Prevention and Community Health
Harnessing the power of community to promote health, well-being and equity.
The Department of Prevention and Community Health engages in research, training and practice that is founded in cutting-edge social-structural and behavioral theories and methodologies and driven by diverse community voices and partnerships. Our students are prepared to respond to pressing public health challenges using a variety of approaches including community mobilization and policy advocacy, and individual behavior change.
Academic Programs
Academic degree programs in PCH include: a Social and Behavioral Sciences PHD and 4 MPH programs in; Community Oriented Primary Care; Health Promotion; Maternal and Child Health; Public Health Communication and Marketing.
Meet Our Department Chair
Deanna Kerrigan, PhD, MPH
Department Chair and Professor
“At the Department of Prevention and Community Health we are working to generate positive social and behavioral change that will reduce inequities and lead to healthier communities. From research on HIV in Latin America to violence prevention in DC, our students, faculty and staff are working to improve the health and lives of marginalized people around the world.”
Student Opportunities
PCH Internationally
International Opportunities
Each semester, faculty, staff and students from PCH practice what they teach and learn in the classroom with the goal of better health for all.
PCH in DC
In Our Own Community
PCH offers a unique location in the capitol allowing students to work with federal agencies on the most pressing public health problems facing the world.
PCH at GW
Here on Campus
GW is home to a wide range of public health research and practice activities both within GWSPH and across the university.
Explore PCH
Research
Faculty, staff and students study and intervene on health outcomes in areas such as: HIV, cancer, mental health, substance use, violence, child and adolescent development, and sexual and reproductive health.
Practice Experience
Drawing on deep connections with community and governmental partners, our faculty, staff and students work in collaboration with these partners to improve the health of multiple underserved populations.
Centers
PCH is home to 4 centers and its faculty, staff and students are affiliated with many other centers throughout both the Milken Institute School of Public Health as well as the University as a whole.
New In PCH
PhD Candidate Selected for the Edward Alexander Bouchet Graduate Honor Society
Simone Sawyer, a doctoral student in Milken Institute School of Public Health’s Department of Prevention and Community Health, was selected for The George Washington University chapter of the Edward Alexander Bouchet Graduate Honor Society. Named for the first self-identified African American to earn a doctorate from an American university, the society was chartered jointly by Yale and Howard universities in 2005 to recognize outstanding scholarly achievement and promote diversity and excellence in doctoral education and the professoriate.
Department News
