BSHES: GET TO KNOW US
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The Department of Behavioral, Social and Health Education Sciences (BSHES) is dedicated to advancing health equity through innovative research and community-engaged practices addressing the multi-level determinants of health. BSHES department members are motivated to examine and challenge systemic patterns of inequity and exclusion in order to bring about meaningful social change and improve population health.
Students receive intensive training on theories and methods of health promotion, planning and design of culturally informed interventions, program evaluation and data analysis, and principles of community engagement. Students have the option to develop deeper content area expertise through certificate programs. Our curriculum is carefully constructed to enable our BSHES graduates to achieve a range of professional options in their journeys to bring about positive impacts on community health and wellbeing – e.g., in the public sector, in healthcare and service delivery settings, in consulting, in private industry, and in academia.
The BSHES department is made up of a collaborative group of talented faculty members who are dedicated to the success of our students and alumni. BSHES faculty members contribute diverse disciplinary and methodological perspectives to enrich students’ education. Our BSHES academic staff and Office of Student Affairs at the Rollins School are ready to support students’ academic and professional goals. Adjunct faculty members who are based at public health organizations across Atlanta regularly teach, advise, and mentor BSHES students.
The BSHES Department at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory truly provides an unrivaled setting for learning and professional development.
Welcome to the BSHES department at the Rollins School of Public Health! I am honored to introduce you to our community of students, staff, and faculty and to showcase our educational/research resources.
The BSHES department is a special place. We are rigorous thinkers, visionary dreamers, and engaged doers with a shared commitment to improve the health of all people and communities – especially historically and systematically disadvantaged groups where public health investment is needed the most. My own research and teaching interests are motivated by a commitment to health equity and community-engaged science, and I employ a range of methodologies to address the intersections of HIV, mental health, substance use, and structural violence in minoritized populations in the United States and in the Global South.
The Rollins School of Public Health is one of the best places in the country for me to do this research, and it is equally one of the best places to pursue graduate education. We enjoy amazing research resources, a beautiful physical campus, wide selection of courses, active student life, proximity to the CDC and numerous public health organizations, and other resources at Emory University and in the city of Atlanta.
Beyond these attributes, I am even more impressed by the aspirations that guide the BSHES culture. Our inclusive community works actively to achieve equity and justice through our science and educational programs, based on a fundamental belief in the right to health for all populations. BSHES celebrates the range of viewpoints that students bring to our classrooms and research groups. Our personal identities and lived experiences are often the most valuable skillsets for BSHES researchers/professionals, as they inform the types of questions we ask, the hypotheses we propose, the methods we use, and the public health solutions we recommend. We embrace all department members’ unique worldviews and enjoy the process of collaborative learning in our journey to advancing public health equity.
Mission and Vision
Our department’s mission is to better the health of all people by advancing knowledge and training tomorrow’s leaders in how to change behavior and social conditions that influence health. To this end, we have developed master’s and doctoral curricula that emphasize the methodological skills that address and crosscut the critical public health challenges we face now and in the decades ahead. Our department stands out from others in that Atlanta is home to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CARE, the American Cancer Society, the Carter Center and numerous state and regional health agencies. This provides a real-world laboratory providing unprecedented opportunities for applied practice experience and internship experiences for trainees to apply the skills they are gaining. The faculty in our department are dedicated teachers and mentors who have been recognized for their achievements locally, nationally, and globally.
Emory Disability, Illness, and Divergent Collaborative (EDIDC)
Bio: My name is Elizabeth (Lizzie) Zimmerman I'm a 1st-year BSHES student interested in qualitative research, community engagement, and entrepreneurship. "After being diagnosed with chronic illnesses and disabilities at a young age, I've been committed to disability inclusion and justice. I've witnessed the intersectionality of disabilities and how it affects people differently due to systemic oppression and ableism.
About the organization: I wanted to create an all-access space for students with disabilities outside of Disability and Accessibility Services (DAS) to have a sense of community within grad school. In addition, my mission is raising disability awareness and accessibility for students, establishing a space to share stories, advocating for disability justice, and dismantling ableism. EDIDC will offer a space to build a community through events, peer mentoring, leadership opportunities, and assistance with DAS paperwork, coursework, and overall navigating higher education as a disabled and neurodivergent student. A few of our objectives are generating and sharing knowledge, building capacity, program quality improvement, and engaging with students, professionals, and families. We hope this all-inclusive space will create a sense of community and continue conversations on disability and neurodivergence as we continue to strive for diversity within the RSPH community and Emory overall.
MEET THE BSHES ADAPS
Rachel Corbett and Brianna Binns are the Assistant Directors of Academic Programs and serve as academic advisors to BSHES MPH students. They provide student and faculty support, registration assistance, coordinate program details, and serve as a resource for RSPH policies and procedures. In addition to supporting students, they manage the BSHES Peer-to-Peer Mentoring Program and Social Media Pages in collaboration with BSHES MPH Students (Graduate Assistants).
Fun Facts About Our ADAPs
Rachel was born and raised in Columbia, SC. She has a 14-year-old shih tzu named after Lupe Fiasco, and loves live music and poetry. She's been working in higher education for over 10 years.
Brianna was born in Atlanta, GA and is an avid Atlanta Hawks fan. She enjoys food, DIY home projects, traveling, and spending time with her family.
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