ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOLS OF PUBLIC HEALTH NAMES GLOBAL HEALTH FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM IN
HONOR OF ALLAN ROSENFIELD, MD, DEAN, MAILMAN SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH

December 8, 2006 -- At the annual meeting of the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH) held in November, deans of the schools voted unanimously to rename the ASPH/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Global AIDS Fellowship Program in honor of Allan Rosenfield, MD, dean of Columbia's Mailman School of Public Health. The Program will now be known as the Allan Rosenfield Global Health Fellows.

According to the deans, naming the fellowship program in honor of Dr. Rosenfield was a particularly appropriate way to recognize their friend and colleague who, for the past 20 years, has served as a mentor for generations of educators, public health students and researchers.

Today, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) entered remarks into the Congressional Record to honor Dean Rosenfield and introduce the Allan Rosenfield Global Health Fellowship Program. The fellowship program was initiated under its former name in 2004 for graduates of ASPH-member schools of public health. Five students from the Mailman School have been selected previously as Global AIDS Program (GAP) Fellows.

Senator Clinton acknowledged Dr. Rosenfield's work to improve women's health both in the United States and around the world, and for his work on the HIV/AIDS pandemic, innovative family planning studies and strategies to address the tragedy of wholly preventable maternal deaths in resource-poor countries. At a time when funds for HIV/AIDS programs were first becoming available, Dean Rosenfield was among the earliest to recognize the critical importance of providing care and treatment to pregnant and recently delivered women (MTCT+) in addition to efforts aimed at prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (pMTCT) programs. He has spearheaded programs in resource-poor settings that not only prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV, but also provide comprehensive clinical services to women and families.

The fellows in this program are trained to help prevent HIV infection, improve care and support and build capacity to address the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. Fellows also participate in immunization program activities in support of global polio eradication, measles mortality reduction, regional measles elimination and general global immunization activities. They receive mentoring and support from dedicated CDC employees in the field. The mission of this fellowship program is to train the next generation of global health leaders, and, as noted by Senator Clinton, "it is fitting that this program honors an individual who is a foremost leader in global health."

"I am extremely honored by the renaming of the Global Health Fellowship Program," said Dr. Rosenfield. "The fellows program is an important opportunity for public health students in the field of global health to contribute to a dynamic initiative that addresses the HIV/AIDS pandemic. I greatly appreciate the efforts of the CDC and ASPH and, in particular, Deans James Merchant (Iowa), James Curran (Emory), Patricia Wahl (UW), and Harrison Spencer (President, ASPH) and Senator Clinton for their support."

The full text of Senator Clinton's remarks can be found at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getpage.cgi?dbname=2006_record&page=S11491&position=all

About the Mailman School of Public Health
The only accredited school of public health in New York City, and among the first in the nation, Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health provides instruction and research opportunities to more than 950 graduate students in pursuit of masters and doctoral degrees. Its students and more than 300 multi-disciplinary faculty engage in research and service in the city, nation, and around the world, concentrating on biostatistics, environmental health sciences, epidemiology, health policy and management, population and family health, and sociomedical sciences. www.mailman.hs.columbia.edu