Pitt Public Health

09/07/2026

Climate change affects far more than the weather. Its effects can reach across infectious disease, neurological health, mental well-being and many other areas of public health.

For Anna Apetrei-Pandrea (BSPH ’29), exploring those connections began as a high school summer project—and ultimately led to her first published paper.

Now entering her second year at Pitt Public Health, Anna hopes her work encourages others to recognize both the wide-ranging health consequences of climate change and the importance of including young people in conversations about its future.

Read more about Anna’s path to publication and where she hopes her research will take her: https://www.publichealth.pitt.edu/news/high-school-project-publication-anna-apetrei-pandrea-explores-health-impacts-climate-change

09/02/2026

09/02/2026

Nominations for the Pitt Public Health 2026 Alumni Awards are open until September 14!

Do you know an alum who is making an impact through their work, research, teaching, service or professional leadership? Nominate yourself, a former classmate or an alumni collaborator for an award.

Past winners have included chief executive officers of major health systems, Peace Corps volunteers, members of the U.S. Public Health Service, regional health department administrators and university faculty members.

Award Categories:
-Alumni Award for Practice
-Alumni Award for Research
-Alumni Award for Teaching and Dissemination
-Early Career Excellence Award
-Margaret F. Gloninger Service Award

For more information and to nominate: https://www.alumni.pitt.edu/s/1729/alumni/interior.aspx?sid=1729&gid=2&pgid=5602

09/01/2026

From responding to environmental disasters to improving the air people breathe at home, Pitt Public Health researchers are working to turn evidence into action.

At the 2026 National Environmental Health Association Annual Educational Conference, faculty and students shared research on the public health response following the East Palestine train derailment, barriers to radon testing, low-cost air filtration and household exposure to PFAS.

The conference offered an opportunity to exchange ideas, build partnerships and explore practical solutions to environmental health challenges affecting communities every day.

Read more about their research and Pitt Public Health’s environmental health leadership: https://www.publichealth.pitt.edu/news/pitt-public-health-experts-showcase-environmental-health-leadership-national-conference

08/31/2026

Today on International Overdose Awareness Day, we stand together across the globe declaring it's time for change. We are showing up, speaking up, and saying loudly - let's end overdose! 💜

08/28/2026

How do severe mental illness and metabolic health affect the way the brain ages?

With support from a new R01 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health, Qiong Wu, PhD, will develop new tools to help researchers study brain changes over time using information from multiple institutions—all while protecting patient privacy.

This research could lead to a better understanding of brain aging and support future discoveries in brain and mental health. Congratulations, Dr. Wu!

Read more about Wu's work:

Qiong Wu, PhD, assistant professor of biostatistics and health data science at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health, has received an R01 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health — part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health — to develop new statistical methods for st...

08/25/2026

Celebrating the people who help make Pitt Public Health what it is!

At our annual Staff Awards & Recognition Ceremony, we honored staff members whose dedication, leadership and service make a meaningful impact across our school and community.

Congratulations to this year’s Staff Award recipients: Kathleen Ali, Adrianna Gradisek, Julia Lewand and Jocelyn Runyon! 🎉

We also celebrated colleagues reaching service milestones from five all the way to 40 years at Pitt. Thank you to all of our award recipients, nominees and milestone honorees for everything you bring to Pitt Public Health.

🔗 Read more about this year’s honorees and celebration: https://www.publichealth.pitt.edu/news/school-public-health-staff-honored-annual-award-and-recognition-celebration

08/24/2026

A new year at Pitt Public Health is officially underway! 💙💛

On Friday, we welcomed our incoming bachelor’s students for Undergraduate Orientation, where they got to explore the School, meet some of the people and programs that will be part of their Pitt Public Health experience and start getting to know their new classmates.

We loved seeing so many new faces and are excited to have this group with us as the 2026–27 academic year begins.

Hail to Pitt! 🎉

08/20/2026

This summer, Pitt Public Health student Emma Camps took her public health education abroad! 🌍

Through the School for International Training (SIT) Study Abroad program, Emma spent the summer in Switzerland studying global health and sustainability and seeing concepts from her Pitt Public Health coursework come to life.

Her experiences included a briefing at the World Health Organization and a visit to the International Committee of the Red Cross Museum, where she learned more about humanitarian response, including efforts to provide heat, food and clean water during crises.

Outside the classroom, Emma also experienced Switzerland and the surrounding region through hiking, mountain biking near Mont Blanc and life with her local homestay.

🔗 Read more about Emma’s summer abroad: https://www.publichealth.pitt.edu/news/emma-camps-studying-global-health-and-sustainability-switzerland

08/19/2026

Today, we welcomed more than 150 incoming graduate students at our Graduate Student Orientation as they prepare to begin the 2026–27 academic year.

Students had the opportunity to connect with faculty, staff and one another while learning more about the resources and opportunities available to them throughout their time at Pitt Public Health.

We’re so excited to have them as part of our community and can’t wait to see what they accomplish. Hail to Pitt! 🎉