Divisions

Science today is increasingly interdisciplinary and is stimulated by continual, new and diverse research interactions. The Biomedical & Health Sciences Institute is one of the places where scientists can experiment with new interdisciplinary approaches to biomedical research. The BHSI works to facilitate new collaborative interactions, new research-funding opportunities and new curricula.

The proposal for the Institute, signed by more than 70 research faculty and with a letter of unanimous backing from the deans, was approved at the April 26, 2001 meeting of the University Council and later that year by the Board of Regents. The Institute is an outcome of the Biomedical Sciences and Human Health Initiative, which identified ways to promote interdisciplinary collaboration in research focused on biomedical, behavioral and social issues.

Among our many roles, the Institute acts as an incubator for new interdisciplinary programs. The Institute provided the administrative structure that led to the creation of the College of Public Health. The Masters in Public Health (MPH) originated in the BHSI and on the approval of a College of Public Health there was a seamless transfer
of the MPH into the new CPH. The Neuroscience Division, with University approval, created a Ph.D. in Neuroscience in September of 2005. Most recently the BHSI has supported major faculty initiatives in the ecology of infectious diseases and in science policy.

Based upon the current interests of our members the BHSI has four divisions: basic biomedical sciences, infectious disease, public health, and neuroscience.