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Graduates Challenged to Use Public Health to Address Health Disparities and Create Positive Social Change

Dean Michael Merson and commencement speaker Helene Gayle lead the procession into Battell Chapel.

“Improvements in public health are both a cause and a consequence of positive social change,” commencement speaker Helene Gayle, M.D., M.P.H., Director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s HIV, Tuberculosis and Reproductive Health Program, and former Director of the National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told the 105 graduates assembled for the School of Public Health’s May 24 commencement ceremony in Battell Chapel.

From left, Anne Pistell, Associate Dean, Kaveh Khoshnood, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, and Curtis Patton, Professor of Epidemiology, visit prior to the commencement ceremony.

To illustrate her point, Dr. Gayle, who has spent the majority of her career working in HIV prevention, used the example of individual, community, and national responses to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, saying “I chose HIV or HIV chose me, because of the societal imperative that it poses. Solving the puzzle of HIV/AIDS will by necessity lead to broader societal change. Communities and nations, both developed and developing, that have slowed the spread of HIV have done so by changing the way people view and relate to each other. Where we have seen changes, we have seen governments work constructively with communities, preachers work with prostitutes and straights work respectfully with gays. In short, where we have seen a positive response to the HIV epidemic, we have seen social change. This is true for all of public health.”

Dean Merson presents the Dean's Prize for Outstanding M.P.H. Thesis to Allison Brown, one of three students who received the award this year.

In a speech that reminded her audience of the destructiveness, worldwide, of economic, health and social disparities, Dr. Gayle argued that “the challenge we all face in our role as public health professionals is finding a way to narrow the inequities at home and around the globe,” saying that “public health can play a critical role in addressing the stunning health disparities we all know exist between rich and poor, majority and minority, marginalized and mainstream in our societies.”

Dean Michael Merson speaks to graduates during the School of Public Health's commencement ceremony.

In addressing the graduates, Michael Merson, M.D., Anna M.R. Lauder Professor and Dean of Public Health, cited numerous challenges facing the public health profession, but focused on one in particular, saying “in our country, over the last two years, politics and ideology have invaded the work of public health researchers, educators, advocates and service providers alike in numerous and unprecedented ways. One can find examples of this in the areas of reproductive health, global warming, disparities in health care, and the making of appointments to federal advisory committees… on the basis of the values of those appointed and not on their scientific expertise or experience.” He exhorted the graduates that “it is this challenge-- the need for you to apply and promote in all your work scientifically sound positions and judgments… no matter the politics and ideology around you-- where there is the most at stake. For if we in the public health community do not do this, there can never be social justice and adequate protection from disease, particularly for those who are most vulnerable in our society.”

The student address was given by Stephen Vindigni, a student in the Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases Division (EMD), who urged his classmates “to keep in mind that behind every statistic and every survey is a person – an individual with thoughts, with feelings, with human rights.” Vindigni then focused on the power of individuals to affect change, arguing that “while you may aim to impact on a community level, every individual within that community has the power to benefit from your hard work, your dedication and your passion.”

Dean Michael Merson presents the Award for Excellence in Teaching to Professor Linda Niccolai.

Several departmental awards were presented at Commencement. The Award for Excellence in Teaching was given to Linda Niccolai, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Epidemiology in EMD. The Dean’s Prize for Outstanding M.P.H. Thesis was given to Allison Brown for Molecular Characterization of a Novel C-Type Lectin from the Human Hookworm, Ancyclostoma Ceylanicum, Jessica Leung for An Investigation of Human Metapneumovirus, and Lindsey Myers for Older Driver Stereotypes and Adverse Driving Events in Elderly Drivers: A Longitudinal Study. The Henry J. Chauncey, Jr. Inspiration Award was given to Vikram Acharya, and the Courtlandt Van Rensselaer Creed Award was given to Lisa Jones.

Graduates line up to receive diplomas.

Following the presentation of awards, Dean Merson presented diplomas to the graduates, whose black robes were enlivened by occasional flowers, twinkles of confetti, and decorated mortarboards. Dean Merson also recognized EPH’s 17 Ph.D. and 4 M.S. in Biostatistics graduates, who received their degrees from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

- Story by Christy Gordon.

Download PDF of Helene Gayle's 2004 Commencement Speech.

Dean Merson introduces Stephen Vindigni, who gave the student address.