Mission, Vision and History

Mission

To prepare leaders needed to evolve public health practice, public health research, and healthcare administration in a changing world. Through education, research, and service, we seek to promote health equity in communities that have been disadvantaged and marginalized.

Vision: Building on a Diverse Foundation

We are the leading public health and healthcare administration resource in North Texas dedicated to building solutions for healthy and equitable communities. As such we are the destination of choice for students seeking a high quality, affordable, graduate education.

Background & History

From the beginning, the UNTHSC School of Public Health sought to provide critically needed public health education and research to the citizens of North Texas.

Interest in developing a program in Public Health in Fort Worth sprang from the efforts of community leaders and public health officials who saw the need for a strong link between academic health care and community practitioners in the North Texas region.

The hard work of these community leaders and university officials culminated in July 1995 when the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved the institution’s request to offer a Master of Public Health Degree (MPH) in collaboration with the University of North Texas, Denton.

After several years of offering this degree, the Board of Regents authorized the University of North Texas Health Science Center to submit a proposal to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to create a School of Public Health and to request funds from the Texas Legislature to fund the school and its corresponding programs.

On December 1, 1997, the Association of Schools of Public Health (now the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health – ASPPH) accepted the University of North Texas Health Science Center’s Public Health Program as an affiliate member. Five years later, in June 2002, the School of Public Health was accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH).

Strategic Objectives and Goals

The school’s primary educational objective is to provide master’s and doctoral level degrees and education in public health. In addition, both the master’s and doctoral curricula require that students engage in public health practice experience outside of the academic setting to provide them actual work experience related to their education.

The school is also committed to serving the state and community by developing high quality education programs that assist public health professionals in attaining critical core competencies in the field. The school offers certificate programs for working public health professionals, as well as other training opportunities and partnerships.

The school’s primary research objective is to engage in high quality research related to pressing public health concerns, locally, statewide, nationally or internationally. Strategic objectives related to research seek to further develop the capabilities of faculty, students (and public health practitioners) to generate research and scholarship that enhances the knowledge base in each of the public health disciplines, thereby improving the public’s health.