Our Vision and Our Mission

Vision

The School envisions a world that cherishes and secures health and well-being as the right, possession and responsibility of all. The School commits to this vision daily as one of the world’s leaders in public health research, education and outreach in behalf of these common goods. It unites globally and locally with people, communities and institutions that share and advance the values of progress in the growth of human potential and achievement.

Mission

Public health is the crossroad of society and the health sciences. Biology, the environment, populations and human systems cross over at this intersection to shape disease and health. The School of Public Health advances excellence in research, education, and outreach for the protection, restoration and promotion of health, well-being, security and safety. As a public health leader, the only such academic institution in Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Dakotas, and also due to its obligations in a land-grant university, the School bears unique responsibility for:

Research that:

• bridges biology, the physical environment, social, political, cultural and economic factors to discover, understand, and improve the health of populations, communities, and societies;
• advances statistical and other methods of scientific inquiry;
• analyzes social factors, financing systems, organizational structures and processes, health technologies, and policies that affect access to health care, its quality and cost, and public health infrastructure;
• applies principles of preparedness and protection to public health practice;
• evaluates effective methods of learning and disseminating evidence-based practice to health professionals, community leaders and the public.

Education that:

• inspires students to reflect upon public health values as essential to human growth, security and progress;
• instills values of life-long learning, inquiry, and public service;
• prepares the next generation of public health professionals, scientists and leaders in the competencies of their disciplines and the values, norms and culture of their career choices;
• provides learning opportunities to students across the health sciences in public health disciplines, competencies and skills important to their professions;
• teaches methods of scientific and critical discovery, inquiry, and innovation and their application in public health settings;
• affords students diverse learning opportunities, excellence in instructional design and technology, and values student collaboration in curriculum development and quality assurance.

Outreach that:

• engages communities, leaders, professionals, and other stakeholders within and beyond the University as partners in the mission of public health;
• creates opportunities for the continuous education and life-long learning of public health and health professional work forces;
• acts as a public forum for open and free exchange of ideas about challenging public health issues; and
• communicates effective evidence-based practice, strategies and knowledge to health professionals, policy-makers, and the public;
• fosters collaborative leadership through a network of academic and practice partnerships.

The mission’s three facets are fully integrated. Research shapes education by creating the evidence base for training, practice and outreach. Education shapes practice by bridging theory, research and application. Outreach disseminates research and education beyond the University to the state, nation, and world.