Dean, College of Public Health

Dean, College of Public Health

East Tennessee State University

East Tennessee State University (ETSU), located in the Appalachian Highlands of Tennessee, invites applications and nominations for an experienced, creative, student-focused, and energetic academic leader to serve as Dean of the College of Public Health. We seek a visionary leader who will foster the College’s leadership role in the state, region, and nation, advancing health and well‑being for all through innovative teaching, research, and community engagement.

For more information on ETSU, visit ETSU At-a-Glance.

The College of Public Health comprises five departments and seven research centers or institutes. Departments include Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Biomedical Health Sciences, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety Sciences, Health Services Management and Policy, and Community and Behavioral Health. Centers and institutes include the Addiction Science Center, Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women’s Health, Center for Rural Health and Research, Center for Cardiovascular Risk Research, ETSU/NORC Rural Health Research Center, Tennessee Public Health Training Center, and the Tennessee Institute of Public Health.

The College enrolls approximately 750 undergraduate students and 250 graduate students, employs over 90 full‑time faculty and staff across the college, and offers eight degree programs at the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels.

The College of Public Health is dynamic. Since its founding as a standalone College in 2007, enrollment has grown an average of 7.8% annually, faculty and staff have more than doubled, degree offerings have doubled, and research productivity has increased by more than four orders of magnitude. In 2024, the College received the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH) Harrison Spencer Award for Outstanding Community Service, ASPPH’s highest honor for a school or college and has twice won the Delta Omega Award for Innovative Curriculum, one of only two schools in the country to have received both awards.

The research portfolio of the college has grown exponentially including extramural funding and scientific publications. Sources of funding are diversified and include federal, state, private foundation, and non‑profit sources. The college faculty and research centers have a strong track record of securing external funding to address pressing health challenges at the regional, state, and national levels. The college values student engagement in research with over half of all research projects and scientific presentations originating from the college including student participation.

The Dean of the College of Public Health leads a Dean’s Office of 14, including 3 Associate Deans and 3 Assistant Deans, the Chairs of 5 academic departments, and Directors of 7 centers/institutes. More information on the College of Public Health can be found via the ETSU College of Public Health website.

The incoming Dean will become an integral member of an energetic, collaborative, progressive leadership team of deans focused on regional health improvement through the unified branding of ETSU Health. ETSU Health includes the newly restructured College of Health Sciences, the James H. Quillen College of Medicine, the Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy, the College of Nursing, and the College of Public Health.

Together, they enroll 4,000 students and offer 35 different degree programs, including 12 clinical and research doctoral degrees, and have achieved national recognition for their interprofessional education programs and practice partnerships spanning more than three decades. With a commitment to preparing graduates to practice in rural and underserved areas, ETSU Health is on the front lines of building the future health workforce for the region and nation.

We seek a nationally recognized leader who respects the complex nature of teaching and learning across public health disciplines, impactful research, and interprofessional education. The Dean is expected to cultivate a healthy work environment by embracing a culture of transparency and…