The Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health includes the shared missions of:
- Meeting the public health workforce needs for the future and
- Demonstrating how public health approaches can address the health needs of Arkansans via model community programs.
Pilot sites for teaching and learning also serve as innovative laboratories for new and creative approaches to old problems. Students learn, with the expert aid of local citizens, schools, hospitals, and faith groups about community-based health improvement.
As with other UAMS colleges, the standards of teaching and learning are high and the resources for academic and social life are excellent. College faculty members are engaged in cutting-edge health research in numerous areas of societal concerns and students are welcome as members of most investigative teams.
History
The Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health was established in 2001 by public referendum under voter-initiated Act 1 of 2000 Arkansas Tobacco Settlement Proceeds Act, otherwise known as Act 1 of 2000. Arkansans recognized that the state consistently ranked among the unhealthiest in the nation, as well as the need to address health promotion and disease prevention. By an overwhelming majority (64% of popular vote; majority vote in 73 of 75 counties), the electorate and legislature approved Act 1 of 2000. The act mandates that all funds received by Arkansas under the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement are used for health-related programs, especially those that are prevention-oriented including establishing a college of public health at UAMS. There were no schools or programs of public health in Arkansas at the time. The college has developed at a rapid pace since its establishment in July 2001. This rapid development enabled it to achieve what was then known as pre-accreditation status by the Council on Education for Public Health in May 2004. The college was fully reaccredited in June 2007 and again in October 2014.
In April 2005, the college was renamed to honor Fay W. Boozman, MD, MPH, the Arkansas State Health Officer from 1998 until his sudden death in March 2005. Dr. Boozman was a strong advocate for Act 1 of 2000 and, in particular, for including the college to be included in the act. He was a significant leader in fostering the collaborative relationship that continues to grow and develop between the college and the Arkansas Department of Health