistant also serves author of the department

newsletter and the president of the student public health club.

All students are encouraged to interact with their fellow students, in courses and outside of

classes. Students are also encouraged to participate in non-course related webinars and on

campus workshops. Each semester faculty and students arrange one or more social events for the

opportunity for students to interact among themselves and with the faculty in a non-academic

setting.

As more and more students work full time, live further away from campus, and take courses

online, it is difficult to maintain an on campus social and professional network for the students.

Fewer students participate in department extracurricular activities. The department is attempting

to facilitate increased networking in professional settings. Students are encouraged to network

with professionals and attend regional and national meetings. The department tries to identify

ways to fund some meeting attendance for the students, especially local events (e.g., IEHA,

IPHA).

General Curricular Support:

UIS has the necessary library support (holdings, electronic holdings, search tools, etc.) for

students in the Public Health Department. Interlibrary loan adequately provides resources not

available in-house. This support, in conjunction with resources such as the National Library of

Medicine web site, provides most if not all the necessary support for the student.

Some graduate students in the department could benefit from the expertise and tutelage in the

Center for Teaching and Learning. Faculty regularly advise students to use these services,

particularly to improve written communication skills. It is not clear how many students avail

themselves of this opportunity. Online students can now avail themselves of online help in this

area (http://www.uis.edu/ctl/about/OnlineTutoring.html). In reality, department students and

faculty do not use the Center as often as they might/should. CTL is also used as a proctoring

center for online courses for the local students. The CTL space is limited and availability for

proctoring will be strained in the future. The department recognizes that the Center is too

understaffed to fulfill potential needs of students and faculty across campus.

The student public health club is able to sufficiently compete for needed funding through Student

Life. However, funding in support of travel for students to professional meetings is currently

limited.

Draft 4-22-2011 29

Computer Technology:

In general, technology available on campus supports most curricular and administrative needs of

the department. The department relies extensively on the expertise of COLRS, Technology

Support, and web site development. However, web development is the area in which the

department could use additional expertise. Currently, the online coordinator is tasked with

refreshing the web site, taking time away from the activities of coordinating the online students.

Additional program support for web site update and maintenance would improve the departments

Internet presence. The web site is restricted to a framework provided by web services and not as

flexible as it might be. The department could benefit from additional support in this area.

Future Needs:

Future needs for delivery of the general MPH and MPH-EH are directly tied to the need to

achieve accreditation through CEPH and reaccreditation through EHAC. Successful competition

by our students for jobs, particularly at the federal level, relies on their graduation from an

accreditation curriculum. In addition, accreditation of the degree recognizes the curriculum as

quality in public health education and provides necessary linkages for recruiting a qualified and

sustainable student clientele.

Faculty: CEPH accreditation requires a minimum of three faculty per specialty within the

degree. The department offers two degrees, general MPH and MPH-EH, and therefore requires a

minimum of six faculty. For the MPH-EH, EHAC requires that faculty need to have practitioner

experience in environmental health, including the coordinator of the degree. For CEPH

accreditation, practitioner experience is recommended. The department is on track for these

minimum faculty requirements with the two new positions for fall 2011.

Accreditation support: The department currently has dues and travel demands for EHAC

accreditation. At minimum EHAC annual dues, AEHAP and NEHA membership, and travel to

EHAC/NEHA meetings need to be maintained. Spring 2012 will require funding for EHAC

reaccreditation site visit. With the anticipated accreditation by CEPH, dues and travel demands

will increase. CEPH requires funding of pre-accreditation consultation during 2011 and site visit

spring 2012. Anticipated yearly expenses are CEPH annual dues, Association of Prevention

Teaching and Research (Council of Graduate Programs in Public Health), and APTR and APHA

meeting travel. In addition, yearly reports will require support and assistance of institutional

research in preparing these reports.

Student growth: With six faculty and the current number of adjuncts, the department can grow

to about 100 students plus the UG minors and keep current class sizes. Additional growth will

require additional faculty to teach core courses and to offer additional sections of key electives.

In addition, the workload of the present faculty do not allow for much opportunity for release

time for research, which is required by the accrediting organizations.

UG major: To be competitive in the academic market, UIS needs to be on the cutting edge of the

new growth in public health at the undergraduate level. Currently the Public Health department

Draft 4-22-2011 30

is expanding to offer an UG minor in public health starting fall 2011. The department anticipates

expanding this to an UG major in public health within the next 5-6 years.

VI. Student Demand and Program Productivity

Student Enrollment:

The department began offering the MPH–EH concentration and some graduate certificates online

beginning in AY 2008. Due chiefly to the introduction of the online MPH-EH degree, the

department has grown each year since fall 2007 and has roughly doubled in size. Using online

funds for travel, mailing, and advertising, the department has increased efforts to recruit students

throughout Illinois and regionally. The department chair and the online coordinator have

voluntarily exhibited at career fairs statewide and participate in student career days on-campus.

They have also met with undergraduate advisors and faculty at a number of recognized feeder

institutions. The department has redesigned the website to further improve recruiting efforts by

making all application materials and instructions easily accessible.

Table 2. Program Graduates, Credit Hours Generated and Degrees Granted

FY (Academic

Year)

Graduate

students

FY Credit hours

Generated

(MPH prefix

courses) UG &

Grad

Degrees

Granted (FY)

AY 2002 43 1048 23

AY 2003 47 743 19

AY 2004 39 774 13

AY 2005 37 805 13

AY 2006 45 884 17

AY 2007 41 709 21

AY 2008 34 1232 19

AY 2009 55 2811 12

AY 2010 66 3457 9

AY 2011 82 Not Available Not Available

In addition, the department has participated in the expanded general education curriculum at the

undergraduate level and has been offering ECCE and Gen Ed courses since AY 2008.

Additionally, the department has scaled back on the number of electives offered each term, in

part to accommodate the availability of core courses for the online majors. Fewer electives

available each term has translated into a greater percentage of seats filled in each course. CPAA

has established a headcount policy that caps online and on-ground courses. CPAA has

established a headcount policy that caps online and on-ground graduate courses at 20 students,

online undergraduate courses at 25 students, and on-ground undergraduate courses at 35

students. The department has been running close to capacity for the last four terms.

Draft 4-22-2011 31

The department will begin offering a public health undergraduate minor in AY 2012 and an

online MPH general degree. An active search for two faculty positions (Assistant Professor of

Public Health Policy and Clinical Instructor of Environmental Health and Internship

Coordinator) is anticipate to provide sufficient core faculty to provide coursework necessary for

the anticipated enrollments, if adjunct usage remains at the current level.

The department has completely redesigned and regularly updates the department’s web site.

Creating an effective web site has further improved recruiting efforts. The new department

application form (fall 2010) asks for feedback as to how applicatants found out about the

department. The department will be analyzing this information at the end of each academic year.

The department has positioned itself well to increase enrollment by offering the MPH with EH

concentration and (certificates) on-line. Beginning fall 2011, the general MPH will also go

online. The department also has participated in the expanded general education curriculum at the

undergraduate level and has been offering ECCE and Gen Ed courses since 2007. An UG minor

in Public Health begins fall 2011. These anticipated increases in enrollment are made possible

with the expansion to six faculty members (fall 2011) and continued used of a core group of

adjunct faculty.

Program Productivity and Data Analysis:

Increases enrollment, sound curriculum, and a two-year rotation of courses have allowed the

department to maximize seat utilization in the courses and grow the curriculum. Core courses

are offered fall and spring semesters, alternating on campus and online delivery. Most electives

are offered at least once per year, with ECCE electives offered more frequently and some ECCE

electives offered both online and on campus. Select 500-level electives are offered at least once

every other year and only online to maximize seats filled in the courses.

The average class sizes for courses offered by MPH are summarized below from data provided

by the CPAA Dean’s office. Please note that this data does not include hours for internships,

graduate projects, or tutorials.

There is a distinct upward trend in the average class size from the low point in the fall 2007 term

(12.6 seats per course) to courses consistently over 20 students per course for the last four terms.

Summer courses have the highest average seats per class for three reasons: We offer only online

courses during the summer, online course demand is extremely high, and the course cap for

ECCE electives is larger than that for on-campus or online graduate courses.

The department was able to increase average class size while tripling the number of courses the

department offers each semester (compared to fall 2005). ECCE offerings and double the

number of graduate majors are responsible for this increase.

Average Class Size for MPH Courses.

Term Seat Count Course Count Seat Count Average

Fall 2005 90 6 15.0

Spring 2006 111 8 13.9

Draft 4-22-2011 32

Summer 2006 14 1 14.0

Fall 2006 79 5 15.8

Spring 2007 68 5 13.6

Summer 2007 73 4 18.3

Fall 2007 176 14 12.6

Spring 2008 246 17 14.5

Summer 2008 137 7 19.6

Fall 2008 282 18 15.7

Spring 2009 314 18 17.4

Summer 2009 92 4 23.0

Fall 2009 367 19 19.3

Spring 2010 383 18 21.3

Summer 2010 88 4 22.0

Fall 2010 385 18 21.4

Spring 2011 393 19 20.7

Comparison of Credit Hours, Enrollments and Degree Production (ENS used as most

comparable degree within the College of Public Affairs and Administration)

Credit Hours, Enrollments, and Degrees Awarded

AY Credit Hours by Prefix Generated

by All Students

Graduate Enrollments

(Headcount)

Graduate Degree

Production

UIS

Total

Largest

Program

(CSC)

MPH ENS UIS

Total

Largest

Program

MPH ENS UIS MPH ENS

2002 81,300 5,666 820 850 1998 EDL

227

43 46 360 23 9

2003 88,389 5,774 743 943 2006 EDL

257

47 46 384 19 13

2004 91,553 6,307 774 1,114 2005 EDL

302

39 44 454 13 7

2005 90,605 6,454 805 1,002 1889 EDL

364

37 55 471 13 4

2006 94,502 7,763 884 1,207 1883 EDL

240

45 44 463 17 0

2007 99,526 9,795 709 1,759 1883 MTL

222

41 68 408 21 5

2008 98,776 7,722 1,232 1,999 1992 MTL

235

34 81 840 19 2

2009 100,222 7,664 2,811 1,971 1882 MTL

226

55 89 552 12 5

2010 106,406 8,197 3,453 1,959 1934 MTL

207

66 90 500 9 3

2011 1977 CSC

212

82 110

Draft 4-22-2011 33

Following the enrollment trends discussed earlier, and displayed in the table above, there was a

loss of credit hours, in AY 2003 and again in AY 2007. The effect of adding the online options

to both degrees is well demonstrated in the table above. ENS added their online program

effective fall 2006, and MPH added the online program effective fall 2007.

Additional program restructuring in AY 2008 coupled with the introduction of ECCE courses

has continued to strengthen the credit hour generation in the MPH program. MPH degree

production has dropped during the past two academic years reflecting a shift from full-time to

part-time student population.

The department graduated five students during the fall 2010 term, and has 20 students signed up

for the comprehensive exam in the spring 2011 term. If all pass, the department will award 25

degrees in AY 2011. Similarly, ENS hopes to graduate 50 students; 21 of these from the online

program. Admissions to the MPH degree program have kept up with the graduation rate of AY

2011.

Headcount Change from AY 2010-AY 2011

AY 2010 AY 2011 Percent Number

UIS Aggregate Total 4961 5174 +2 % +43

Largest Percent Gain (HDC) 70 92 +31 % +22

Largest Percent Loss (MTL) 207 149 -28 % -58

MPH 66 82 +24 % +16

ENS 90 110 +22 % +20

The latest data available from the Office of Institutional Research (OIR) (AY 2010) shows that

the University as a whole saw a small gain of 2% in the number of students, increasing

headcount by 43 students. The data reveal that Human Development Counseling (HDC) enjoyed

the greatest percent growth of the programs reported. Similarly, ENS experienced robust growth

during the same academic period. The Master’s in Teacher Leadership (MTL) online program

experienced significant loss, possibly due to school district’s inability to help with tuition

assistance for teachers.

Percent Credit Hours Generated by All Students Change* AY 2009-2010

AY 2009 AY 2010 Percent Number

UIS Aggregate Total 100,220 106,406 6.2% 6186

Largest Percent Gain (HMS) 1,482 2,065 39.3% 583

Largest Percent Loss (MIS) 4,074 3,463 -15.0% -611

MPH 2,811 3,453 22.8% 642

ENS 1,971 1,959 .61% -12

*Comparison limited to programs with total credit hours above 1000.

The OIR data allows a comparison between credit hours generated during AYs 2009 and 2010.

The MPH program saw robust growth during the period, with a 22.8% growth in credit hours

generated. The fastest growing program, Human Services (HMS) reversed a steady, persistent

decline in credit hours generated. Their AY 2010 total is still lower than their most productive

Draft 4-22-2011 34

total of 2,133 in AY 2003. During the same time period, ENS remained nearly unchanged, with

graduate credit hour generation declining less than 1%.

Comparison with Other Programs within the State- The unique nature of the UIS MPH program

makes comparison with other programs within the state difficult. There are three other MPH

programs within Illinois; one in the UIC School of Public Health, one just starting at the UIUC

campus, and one at Northern Illinois University (NIU). (See section I: Comparison with similar

programs for additional discussion.)

Demand for Concentration:

Because of increase employment anticipated in all areas of public health (Bureau of Labor

Statistics 2010-2011), continued need for master’s level education in public health is anticipated.

With accreditation through CEPH and reaccreditation of the MPH-EH through EHAC, continued

growth is expected. US Public Health Service, some positions with Health and Human Services,

armed forces leadership positions, and may other federal positions require graduation from an

accredited degrees in public health. In addition, links to the program through the accrediting

bodies web site will act as recruiting tools for the degrees. Enrollment in graduate public health

curriculum is anticipated to continue even as undergraduate programs in public health are

gearing up. With delivery of both the general MPH and MPH-EH only, it is anticipated that the

degrees will reach more middle management and individuals anticipating career shifts then

previously possible with an on campus curriculum. The department anticipates that the

availability of a quality online education in public health will also increase the quality of

incoming students as seats become easier to fill (evident fall 2010 when admissions were

suspended because the degrees were full).

Minors: The department will begin to offer an UG minor in public health in fall 2011. UG

minor is attached for reference purposed only.

Certificates: (see attached) The department houses five graduate certificates: community

health education, emergency preparedness and homeland security, environmental health,

environmental risk assessment, and epidemiology. Please refer to attached Review of Certificate

Certificates for discussion of each of the certificates.

VII. Centrality to Campus Mission

Support of the Campus Vision:

“In the UIS of the future, professional education at the master’s level will continue to be a major

feature of the campus’ curricular commitment, with quality and distinction being the principal

determinants of graduate program offerings.”

The Department of Public Health offers two professional master of public health degrees

(general MPH and MPH-EH), two joint professional degrees (MPH/MPA and MPH/HMS) and

five graduate level certificates. Graduates of the department staff key agencies in the state of

Draft 4-22-2011 35

Illinois, in critical public health programs. Graduate have also risen to positions of prominence

within agencies and not-for-profit organizations through the country.

The department has accreditation for the MPH with concentration in Environmental Health and

is working toward CEPH accreditation for both degrees. Students from National Environmental

Health Sciences and Protection Accreditation Council accredited programs have preference in

hiring with several offices within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Indian Health

Service, Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Public Health Service and armed forces (U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency is currently considering preferential hiring from these

accredited programs for some positions). Students from accredited programs may have reduced

work experience requirements before sitting for licensing and registration exams in the field of

environmental health.

Accreditation by CEPH will afford recognition of the department and the general MPH degree

important for recruiting an elite student body in public health. Individuals researching MPH

degrees often start with CEPH to determine where they want to apply. In addition, the above

federal agencies have preferential hiring practices for accredited public health programs and

schools. UIS will distinguish itself among the accredited programs in public health by truly

preparing the practitioner, not just a researcher, important to the practice of public health.

The Certificates of Risk Sciences and Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security, along

with the MPH-EH with an option in risk sciences are unique in Illinois to UIS. Only a couple of

graduate programs nationwide offer advanced study in these areas. No undergraduate programs

currently offer specialization in these areas.

Relationship to Other Campus Instructional Programs:

The department offers cross-listed courses for undergraduate and graduate students at UIS. In

particular, biology undergraduate and graduate students and chemistry undergraduate students

take toxicology and some of the environmental health policy courses. The joint degrees in

MPH/MPA and MPH/HMS are increasingly attracting quality students. The graduate certificates

are taken by MPH students, but are increasingly attracting other majors (particularly MPA) and

non-degree seeking students (particularly the EPHS certificate). ,

Faculty in the department pursue scholarly collaboration with faculty from across campus. Dr.

Alamu is a Research Fellow with COLRS and Dr. LaFollette has a joint appointment with the

Center for State Policy and Leadership. Faculty have served on graduate committees in a

number of departments, primarily in the College of Public Affairs and Administration and the

College of Arts and Sciences. Faculty have also served on search committees in these colleges.

Support for Campus Initiatives:

Online: The UIS MPH degrees and certificates remain one of only a few public health curricula

offered online. And, the prominence of UIS in the SLOAN Foundation family is a wonderful

recruiting tool. Beginning fall 2011, the entire graduate curriculum offered by the department is

Draft 4-22-2011 36

online as well as on campus. Even the UG minor in public health may be taken as a blended

curriculum.

Service to Non-Major:- The Department has increased participation of non-majors within the

program by expansion of the graduate certificate options. The Emergency Preparedness and

Homeland Security Graduate Certificate is the most popular with non-majors with two-thirds of

our students coming from outside MPH.

Graduate Certificate Student Count AY 2011*

Graduate Certificate Total MPH Majors Non-majors

Community Health Education 8 6 2

Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security 27 10 18

Environmental Health 2 0 2

Environmental Risk Assessment 4 2 2

Epidemiology 10 7 3 *see review of Graduate Certificates for discussion

The Department provides a number of its courses as both graduate/undergraduate electives and

undergraduate ECCE credit. This serves the needs of the University undergraduate community,

and has significantly boosted seat utilization in the electives courses.

List of ECCE Courses

MPH 221 Environmental Facts and Fictions: The Mystery Genre - 3 hours

MPH 222 Global Public Health: Population, Poverty, and Pollution - 3 hours

MPH 224 Epidemiology: Science of Disease Discovery – 3 hours

MPH 301 Global Environmental Health – 3 hours

MPH 402 Food, Health, and Public Policy- 4 Hours

MPH 408 Addiction - 4 hours

MPH 438 Monsters, Medicine, and Myths-

MPH 450 Chemicals and the Citizen - 4 hours

MPH 471 Emerging Diseases - 4 hours

MPH 478 Crisis in Environmental Health - 4 hours

VIII. Costs

Analysis of Costs.

UIS compared quite favorably with respect to statewide program costs per credit hour for the

period AY 2001-2008. The cost is computed based on the number of program majors, which is

reflected in the elevated cost for AY 2007 when the program headcount dropped to 34 students.

AY 2008 saw a dramatic rise in headcount to 55 students, which lowered the cost more closely in

line with the costs reflected in AYs 2003-2006.

Draft 4-22-2011 37

Table 5-Program Cost per Credit Hour

Academic

Year UIS Cost

State

Average

Percent of

Average

2002 475.88 748.34 64

2003 568.52 728.79 78

2004 449.55 800.91 56

2005 409.39 826.82 50

2006 447.83 800.94 56

2007 461.97 815.71 57

2008 513.29 724.10 71

2009 417.64 788.99 53

Program costs per credit hour at the discipline level dropped in AY 2008 due in part to both

increased headcount and better course utilization by opening several of the MPH electives for

ECCE credit. These numbers are expected to continue their downward trend when data becomes

available for AY2010-present.

Table 6- Program Cost per Credit Hour at the Discipline Level

Academic

Year UIS Cost

State

Average

Percent of

Average

2002 410.32 485.38 85

2003 455.14 447.49 102

2004 372.18 498.82 75

2005 342.75 432.92 79

2006 375.46 440.95 85

2007 426.88 462.80 92

2008 447.41 425.66 105

2009 350.60 497.68 70

External Funding:

The department knows of no additional external funding for recruiting or other operational

efforts at this time; however, the department will continue to search for funding throughout the

next eight years. The biggest barrier to the department in receiving external funding is the

comparison some granting agencies make to the University of Illinois system in general. An

example is the perception that funding to UIC for environmental health initiatives trickles down

to all UI campuses. As the smaller UI campus, it is hard to compete with the infrastructure of the

two bigger campuses. In addition, the federal legislation earmarking research funding for public

health specifically addresses “schools of public health” and not programs of public health.

Dr. LaFollette has received small grants to research radon, indoor air quality, and workforce

development. Dr. Alamu is actively seeking external funding to investigate the prevalence of

drug use among area adolescents, but no final funding decision has been made.

Draft 4-22-2011 38

IX. Summary and Recommendations

Previous Program Review Recommendations:

According to the Program Review Report for AY 2001-2002, the following recommendations

were made after the previous program review:

Explore options for program accreditation through affiliation with the School of Public

Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago or through other arrangements that would

result in an accredited degree but would not require additional UIS faculty resources.

The department met with faculty from the UIC School of Public health regarding an

affiliation that would give accreditation to the curriculum delivered at UIS. UIC criteria

for such an affiliation included (but not limited to):

UIS faculty becoming UIC faculty and adding UIC faculty to teach at UIS,

Salaries for UIS faculty commensurate with UIC salaries,

UIC personnel rules for promotion and tenure would apply,

Curriculum would be dictated by UIC, and

UIC accreditation would not extend to UIS.

These criteria were not acceptable to faculty of UIS department. In fall 2006, faculty

asked for permission to undergo a massive strategic planning effort, which would allow

for moving forward toward accreditation of the degree at UIS. Permission was granted

and strategic planning was initiated late fall 2006.

Prepare a focused interim report in Spring 2006 for the Office of the Provost and Vice

Chancellor for Academic Affairs that includes specific discussion for the department’s

academic status.

Evidence for this interim report could not be found in either program, college, or provost

files.

Continue to develop and implement measures and procedures for the assessment of

learning outcomes, as well as procedures for systematic review and use of the

information from this outcomes assessment, to improve the MPH degree program.

In preparation for CEPH accreditation and EHAC reaccreditation the department has

developed a mission and goals. In addition, competencies have been developed for core

and elective curriculum. All courses have learning outcomes that, along with course

pedagogy are currently being mapped. The competencies serve the foundation for the

assessment across students and the curriculum. The first faculty meeting of each new

semester will serve as the formal review of the assessment data and readjustments.

Collect information on students’ degree progress and on the closure exercises they

choose. Report and analyze these data as part of the focused interim report.

The department has proceeded toward scanning of all student files into e-docs. In

addition, an Access Database has been developed for query of student education

Draft 4-22-2011 39

programs and monitoring degree progress. This will be used in conjunction with the

DARS reports developed by the Office of Registration and Records.

The departments closure exercise is a comprehensive exam built around a case study for

which the students provide assessment, assurance, and policy development wearing the

hat of a public health administrator. The comprehensive exam continues to evolve and

currently is mapped with the core competencies to demonstrate its ability to test for

student achievement and understanding across the curriculum.

Current Program Strengths:

Faculty are committed to improving curriculum and program growth and diversity

through strategic planning and assessment across the curriculum.

Faculty are teacher-scholars who also provide service to the university and to their

professions, staying committed to improving the academic preparation of the students

necessary for advanced public health careers.

Faculty are leaders in a number of campus curricular initiatives. These include

improving assessment of curriculum, shifting to more innovative delivery of curriculum

(teacher scholars of online teaching), participating in undergraduate general education

requirements by offering courses at several levels, and working with other graduate

programs to develop interdisciplinary degree options (joint MPH/MPA and MPH/HMS)

and advanced certificates (EPHS and EPI) of study.

The department has access to locally available adjuncts to provide advanced courses in

environmental health, policy and administration and other courses throughout the

curriculum.

The MPH-EH concentration is accredited by EHAC and a nationally recognized leader in

online education in environmental health.

The general MPH and MPH-EH are in the process of CEPH accreditation and the

department is optimistic that accreditation will be received during the 2012 calendar year.

Areas of Concern:

Minimal resources are allotted for recruiting (especially travel) and web site development

and maintenance. If the department is to continue to increase enrollment, support of

recruiting should be a priority.

Shared secretary and online coordinator place a workload burden on these individuals.

With the continued growth of the online curriculum and additional students the

department will need additional support.

Faculty maintain heavy teaching loads, overloads and heavy advising levels. The

department is worried about potential for faculty burnout from these heavy loads. The

non-tenured faculty needs additional time for scholarly productivity not afforded in these

heavy loads.

Accreditation requires a minimum of three full-time faculty for each area of

specialization. CEPH counts the general MPH and MPH-EH count as two areas of

specialization. For accreditation to be successful a minimum of six faculty are required

(successful spring 2011 hires for two positions will bring the faculty headcount to six).

Draft 4-22-2011 40

Program’s Recommendation for the Current Review:

Implement assessment across curriculum. The program has developed competencies,

learning objectives and tools to collect outcomes information. The next step is to

implement collection of data and provide feedback for continued evolution of quality

public health curriculum.

Maintain EHAC accreditation for the MPH-EH. Evaluate program curriculum Submit

self-study for reaccreditation during fall 2011, with site visit spring 2011.

Maintaining accreditation with EHAC for the MPH-EH concentration is one way to

ensure the program is providing a quality environmental health graduate education. The

benefit to our students is preferential hiring by several federal and state agencies afforded

only to those graduating from EHAC accredited programs. This accreditation also helps

provide qualified individuals much needed over the next 5-10 years to meet the

workforce brain drain of the last decade as the environmental health workforce reaches

retirement age.

Continue working toward accreditation of the general MPH and MPH-EH with CEPH.

In fall 2008, the department began a concentrated effort to create curriculum and

infrastructure consistent with CEPH accreditation requirements. Two tenure-track

faculty positions were hired. A successful spring 2011 search for one faculty

replacement and one additional faculty line will complete the minimum six positions for

CEPH accreditation. Curriculum was realigned with accreditation requirements. In fall

2009, the department applied and was accepted to enter into the accreditation application

process. The department has worked on strategic planning, mission, goals, competencies,

learning objectives, assessment and other curricular infrastructure necessary to meet the

accreditation criteria. The draft self-study is due spring 2011, with the final self-study

report due October 2011.

Stabilize the ability of the department to deliver the curriculum stabilizing the number of

full-time faculty assigned to the program at 6 and 7-8 FTE with adjuncts.

As enrollment grows and the department moves to deliver both the general MPH and

MPH-EH concentration on-line, ads an UG minor, and participates in general education

and in interdisciplinary joint masters’ degrees and certificates additional faculty will be

needed. This is particularly true as the department moves toward offering an UG major

in public health.

Continue to evaluate and increase recruiting efforts.

The department can no longer limit recruiting to the immediate Springfield area for

enrollment growth and stabilization. The program needs to create a vigorous recruiting

effort. Both funding and innovative approaches to recruiting are needed for this effort.

Funding is needed to advertise in national and regional journals and support travel for

recruiting, printing of brochures, and mailing costs. Because the department shares an

Draft 4-22-2011 41

online coordinator with ENS and the coordinator provides web-based visibility for both

departments on top of coordinating online education, support is needed for keeping the

web site remain current and improving this important recruiting tool in this day of

Internet technology.

.

X. Statistical Data

Table 1: Student Demographic Data (information imbedded in section III on student

demographics)

Table 2: Number of Program Majors Credit Hours Generated, and Degrees Granted

(information imbedded in section IV on student enrollment)

References

Accreditation Criteria: Public Health Programs, Council on Education for Public Health,

Amended June 2005, Accessed March 30, 2011 at http://www.ceph.org/pdf/PHP-

Criteria-redline.pdf

Calhoun, J. G., Kalpana R., Weist, E. M., and Shortell, S.M. (2008). Development of a core

competency model for the Master of Public Health Degree. American Journal of Public

Health, 98(9), 1598-1607.

Graduate Guidelines, Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council.

Amended August 2006, Accessed March 30, 2011 at http://www.ehacoffice.org/accred-

guide/grad-guide.php

Draft 4-22-2011 42

MISSION

The UIS Public Health Department prepares students to become productive members of the

public health community to help accomplish the Healthy People vision of healthy people in

healthy communities at the local, state, national, and international levels. To accomplish this

mission the department has the following four goals:

GOALS

Goal 1: Prepare students with analytical skills, cultural competence, scientific knowledge and

understanding of social justice necessary for practicing the core functions of public health:

assessment, policy development and assurance.

Objective 1.1: All graduating students will attain a B or better in all core courses

o Data source: Student Records

Objective 1.2: All graduating students will attain a GPA of 3.1 or better in MPH

course work

o Data source: Student Records

Objective 1.3: All students will show improved overall self-assessed competency on the

MPH program competencies as measured by a pre- program assessment

completed in the first MPH course and a post program assessment

completed at the time of the comprehensive exam.

o Data source: Competency assessment database

Goal 2: Build public health capacity through instruction and service to the university, profession

and community.

Objective 2.1: Faculty members provide service toward the profession, university and

community.

o Data source: Annual Performance Report

o Data source: Faculty CV

Objective 2.2: Inspire students and graduates of the program to become involved with

public health initiatives in academia, their professions, professional organizations, and

community-based settings.

o Data source: Survey students in the program yearly

o Data source: Survey graduates of the program every three years

Objective 2.3: Incorporate activities into courses which promote public health and public

health awareness

o Data source: Course syllabi

Objective 2.4: Meet with MPH Advisory Committee yearly

o Data source: Minutes of meeting

Goal 3: Work within the teacher-scholar model focusing on translating research into evidence-

based public health practice.

Objective 3.1 Faculty of the Public Health Department collectively engages in

scholarship of teaching, integration, and application.

o Annual Performance Report

Draft 4-22-2011 43

Goal 4: Work toward social justice to improve health equity and eliminate disparities through a

diverse public health workforce represented by faculty and student diversity.

Objective 4.1 Proactively recruit a diverse faculty

o Data source: Faculty search plans

Objective 4.2 Increase numbers of minority student admissions within the UIS MPH

program to 13 %.

o Data source: Institutional Research

Objective 4.3 Incorporate experiential learning opportunities in courses with outreach to

local minority communities

o Data source: Course syllabi

Objective 4.4: Create a reciprocal arrangement for study of public health internationally.

Our students will study abroad. International students will earn UIS MPH

degrees.

o Data source: Institutional research

o Data source: Office of International Studies Matriculation

Agreements.

Draft 4-22-2011 44

COMPETENCIES

MPH CORE CURRICULUM COMPETENCIES

Analytical/Assessment

Applies a variety of public health research designs and epidemiological methods,

including qualitative and quantitative techniques, selecting or creating appropriate

instruments.

Acquires primary and secondary data for conducting valid and reliable needs assessments

and evaluations.

Analyzes and synthesizes data to enhance decision making for the practice of public

health while contributing to the scientific base of public health.

Policy Development/Program Planning

Analyzes information and policy options and develops mechanisms to monitor and

evaluate programs for their effectiveness and quality.

Identifies organizational and community stakeholders, concerns, and assets.

Plans, implements, and evaluates evidence based social and behavioral science

interventions, using multi-disciplinary theories, concepts, and models.

Interprets the fiscal interrelationships of local, state, and federal public health and

healthcare systems, their organizational structures, functions, and authorities.

Communication/ Cultural Competency

Considers the cultural, social, and behavioral factors and incorporates strategies to

enhance accessibility, availability, acceptability and delivery of public health services.

Presents demographic, statistical, programmatic, and scientific information for use by

professional and lay audiences.

Community Dimensions of Practice

Assesses community relationships, roles of governmental and non-governmental entities,

and community health determinants, while promoting public health policies, programs

and resources.

Public Health Sciences

Applies the public health sciences to public health programs and policies in support of the

core public health functions and the ten essential services of public health.

Leadership and Systems Thinking

Analyzes internal and external problems that may affect the delivery of essential public

health services.

Draft 4-22-2011 45

Incorporates systems thinking, an ecological approach, and ethical standards of practice

as the basis of all interactions with organizations, communities, and individuals.

GENERALMPH ELECTIVES GROUP COMPETENCIES

1) Emerging Issues:

Use multidisciplinary tools and techniques to evaluate and manage unknown,

emergent, and re-emergent health and environmental hazards.

Analyze the implications of these hazards within social, biophysical, ethical, legal,

economic, scientific, and political systems.

2) Advanced Epidemiology:

Assess risk factors and evidence for establishing morbidity and mortality problems.

Evaluate epidemiology study design and its application to public health policy.

3) Analytical Tools:

Identify, collect, and analyze primary and secondary data using specialized decision

making tools to improve efficiencies, quality of services, and create new knowledge

in public health practice of assessment, policy development, and assurance.

4) Social Determinants:

Use an integrated biopsychosocial approach to identify and evaluate the interplay of

biological, psychological and social factors which are determinants of population

health and wellbeing.

Use principles of behavioral economics to evaluate and deal with current challenges

of maintaining behavior change.

MPH-EH CONCENTRATION CORE GENERALCOMPETENCY

Recognize, evaluate, and control exposures to chemical, biological, and radiological sources

concern to human health.

MPH – EH CONCENTRATION ELECTIVE OPTIONS COMPETENCIES

Option 1- Environmental Risk Assessment

Assess environmental risks on human populations using established federal

guidelines.

Relate risk assessment methodologies, procedures, and results to their relationship

with environmental health policy.

Option 2- Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security

Apply the key components of environmental risk assessment pertinent to emergency

preparation, and response.

Draft 4-22-2011 46

Integrate the principles of risk communication, risk management, and program

evaluation in emergency planning and homeland security programs.

Draft 4-22-2011 47

PUBLIC HEALTH uis.edu/publichealth Email: nrach1@uis.edu Office Phone: (217) 206-6250 Office Location: PAC 308

Mission: The UIS Public Health Department prepares students to become productive members of

the public health community to help accomplish the Healthy People vision of healthy people in

healthy communities at the local, state, national, and international levels. To accomplish this

mission the department has the following four goals:

Goal 1: Prepare students with analytical skills, cultural competence, scientific knowledge and

understanding of social justice necessary for practicing the core functions of public health:

assessment, policy development, and assurance.

Goal 2: Build public health capacity through instruction and service to the university, profession

and community.

Goal 3: Work within the teacher-scholar model focusing on translating research into evidence-

based public health practice.

Goal 4: Work toward social justice to improve health equity and eliminate disparities through a

diverse public health workforce represented by faculty and student diversity.

The department offers two options for graduate-level study in public health: a generalist MPH degree with a strong interdisciplinary foundation for practice in public health, and an MPH with a

concentration in Environmental Health within which a student may choose to emphasize preparation in risk assessment or emergency preparedness. The curriculum is designed to provide the students with the academic background necessary to meet core competencies in environmental and public health as published on the Public Health Department web site (www.uis.edu/publichealth). While the department's required core courses provide the generalist background needed by all students, the concentration core in environmental health and elective courses allow students to concentrate on a particular aspect of public health. The MPH with a concentration in Environmental Health is an

accredited curriculum through the National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation

Council (EHAC). Both the general MPH and the MPH with a concentration in Environmental Health may be completed on campus or may be taken entirely online.

THE MASTER'S DEGREE Admission Requirements Applicants must submit an admission application and transcripts from previous college-level academic work to the UIS Office of Admissions. As a second part of the admissions process, applicants must submit to the department the following: 1) complete department application form with current

curriculum vitae; 2) an essay addressing the areas outlined on the department application form ; 2) three completed recommendation forms from employers, professional peers, or educators; and 3) Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores in the general examination. Other aptitude tests -- Medical

College Admission Test (MCAT), Dental Aptitude Test (DAT), Law School Admission Test (LSAT), or the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) -- can be submitted. Applicants with post-baccalaureate degrees are exempt from submitting GRE scores.

Applicants must have earned a cumulative GPA of 3.00 (on a 4.00 point scale) for previous academic work and completed a minimum of 30 semester hours in the natural sciences at the baccalaureate level or higher. Conditional admission is possible for those with public health or environmental health

experience who are missing one or more of the conditions listed. To be fully admitted, conditionally admitted students must have a 3.00 GPA at the end of their first 12 semester hours of study. Students who take TOEFL exams must score at least the graduate level established by the UIS Office of Admissions. Students must complete conditions within the time frame established upon admission.

Draft 4-22-2011 48

Advising

Advising in the Public Health Department provides an individual approach to the academic and

professional development of each student. On admission, each student is assigned a temporary advisor to assist with academic planning. Thereafter, students may choose an advisor from department faculty. Students must prepare an educational plan before registering for courses in order to map out progress through the degree consistent with career and personal goals. Students are not allowed to register until this educational plan is approved.

Grading Students must maintain a B(3.0) or better cumulative average during their course of study. A maximum of eight hours of C (2.0) grades is applicable to the degree (grades of C- or lower are not accepted), provided they are balanced by an equal number of A grade hours and an approved Student Petition is on file in the Office of Records and Registration. Courses taken on a CR/NC basis will not count toward the degree. Only pre-approved 400-level courses are permitted for use toward the

degree.

Major Requirements

The MPH degree requires that students complete 48 semester hours of course work, 28 hours of which are required core courses, including a four-hour internship. The student must declare either a

generalist course of study or a specialization in environmental health and take 20 hours of concentration core or electives.

Required Core Courses (28 Hrs.)

MPH 503 Biostatistics for the Health Professional 4 Hrs. MPH 506 Community Health Research 4 Hrs.

MPH 511 Foundations of Epidemiology 4 Hrs.

MPH 521 Environmental and Occupational Health 4 Hrs. MPH 531 Public Health Policy and Administration 4 Hrs. MPH 561 Community Health Education 4 Hrs. MPH 581 Internship 4 Hrs.*

*Students may petition to use PAD 561 Graduate Public Service Internship Seminar in Organization Environment in the Public Service as 1 Hr. toward the Internship requirement. GENERALIST MPH (total 48 hours) Required core courses listed above (28 hours) and at least one course from each of the following elective categories (20 hours):

Emerging Issues

MPH 471 Emerging Diseases 4 Hrs.* MPH 478 Crisis in Environmental Health 4 Hrs. MPH 526 Risk Management and Communication 4 Hrs. MPH 535 Public Health in Policy Arena 4 Hrs. Advanced Epidemiology

Draft 4-22-2011 49

MPH 512 Epidemiology of Infectious & Chronic Diseases 4 Hrs.

MPH 514 Analytical Epidemiology 4 Hrs.

Analytical Tools

MPH 508 Program Evaluation for Public Health 4 Hrs. MPH 575 Health Economics 4 Hrs. ENS 404 Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems 4 Hrs.

Social Determinants

MPH 402 Food and Health 4 Hrs. MPH 408 ECCE: Addiction 4 Hrs.

MPH 441 Human Well Being One additional elective may be selected from any graduate course taught by the department or

campus, in consultation with and approval by the academic advisor. Career path should be consider for best selection of this elective 4 Hrs. *MPH students must select the 4-hour option for this course to meet the degree requirements.

MPH with CONCENTRATION in ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH (48 Hours)

Required core courses listed above (28 hours) and required Environmental Health concentration core

(8 hours), as well as 12 hours of Environmental Health concentration electives which are selected from one of two options detailed below. MPH 449 Environmental Toxicology 4 Hrs.

MPH 527 Environmental Risk Assessment 4 Hrs. EH concentration electives (select from one of two options below) 12 Hrs.

Option 1: (Students in this option may want to also take MPH 529 Risk Assessment Practicum to qualify for the Risk Assessment Certificate.)

MPH 526 Risk Management and Communication 4 Hrs. MPH 528 Risk Assessment: Air, Land, and Water 4 Hrs. MPH 575 Health Economics 4 Hrs.

Option 2: (Students in this option may want to also take and additional approved elective to qualify for the Certificate in Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security.) MPH 478 Crisis in Environmental Health 4 Hrs.

MPH 526 Risk Communication and Management 4 Hrs. MPH 508 Program Evaluation for Public Health or PAD 533 Program Evaluation 4 Hrs. Closure Exercise

The closure experience is a comprehensive written examination based on a case study with questions designed to test students' ability to demonstrate the core competencies of environmental and public

health as published on the department web site, and integrate the knowledge and skills they have gained in an applied scenario.. A student must complete all core courses prior to taking the

Draft 4-22-2011 50

comprehensive exam, but may take the exam concurrently with electives during the last semester of

study. The student must successfully complete the exam within one year after completing course work for the degree. Students who do not complete the examination during their final semester of study must enroll in MPH 583 (zero credit hours, one billable credit hour) each regular semester

(fall/spring) until they pass the exam. Details about the procedure are published on the department web site. Internship

All students in the MPH curriculum must take 4 hours of internship (MPH 581). Details about the internship are published on the department web site. Students serving as Graduate Public Service Interns may petition to use PAD 561 (1 hour) toward the required internship hours.

MPH PROFESSIONAL OPTION

The MPH professional option provides an opportunity for physicians and others with earned doctorates and at least one year of health-related experience to earn an MPH degree at UIS. The option requires

completion of the 28 hours of core courses including the internship and 8 hours of general electives (36 hours total). Other applicants may be eligible for admission to this option and will be considered by the admissions committee on a case-by-case basis. Included are 1) those currently enrolled in a physician residency-training program, and 2) those who are in the process of completing a doctoral-level, health-related degree and who have at least one year of health-related experience. Interested applicants should contact the MPH department for information about the application process.

JOINT DEGREE OPTIONS – MPH/HMS and MPH/MPA

The UIS Departments of Public Health and Human Services and Public Health and Public

Administration have articulation agreements which allow interested students to obtain a joint master’s

degree in Public Health and Human Services (MPH/HMS), or in Public Health and Public Administration

(MPH/MPA). Although many courses are offered online, the MPH/HMS joint degree is classified as an

on campus joint degree. The MPH/MPA joint degree may be completed either on campus, or may be

completed online. Students must apply to both graduate programs to be eligible for the joint degree.

All prerequisites of each program apply. Contact either department or see their respective web sites

for details.

GRADUATE CERTIFICATES

The Public Health Department offers five graduate certificates for specialized study in public health.

These certificates, all of which are available either on campus or online, may be taken by either degree or non-degree seeking students interested in advanced preparation in:

Community Health Education Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security Environmental Health Epidemiology Risk Assessment

Please refer to the Graduate Certificates section of this catalog, and view the list of certificates detailed under the College of Public Affairs and Administration heading.

Draft 4-22-2011 51

Public Health Minor

A minor in Public Health is designed for students who wish to develop an introductory

awareness and preparation for dealing with critical local, state, national and global issues

important to improving population health. Because public health practice requires a foundation

in the social and natural sciences, a minor in public health pairs well with a number of the

undergraduate majors at UIS (e.g., biology, chemistry, sociology, psychology, global studies,

and liberal studies). A minor in public health will help students in these majors understand the

application of their major in betterment of environmental and public health.

The public health minor uses a foundation of policy, administration, environmental health and

epidemiology for comparing and contrasting local and global crises in public health and prepare

the student for advanced study in program development and intervention. Students completing

the minor in Public Health will be able to understand the basic principles of public health;

assessment, policy development, and assurance; the role of population, poverty, and pollution on

the well-being of populations, and methods for studying disease occurrence and patterns in

populations.

To earn an undergraduate minor in Public Health, students must complete a minimum of 15

hours in public health courses (2 core and 3 electives). Electives should be selected in

consultation with a Public Health faculty member.

Core Courses (required):

MPH 222: Global Public Health – Population, Poverty, and Pollution 3 credit hours

MPH 224: Epidemiology: Science of Disease Discovery 3 credit hours

Elective (select 3)

MPH 221: ECCE Environmental Facts and Fictions* 3 credit hours

MPH 301: Global Environmental Health 3 credit hours

MPH 401 Introduction to US HealthCare System 4 credit hours

MPH 402 Food and Health 4 credit hours

MPH 408: ECCE Addictions 4 credit hours

MPH 438: ECCE Monsters, Medicine & Myths 4 credit hours

MPH 441: Human Well-Being 3 credit hours UG/4 credit hours Grad

MPH 450: ECCE Chemicals & Citizen 4 credit hours

MPH 471: ECCE Emerging Diseases 3 credit hours UG/4 credit hours Grad

MPH 478: ECCE Crisis in Environmental Health 4 credit hours

MPH 484: Air Policy 4 credit hours

MPH 486 Solid & Hazardous Waste Policy 4 credit hours

*Students may count either MPH 221 or MPH 438 to the minor in Public Health but not both

Two Year MPH Course Rotation Color Code = (grad only) (UG only) (blue UG/GRAD 400-level) (red delivery online)

NOTE: THIS SCHEDULE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE BASED ON COURSE DEMAND AND FACULTY AVAILABILITY.

FALL ODD YEARS SPRING EVEN YEARS SUMMER EVEN YEARS Course Delivery Course Delivery Course Delivery

GENERAL CORE

MPH 503: Biostatistics for the Health

Professional

On

campus

MPH 503: Biostatistics for the Health

Professional

Online

MPH 506: Community Health

Research

Online MPH 506: Community Health

Research

Blended

MPH 511: Foundation of

Epidemiology

Online MPH 511: Foundation of

Epidemiology

On

campus

MPH 521: Environmental & Occupational

Health

On

campus

MPH 521: Environmental &

Occupational Health

Online

MPH 531: Intro PH Policy &

Administration

On

campus

MPH 531: Intro PH Policy &

Administration

Online

MPH 561: Community Health Ed On

campus

MPH 561: Community Health Ed Online

MPH 581: Internship MPH 581: Internship MPH 581: Internship

EH CORE

MPH 449: Environmental Toxicology Online

MPH 527: Environmental Risk

Assessment

Online

ELECTIVES

MPH 222: Global Public Health:

Population, Poverty and Pollution

On

campus

MPH 222: Global Public Health:

Population, Poverty and Pollution

Online MPH 408: Addiction Online

MPH 301: Global EH On

campus

MPH 224: Epidemiology Science of

Discovery

On

campus

MPH 438: Monsters,

Medicine, and Myths

Online

Draft 4-22-2011 53

MPH 408: Addiction On

campus

MPH 402: Food and Health On

campus

MPH 471: Emerging

Diseases

Online

MPH 408: Addiction Online MPH 402: Food and Health Online MPH 478 Crisis in EH Online

MPH 438: Monsters, Medicine, and

Myths

Online –

1st 8-

weeks

MPH 441: Human Well Being Online

MPH 450: Chemical and the Citizen Online MPH 450 Chemicals and the Citizen Online

MPH 478 Crisis in EH Online MPH 478 Crisis in EH Online

MPH 486: Solid & Hazardous Waste

(Not fall 2011)

Online MPH 508: Program Evaluation Online

MPH 526: Risk Communication &

Management

Online MPH 512: Epidemiology of Chronic

& Infectious Diseases

Online

MPH 535: Public Health in Policy Arena

(Not fall 2011)

Online MPH 526: Risk Communication &

Management

Online

MPH 575: Heath Economics

(Not fall 2011)

Online

Draft 4-22-2011 54

MPH Course Rotation Color Code = (grad only) (UG only) (blue UG/GRAD 400-level) (red delivery online)

FALL EVEN YEARS SPRING ODD YEARS SUMMER ODD YEARS

Course Delivery Course Delivery Course Delivery

GENERAL CORE

MPH 503: Biostatistics for the Health

Professional

On

campus

MPH 503: Biostatistics for the Health

Professional

Online

MPH 506: Community Health

Research

Online MPH 506: Community Health

Research

Blended

MPH 511: Foundation of Epidemiology Online MPH 511: Foundation of

Epidemiology

On

campus

MPH 521: Environmental &

Occupational Health

Online MPH 521: Environmental &

Occupational Health

Online

MPH 531: Intro PH Policy &

Administration

On

campus

MPH 531: Intro PH Policy &

Administration

Online

MPH 561: Community Health Ed On

campus

MPH 561: Community Health Ed Online

MPH 581: Internship MPH 581: Internship MPH 581: Internship

EH CORE

MPH 449 (CHE 465): Environmental

Toxicology

Online

MPH 527: Environmental Risk

Assessment

Online

ELECTIVES

MPH 222: Global Public Health:

Population, Poverty and Pollution

On

campus

MPH 221: Environmental Facts and

Fictions

Online MPH 221:

Environmental Facts and

Fictions

Online

MPH 408: Addiction On

campus

MPH 222: Global Public Health:

Population, Poverty, and Pollution

On

campus

MPH 408: Addiction Online

MPH 408: Addiction Online MPH 224 Epidemiology – Science of

Disease Discovery

On

campus

MPH 438: Monsters,

Medicine, and Myths

Online

MPH 438: Monsters, Medicine, and Online MPH 402: Food and Health On MPH 471: Emerging Online

Draft 4-22-2011 55

Myths campus Diseases

MPH 450: Chemical and the Citizen Online MPH 402: Food and Health Online MPH 478 Crisis in EH Online

MPH 526: Risk Communication &

Management

Online MPH 441: Human Well Being Online MPH 529 Risk Practicum

– offered based on

certificate need

Online

MPH 575: Economics of Policy

Analysis

Online MPH 450 Chemicals and the Citizen online

MPH 478 Crisis in EH online MPH 478 Crisis in EH online

MPH 484: Policy of Ambient and

Indoor Air Quality

Online MPH 508: Program Evaluation online

MPH 514: Analytical Epidemiology Online

MPH 526: Risk Communication &

Management

Online

MPH 528 Risk Assessment Air, Land,

Water

Online