Public Health Magazine: Spring 1996, Vol.4, No.1
Development News

Greetings from the Associate Dean for Development

Since I joined the Columbia School of Public Health last July, I have been asked on several occasions "What is public health and what does raising money for the School of Public Health mean to you?"

The answer to that question is neither simple nor short. Public health is concerned with health across populations rather than among individuals; it is also about health promotion and disease prevention. But even these broad categories don't fully describe public health. So I respond that, given this public health perspective, what we are concerned with includes virtually every health issue you read about in the newspaper. AIDS, breast cancer, depression, family planning, child abuse, immunizations, genetic research, "mad cows," urban violence, substance abuse, water quality, managed care, and smoking only begin to scratch the surface. Public health is part of the life of every person, in every neighborhood, of every race and at every socio-economic level.

The complexity of public health is at once a liability and an asset to the School. On one hand, we have to work hard to explain our contributions; on the other hand, the breadth of our impact is truly extraordinary. Part of what makes it extraordinary is that universities, by definition, are uniquely suited to addressing and solving problems. That said, it doesn't hurt that we are a Columbia school and that we are located in New York.

What makes the public health school approach to problem solving unique is that, unlike many organizations fighting health problems, we make our assault on three fronts: we conduct research into the causes of and solutions to the problems themselves; we educate new experts to deal with the health care challenges they will face tomorrow; and we provide direct health services to people who need them. In a university, research, education and service are inextricably linked and the result is synergistic: Each is stronger because of its relationship with the other. Within the School, we address the topics of six academic divisions and five interdisciplinary centers. As part of a medical center and a university, where some of the greatest minds in health care and medical science, law, international affairs, urban planning, business and other disciplines interact on a daily basis, we benefit from this extended information sharing network. Finally, we are located in a city which, among many superlatives, offers one of the world's greatest collections of urban health challenges. Twenty years into this century, the School's founders didn't need a crystal ball to see that New York was and would continue to be a living laboratory at our door.

In its almost seventy-five year history, the School's alumni have contributed to the mainstream of world health knowledge, have served at the helm of our country's major health care institutions, and have provided their help and expertise to the people of the United States and over sixty foreign countries on five continents.

It is both an honor and a privilege for me not only to interact with my colleagues on the faculty and with the alumni, but also to share their accomplishments with a public which is deeply concerned with health. I am proud to seek the partnership of the people who have made the United States the most philanthropic country in the world.

As Associate Dean for Development, my role is to communicate both the accomplishments and the potential of the School to anyone with a commitment to the health of the public. I am fortunate that we are already well under way in that regard. The School's support from private foundations is second only to the medical school at Columbia. This is a significant vote of confidence from those grantmaking institutions that are in the business of supporting the country's - indeed the world's - most effective programs of social change. Our major individual donors include alumni who wish to give back to the school that helped them establish their careers; former faculty members who wish to see the fine work in which they participated perpetuated; and nationally known philanthropists who have become committed to our mission. Our annual fund, an important source of operating funds, continues to grow and provide support for our fine faculty and exceptional students.

In a world in which tuition fully covered the cost of education, government and foundation funding was unlimited, and public health services were provided in abundance at no cost to the needy, schools like ours would not need to ask for additional financial support. But that is not the case. Private support -the foundation upon which many of America's finest universities were built-is not a luxury but a necessity. In a country unmatched in its generosity, with widespread concern for health issues at home and abroad, we are confident that the future of the Columbia School of Public Health is firmly assured.

I look forward to meeting and working with as many of you as I can over the coming years, and to engaging your involvement in an institution that has been cited for its ability to effect meaningful change far beyond its walls. I hope you will call on me and other members of the staff of the Office of Development, Alumni and Public Relations whenever we can be of assistance in making your relationship with the Columbia School of Public Health rewarding and satisfying.

Robin Roy

Associate Dean for Development

Sherwin Z. Goodblatt

Retired CEO of the Westwood/Pembroke Corporation, a behavioral health care group operating two hospitals and several partial hospital sites, and Veritas, a medical management group, Sherwin Goodblatt is also a member of the CSPH Advisory Council. He was the 1994 recipient of the Dean's Distinguished Service Award given to individuals who have demonstrated outstanding contributions to public health in their professional endeavors and in their leadership in the field. Goodblatt now has leisure time which he can devote to travel and his antique clock collection. He has an abiding affection for CSPH, demonstrated not only by his support of the School but also through his esprit de corps in reaching his fellow alumni via the annual fund solicitation letters.

"My efforts for CSPH are my attempt to help the School and its students, as I have benefitted from the School throughout my career. I have always believed that a professional person is one who will assist others to achieve success in this field of endeavor. It is in this regard that I have agreed to assist the School both financially and by working in its behalf," says Goodblatt.

Most recently, he has been working for the School as an integral part of the 50th Anniversary Committee which is planning the celebration of the Hospital Administration program from which he graduated in '61. Goodblatt is also an advisor to the Dean on the planning committee for the commemoration of the School's 75th Anniversary to be celebrated in 1997.

Verona Pinion Greenland

Verona Pinion Greenland, M.P.H., president and chief executive officer of Morris Heights Health Center, has nurtured the company from its infancy in 1979, with a staff of three and $25,000, to its current operation of over 230 employees and a budget of $16 million. Now a comprehensive operating facility serving over 34,000 patients who make more than 150,000 visits annually, the center is a source of primary health care and specialty services, inpatient and outpatient, including childbirth care to the community.

A member of a variety of organizations, representing national, state and community boards of directors and committees, Greenland has received many distinguished awards, including: Public Health Service-Region II Leadership Award; Helen Hunt Leadership Award; Black Agency Executive Award for Innovation and Leadership; and, Pew Charitable Trust Primary Care Achievement Honorable Mention, to name but a few. She is also a registered nurse and midwife.

When asked why she devotes her time, talent, and energy to CSPH, Greenland responded, "It's my way of saying thank you to an institution, but more important, to the faculty of CSPH who aided me in realizing my dreams."

Annual Giving Shows Growth Thanks to CSPH Alumni & Friends

Annual giving provides a wonderful way for alumni and friends to advance the School's mission: