The Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice was approved as a State University System Type 2 Center in the University Of South Florida College Of Public Health in 1999. It is placed in the Dean's Office to signify its college-wide significance. The Center was established to give organizational structure to a growing number of activities within the College, primarily in cooperation with the Florida Department of Health. These activities were in response to national and state recommendations for strengthening the public health workforce, including leadership development, more partnerships between public health practitioners and schools of public health, enhanced training in critical skills for public health workers, and increased use of distance education methods to make such training accessible. The Center was on hiatus since 2008 but has now been resurrected in 2018.

The Center is currently supporting the leadership training for the Florida Department of Health. Through its 9 month executive leadership program, 29 rising health department leaders are part of a pilot effort to reinvigorate the leadership training necessary for current and future governmental public health professionals.

Over the coming months the Center will…

• Work to understand and expand the knowledge base relevant to its mission and vision.
• Facilitate the translation of such knowledge to promote its vision.
• Collaborate across disciplines, within Florida and beyond to meet its mission and vision.
• Design meaningful leadership training opportunities for all those who seek to improve the health and well-being of populations.

Stay tuned there is much more to come. We expect exciting times ahead and thank you for your interest in the USF College of Public Health Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice.