Curriculum Highlights at the School of Public Health
Shaping public health leaders: A commitment to practical education and community engagement
ºÚÁÏÍø of Texas School of Public Health San Antonio continues to build on its mission of delivering practical education, impactful research and meaningful service. The curriculum emphasizes systems thinking and health access, preparing students to lead with purpose in addressing complex public health challenges.
Through community-engaged learning, students bridge theory and practice by working directly with urban, rural and border communities. Experiential opportunities, such as practicum and capstone courses, provide hands-on training that fosters advocacy, partnership building and capacity development.
The Master of Public Health program remains deeply rooted in addressing the unique public health needs of San Antonio, Bexar County and South Texas. Coursework focuses on leadership and program management, equipping graduates to excel in professional roles within local, regional and state health departments, community-based organizations, government agencies and health care delivery systems.
The school has also advanced its organizational structure by establishing four academic departments, led by newly appointed chairs. This development strengthens the foundation for interdisciplinary study and innovative public health solutions.
With these milestones, the School of Public Health is poised to shape the next generation of public health leaders dedicated to making a tangible impact in the communities they serve.
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health
The Department of Environmental and Occupational Health seeks to advance our understanding and practice of environmental and occupational health. The department’s goal is to address the social, economic and environmental conditions affecting people throughout their lives through research, education and service. The department aims to develop proactive systems to protect communities and workers, integrating and customizing findings to local needs. The focus areas include environmental health, which involves creating strategies to mitigate pollution and contamination, and occupational health, which emphasizes safe and healthy work environments. The department also engages in policy and advocacy to support effective regulations and health promotion.
The department is led by the founding chair, David Gimeno Ruiz de Porras, PhD, a trained psychologist and social and occupational epidemiologist with over two decades of experience in public health research and training. His work explores the impact of environmental and occupational exposures on individual and community health through psychosocial, behavioral and biological pathways, focusing on health disparities affecting vulnerable populations.
Department of Health, Behavior, and Society
The Department of Health, Behavior, and Society aims to integrate community perspectives into public health research, education, service and leadership. Its mission focuses on three key areas: health over the life course (maternal and child health, adolescence and young adulthood and middle and older adulthood), lifestyle behaviors and health communication. The department is committed to understanding and improving health by exploring the connections between mental and physical health, behavior and policy.
Cristina Barroso, DrPH, MPH, the department’s founding chair, is a leading community-engaged researcher specializing in lifestyle behaviors within the policy, systems and environment framework. Barroso collaborates with community organizations, local health departments and policymakers to enhance physical and social environments, aiming to improve community health outcomes and support thriving communities.
Department of Health Policy and Health Services Administration
The Department of Health Policy and Health Services Administration focuses on enhancing community engagement, research and education to improve health care delivery and health outcomes. This is addressed through three primary areas: evaluating and improving health care services, leading and administering health care organizations and developing policies to promote and protect population health. The department’s work includes identifying barriers to health care, examining patient-centered outcomes, improving health care organizational performance and leveraging data to improving health care systems. The department will actively collaborate with community organizations, academic institutions and other stakeholders to address health disparities and improve health outcomes in South Texas.
The department’s founding chair, Michael Halpern, MD, PhD, MPH, is a physician, health services researcher and data scientist with over 30 years of experience. Renowned for his applied research aimed at enhancing patient-centered care, his work addresses health care access challenges and includes over 200 peer-reviewed publications. Halpern is a member of the Mays Cancer Center Population Science and Prevention Program.
Department of Quantitative and Qualitative Health Sciences
The Department of Quantitative and Qualitative Health Sciences is dedicated to leading research, educating future public health professionals and serving the community. In a data-driven world, the ability to evaluate data quality and interpret results accurately is more important than ever. The department prioritizes combining quantitative analysis with qualitative insights, ensuring a comprehensive approach to addressing health disparities. By incorporating community voices, the department works locally through research and partnerships to address community health and non-health needs, improving health outcomes and reducing disparities. Additionally, it embraces the potential of artificial intelligence and machine learning tools, focusing on leveraging technology responsibly to advance health equity and create meaningful solutions.
The department’s founding chair, Tracey Barnett, PhD, is a social epidemiologist with over 20 years of experience in public health. Barnett focuses her research on tobacco use among youth and young adults, as well as smoking cessation and reducing environmental exposure to tobacco products in adults. Her work includes prevention strategies for reducing tobacco use, understanding health risks and resilience across the life course and addressing health disparities by identifying structural barriers.