The Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good is an undergraduate program of education, service and research. The Program is rooted in the Boston College liberal arts curriculum, grounded in science, and committed to social justice. We are committed to creation of a healthier and more equitable society and to care for the earth – our Common Home. We offer a 6-course (18-credit) undergraduate minor in Global Public Health and a new, 12-course (36-credit) major.
Visit the CSON website for academic program information.
As we approach Commencement season 2024, I would like to thank everyone who made this a very special year for the Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good at Boston College.
This year marked the Program’s fifth anniversary. It was also the year in which we launched the officially designated major in Global Public Health. We never could have achieved these milestones without the joy and enthusiasm of our students, the hard work of our faculty and staff, and the steadfast support of university administration. Thanks and praise to all who made this great year possible.
Enormous congratulations to our graduates! This year, 56 students will be graduating from Boston College with degrees from the Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good. They will include the last 8 students graduating from the independent major in Global Public Health, and 48 students who will be graduating from the minor. A truly outstanding cohort who have received multiple honors, awards and prestigious scholarships.
Our graduates are going on to many good places – to schools of public health, medical schools, dental schools, post-graduate education in nursing, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Some are proceeding directly to the next stage of their education while others are doing gap years in universities, health departments, hospitals and NGOs. We celebrate their many accomplishments, and we wish them every blessing.
Student demand for course work in global public health remains strong. We had 131 applicants this year for our major and minor in Global Public Health and the Common Good – 47 for the major and 84 for the minor (some students applied to both). We accepted 17 students to the major and 50 to the minor. These accepted students include rising sophomores, juniors and seniors. They come from every undergraduate school at BC, they are pursuing a wide range of academic majors, and they are highly diverse.
We are already looking forward to September. In the fall semester, we will be welcoming a new tenure-track faculty member to the Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good – Professor Katelyn Sileo, who will be joining us from the faculty of the University of Texas at San Antonio. Dr Sileo is a graduate of the University of Connecticut, and she received her PhD in Global Public Health from the University of California at San Diego. Dr. Sileo is a highly accomplished epidemiologist with global experience. She has worked extensively in Uganda and South Africa. Her research is focused on the prevention of HIV/AIDS. Please join me in welcoming Professor Sileo to Boston College.
Many thanks to Heather Jones-Lawlor for her tireless work in sorting out academic schedules, classroom assignments and all the myriad details of class registration and to Lizzie Perez, our Graduate Assistant from the Schools of Social Work and Theology & Ministry for her superb work on our newsletter and website. Lizzie graduates this year and we will miss her as she embarks on a new stage of her career.
In conclusion, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to all of our students, faculty, staff and administrators for your continued support for the Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good. The program succeeds because we all succeed together. Praise to all on a job well done!
Wishing everyone a happy and restful summer with no sunburns.
Regards,
Philip J. Landrigan, MD
Professor
Director of the Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good
Director of the Global Observatory of Planetary Health