School of Public Health

As West Virginia became the epicenter of the nation’s opioid epidemic, donor dollars brought Dr. Judith Feinberg to the West Virginia University School of Medicine to expand research focused on the intersection of addiction and infectious disease. More than five years later, her work is making a difference by expanding testing and increasing access to treatments for diseases spread through injection drug use – HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C.

As the fictional Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles roam sewers to fight their archenemy Shredder and his goons, a team of real-life West Virginia University superhero scientists lurk around the portals to the underground land of drainage and waste to battle a more sinister villain: COVID-19.

The West Virginia University School of Public Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concluded their mask-observation study, with plans to continue the project in the spring.

Bringing together families, friends and fellow classmates from across the country and around the world to celebrate the August and December Classes of 2020, West Virginia University will host 14 online commencement ceremonies for the 2,680 graduates on Saturday, Dec.19.

The West Virginia University School of Public Health has been reaccredited through December 2027, making it one of 67 schools to receive national accreditation by the Council on Education for Public Health.

Large-scale behavior change is a critical component when it comes to mitigating the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. But, as one West Virginia University researcher points out, it can also be leveraged to address a separate, yet, equally important, persistent public health crisis: gun violence in our nation’s schools.

In 2018, West Virginia had the highest rate of acute hepatitis B infections in the nation. A study led by Stacy Tressler—a graduate of the WVU School of Public Health—suggests a key player in getting the hepatitis B vaccine to the people who need it most: the local health department.

Dr. Gordon Smith, epidemiologist in the West Virginia University School of Public Health, and his colleagues have received $1.35 million three-year grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission to reduce the impact of substance abuse in these three counties.

The rate of COVID-19 positivity rates among young adults has been higher than other age groups during July and August. And, while the West Virginia University community is no stranger to doing its part to help suppress the positivity rate and keep others safe, there are significant factors that may result in WVU students letting down their guard when it comes to mitigation strategies – in particular, wearing a mask.

West Virginia University will resume in-person undergraduate classes on the Morgantown campus Monday, Sept. 28.