Grad UCC comments regarding the Master’s in Public Health- revised 9-25-14
Responses are in red text
P form
1. Pg. 1: UCC believes that the proposal does impact other disciplines, namely HD, KINE, and NURS.
These departments have signed off on several of the C forms, but you should also get an email
from them indicating their support for the MPH program (send them a copy of the P form). Keep
in mind that the Academic Senate only sees the P-form (not the C-forms), so we want to be
absolutely clear that there is support from these departments.
Waiting for signatures on the P-form
2. Pg. 3: In item g, you refer to an Appendix that does not appear to exist. Please provide this
statement.
The appendix was the approval by BLP. Please see approval by BLP.
3. Pg. 6: The paragraph “Due to the status of the state budget, it is not justifiable to offer this
program using state funds, but self-support provides the flexibility required to hire faculty to
teach courses for this degree” is no longer really applicable (at least the budget issue). Regina
Eisenbach communicated to me that the Chancellor’s office has started to ask for more specific
and concrete explanations for why new programs are being offered via EL (this has also been a
regular question at our Academic Senate). Thus, we suggest that you revise and expand this
explanation/justification. You might potentially bring the comparable cost of the program
(compared to stateside MPH programs) into this section as well.
We had this discussion with Janet Powell and Denise Garcia. Due to the status of the College of
Education, Health and Human Services budget, it is not justifiable to offer this program using
state funds as the college cannot support five full-time faculty on these funds alone. Offering
this program through self-support will provide the flexibility to hire additional full-time faculty to
teach courses for this degree.
4. The third option in the program has different names at different locations in the proposal. On
page 7 of the PDF it is “Emergency Preparedness and Biosecurity”, but in the Course of Study
Table on page 8 it is “Emergency Preparedness and Response”. Please go over the entire
document and make sure that the name is consistent throughout. (Note: see comment #17)
Changed all names for the third option to “Emergency Preparedness and Biosecurity”
5. In the Course of Study Table on PDF pg. 8, the Emergency Preparedness and Response Option
has two classes in the fifth semester (PH 595 and PH 519). The other two options are listed as
having an elective during this semester. However, on PDF pgs. 11 and 12, all three options are
listed as having an elective. Please clarify. (Note: see comment #17)
They all will have an elective – table fixed in P-form.
6. Pg. 9: The first sentence of the “advancement to candidacy” section is unclear. Do the students
advance to candidacy after the 4th semester or during the 6th semester? Both are mentioned in
the first sentence of this section.
Provided following clearer statement in P-form: Advancement to candidacy will occur after a
student successfully completes PH 507 Research Methods and Proposal Writing with a grade of
B or better and a GPA of at least 3.0. Successful completion of this degree requires a culminating
Capstone Seminar (5th semester) and Field Experience/Internship Project or Thesis (6th
semester).
7. Pg. 9 and attached SLO Outcomes Table (“MPH Supporting documents”): Please revise the SLO
outcomes table so that your four program SLOs, not your “skills list” are tracked across your
courses. If you have questions about how to prepare this document, please consult with the
campus’ new assessment specialist, Melissa Simnitt at msimnitt@csusm.edu.
8. Pg. 11: The Option in Global Health section notes that this option “requires an international
internship”. However, there does not appear to be any course associated with this requirement.
Is this a faculty-led class? Do the students receive academic credit for the internship? Please
clarify. Also, note that there is an extensive pre-approval process for student travel abroad, and
there may be additional requirements for students to work/intern abroad. You may wish to
consult with Global Studies to assure that this is feasible.
Provided a clearer statement in the P-form: Requires international focused field work either by
going abroad or completing it in an ethnic community in local, regional or national areas. The
field experience will be associated with the student’s culminating experience.
Students will get credit, and will have a faculty committee. We are aware of the study abroad
requirements and have changed our statement to include field work in ethnic communities here
in the local, regional or national areas.
9. Pg. 12, section g: Please also list these possible electives in the catalog copy (you can include the
caveat “other 400-600-level courses may be used as electives with the consent of the MPH
Graduate Advisor”). Also, note that 300-level classes may not count for graduate credit, so you
should remove the reference to GBST 300.
Completed in P-form.
10. Pg. 12, section h: Here and at several other locations, you refer to Appendix C. This appendix is
not provided. UCC will need a detailed proposed course sequencing document and some
explanation of how you will be “phasing in” the options (if they will not all be offered
immediately).
11. Pgs. 12-14: The program currently has no 600-level (graduate-only) classes. While we realize
that only graduate students will be taking all of your classes, both from the perspective of
consistency with other graduate programs and to clearly communicate the rigor of the graduate
degree, we suggest that some of your proposed courses be shifted to the 600 level. Two options
would be to keep your core at the 500-level and shift all of the other courses to the 600-level, or
to just shift your capstone (595), project (598) and thesis (599) courses to the 600 level. If you
let us know what you want to do, we can make the edits to the C forms. You should make the
edits to the P form text.
Thank you for this comment! We discussed and changed the following courses:
PH 590 to PH 690
PH 595 to PH 695
PH 597 to PH 697
PH 598/599 to one course PH 698
We are hiring a Program Director/TT Faculty this semester and will discuss changes with
numbering. We can resubmit those courses if any changes.
12. Pg. 19: Does the initial lack of program accreditation have the potential to be a hindrance for
program graduates as they seek employment? Will this be made clear to applicants?
The plan is to start the accreditation process as soon as the program starts and hopefully we can
complete the process before the students graduate. It should not hinder employment. Students
will be informed.
13. Pg. 22: You will have 22-person annual cohorts, which will split into three options once they
complete their core coursework. Looking at semester 4 in the course of study (PDF pg. 8), you
are offering nine separate classes (nine instructors). Each of these “option” classes will
presumably have ~7 students (22/3). Is this feasible?
14. Pgs. 23 and 25: Please update the majors data in these tables.
15. Pg. 26,27: As noted in the bolded text at the bottom of PDF pg. 26, you need at least five fulltime faculty with appropriate terminal degrees in place to offer a new graduate degree program.
The chancellor’s office will enforce this requirement. Currently there are two faculty who meet
this requirement (Devan Romero, Susan Andera). The part time lecturers and the theoretical
hires (unless they are now on staff?) cannot be used to fulfill this requirement.
Linnea Axman and Deborah Morton have agreed to teach full-time. Since the program will start
in fall 2015 with one option, they will teach in Nursing and Kinesiology as well.
16. Pg. 27: The library statement is now 4.5 years old and it appears that there were no course
descriptions available at the time that it was written. Please request an updated report from the
library. In addition, there does not appear to be a formal statement/report from IITS. Please
request such a statement.
Waiting to hear from the Library.
17. Appendix C: According to this rollout plan, the GH Option would be rolled out in year three (at
earliest, if demand exists) and the EPB option would be rolled out even later (year 5?, if demand
exists). This brings up several issues:
a. The catalog description (starting on PDF pg. 6) must reflect what is actually being
offered, not what may be offered at some future date. Thus, please remove all
references to the GH option and the EPB option from the catalog description. If these
other options are implemented, they can be added to the catalog description via a
program change (P-2).
b. Implementation of the EPB option appears to be far down the road (4-5 years, if
demand exists). It is very likely that the MPH program will substantially change and
evolve over its first five years. At this point it seems more appropriate to concern
ourselves with the HPE and (future) GH options only. Thus, we suggest that reference to
the EPB option be removed from the P form and that C forms for PH 515-518 be
withdrawn at this time. Without clear justification, it is inappropriate to add new
courses to the catalog for an option that may never be implemented, and in a best case
scenario will not be implemented for 4-5 years. If demand appears to support adding
the EPB option in the future, a P-2 could be used to add this option and the C forms
could be resubmitted.
The MPH development team would like to roll this option out in year 2 if possible, and if not, in
year 3. This option is really timely with what is going on in the world and we think it will be of
interest to many potential students. The p-form reflects this time line on the roll out of options.
18. Finally, once you make these edits, could you send the revised version of the P form in MS Word
format to me? There are several smaller organizational/grammatical edits in the catalog
description that would be easier for UCC to make directly (and then send to you for final
approval) instead of trying to describe each edit.
We made changes in the catalog descriptions in the P-form as described below for the C-forms.
C-forms
Please approve suggested changes and/or provide appropriate revisions
PH 501:
 Item #6: The symbol “&” will be changes to the word “and”
 Item #8: Because this course is crosslisted with KINE 524, it must have an identical catalog
description. That description is:
“Introduces the major domains of public health related to the five public health disciplines,
including Health Services, Epidemiology, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Environmental Health,
and Biostatistics. Includes the biomedical basis of public health, historical developments, the
role of health ethics in research, and the future challenges to public health. Also presents the
fundamentals of social and behavioral science with an emphasis on theoretical foundations as
well as an introduction to advocacy, informatics, diversity and culture, leadership, and public
health biology.”
 Item #22: KINE is identified as an affected discipline, but no signature or email support is
provided. Please provide.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
 Please remove the topic associated with Week 16 from the syllabus. The semester is 15 weeks,
with finals only presented in week 16.
PH 502:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Introduces concepts and practices of health care and public health, with an emphasis on the
structure and functions of the health system as well as planning, implementation, management,
and evaluation of health-related programs. Includes the mission/vision, history, core functions,
infrastructure, processes, and outcomes of the health system. Theoretical and practical
perspectives are presented to illustrate how the health system works. Introduces current trends
in health care delivery, including medical and legal issues, health policy, labor relations,
managed care, group practice management, and long term care.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 503:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
followsFirst sentence has been changed to: “Examines current issues in health from a social science and
behavioral perspective”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 Item #22: SOC is identified as an affected discipline, but no signature or email support is
provided. Please provide.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 504:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Covers biostatistical methods needed in the design and analysis of biomedical and public health
investigations. Includes descriptive statistics and plots, types of data, theoretical distributions,
probability, estimation, hypothesis testing, and one-way analysis of variance. Introduces
correlation, univariate linear regression, and the use of statistical software.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 Please send this C form and syllabus to the Biology Department for review as a potentially
affected department. UCC should be provided with Biology’s email “approval signature”
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 505:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“General principles, methods, and applications of epidemiology for public health, research,
clinical practice, and evaluation of public policy. Includes methods of outbreak investigations,
measures of disease frequency, standardization of disease rates, research methods and study
design, measures of risk, causal inference, disease screening, surveillance, and evaluation of
health services and screening programs. Emphasizes the critical analysis of current studies in the
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public health literature and the identification of epidemiologic resources, databases, and
problems. Prerequisite: PH 504.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
Item #22: KINE is identified as an affected discipline, but no signature or email support is
provided. Please provide.
In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
Please remove the topic associated with Week 16 from the syllabus. The semester is 15 weeks,
with finals only presented in week 16.
PH 506:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Provides an introduction to the environmental factors which affect the health of a community.
Primary focus is on biological, physical, and chemical exposures associated with human health.
Also covers the health-associated effects of global warming, occupational hazards, and other
environmental problems.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 Please send this C form and syllabus to the Environmental Studies program (Michael McDuffie)
for review as a potentially affected program. UCC should be provided with the email “approval
signature” from Environmental Studies.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 530:
 Item #5: We would like to add a comma to the course title so that it becomes “Health Disparities,
Diversity, and Culture”. Is this OK?
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Examines the importance of ethnic and cultural factors for community health practice, as well
as the essential theories, models, and culturally-appropriate practices for working with ethnicity,
gender, and social issues. Explores the health implications of community demographics,
disparities, multicultural populations, communication, aging, sexual orientation, children, and
future challenges.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 Item #22: SOC and ANTH are identified as affected disciplines, but no signature or email support
is provided for either. Please provide.
 Please send this C form and syllabus to the Ethnic Studies program (Michelle Holling) for review
as a potentially affected program. UCC should be provided with the email “approval signature”
from Ethnic Studies.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 531:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows-
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“Focuses on the assessment and analysis of community-based health needs, the application of a
wide range of health education methods, and program implementation. The development of
partnerships through advocacy, coalitions, and community engagement will be explored.
Emphasizes the need for health communication, theoretical frameworks, and social media in
community-based settings. Introduces professional and ethical standards for community-based
methods and programs.
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade. Also,
please explain the mechanism used to assign letter grades (grading scheme is absent).
PH 532:
 Item #5: We would like to add commas to the course title so that it becomes “Health Program
Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation”. Is this OK?
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
followsThe second sentence has been changed to: “Introduces the process of public health
programming, including assessment, design, planning, implementation, and evaluation.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 Item #22: SOC is identified as an affected discipline, but no signature or email support is
provided. Please provide.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 533:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Provides foundational information, tools, and teaching methodologies for health promotion,
disease prevention, and health education. Explores theoretical and practical perspectives to
illustrate how healthcare professionals can positively influence the ability of patients, families,
and diverse communities to prevent and manage their health and wellness. Prerequisite: PH 531”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 Item #16: PH 531 and PH 533 appear to be closely related in course content, so it appears
appropriate that 531 is a prerequisite for 533, as listed here. However, according to Appendix C
of the MPH P form, PH 531 and PH 533 will be offered the same semester. Perhaps PH 530 and
PH 531 could be switched in the course series, allowing 531 to be taught the semester prior to
533?
 Item #22: KINE is identified as an affected discipline, but no signature or email support is
provided. Please provide.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 590:
 Item #6: The “Abbreviated title for Banner” will be changed from “ST:” to “ST: Public Health”.
Please approve.
PH 595:
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Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Application of all prior coursework to a "real life" case study involving many of the major health
service functions within a community. Emphasis on strategic planning, developing a business
plan, marketing, advertising, financial and demographic analysis, and program implementation
within health care organizations serving the community. Addresses the role and function of
planning and marketing, community needs, administration and the medical staff, hospital and
physician relations, governance, economic and political forces, and government regulations.
Prerequisite: completion of all prior required courses in the MPH program.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
Item #22: COBA and PSCI are identified as affected disciplines, but no signature or email support
is provided. Please provide.
In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 597:
 Item #4: Change to PH 597A/B/C. This is typical for variable unit courses, with 597A being 1 unit,
597B being 2 units, and 597C being 3 units.
 Item #7: Should this be 1-3 units?
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Independent study in a public health area as outlined and agreed upon by the instructor and
student. May include assistance on a faculty research project or a mentored study/travel abroad
experience. Consent of instructor required.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 How will this course be used in the MPH? It is not listed on the “roll out plan” for any option in
Appendix C of the P form. Is this the “required international internship” for the Global Health
option? See also comment #8 above, related to the P form.
First, a general comment on course syllabi. As you noted, UCC has essentially the same comment about
almost all of the MPH course syllabi: “In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the
course assignments (paper; presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to
the grade.” To provide you with some additional guidance, here are some of the issues UCC has
discussed in relation to this comment:
1. What is the relative weighting of each assignment in the determination of a grade?
2. Additional detail is needed in descriptions of the presentations, projects, and papers. In most/all
of your courses, only a small number of assignments are contributing to the grade. If, for
example, a paper is going to count for 25% of the grade in a graduate course, UCC needs a
description of the paper topic/depth of coverage/length/etc. This is an important part of
determining the academic rigor of the course.
3. Ideally, the assignment descriptions should clearly demonstrate that the assignments will assess
the listed SLOs
4. There needs to be sufficient time allotted in the schedule to actually implement the assignments.
For example, some courses list an oral presentation, but then set aside a single week or no time
at all for students to actually deliver their presentations. Are these presentations so short that
all 24 students can deliver them in one class session, and if so, is it appropriate that a ~5 minute
presentation should count for a significant portion of the grade in a graduate class? Again, more
clarification is needed to demonstrate the academic rigor of the assignments/courses.
PH 598:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Provides a supervised field experience or residency in an approved health care organization,
such as a public or non-profit health care agency. Each field experience is unique and based on
the needs of the organization as well as the interests and skills of the student. Offers a full range
of administrative, operational, financial and programmatic experiences that are specific to the
services offered by the health organization and relevant to the student's MPH option.
Prerequisite: Advancement to candidacy.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade.
PH 599:
 Either in the syllabus for this course, or in the P form, there needs to be greater clarity about
how the thesis process works for the MPH. Some questions that arose:
o When do thesis students identify a research supervisor and select their thesis
committee? How many members are on the thesis committee and are they all CSUSM
faculty?
o Do thesis students “automatically” advance to candidacy upon reaching their 4th
semester with a GPA of 3.0 or better (as is the case for all other MPH students)?
Typically students working on a research-based thesis advance to candidacy after they
present a thesis proposal to their committee, and the committee supports the proposal.
How would this process work in the MPH?
o Are the students enrolled in any course prior to PH 599? Students enrolled in PH 599
have already advanced to candidacy, meaning that they have identified a research
supervisor, started a research project, and (perhaps?) presented their thesis proposal.
Presumably students should be receiving academic credit for these “pre-advancement”
activities?
o The listed assignments (Graduate Thesis Presentation and Graduate Thesis Report)
should be described in greater detail. Does the research supervisor or does the thesis
committee assign the grade?
PH 560:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Introduces the comprehensive nature of global public health preparedness and humanitarian
response efforts for natural or human-made disasters. Includes the preparedness elements
necessary for adequate responses to population shifts caused by natural and human-made
disasters. Theoretical, ethical, and legal issues associated with all phases of humanitarian
emergencies, including resettlement, will be presented. Methods to evaluate infectious
disease and cultural epidemiologic data will be explored as resources for key decisionmaking. Enrollment restricted to students admitted to the MPH program.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
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In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade. Can all of
the student presentations be completed in a single week?
PH 561:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Provides an overview of current knowledge on mechanisms of major chronic and infectious
diseases causing death and disability globally. Unique epidemiologic features, risk factors,
relevant technical challenges, resource limitations, and cultural barriers that have shaped
current approaches will be discussed. Successful evidence-based strategies designed to prevent
and control these diseases will be reviewed. Introduces the Millennium Development Goals for
reducing childhood mortality, improving maternal health, and combating diseases such as
HIVIAIDS and malaria. Enrollment restricted to students admitted to the MPH program.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade. Can all of
the student presentations be completed in a single week?
PH 562:
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Integrates key concepts, theories, and methods related to socio-cultural, political, and
economic determinants of health and health status from a global perspective. Includes global
health inequalities, social determinants of health, links between development and health,
international health systems, global health diplomacy, human rights, health system reforms,
and global health governance. Explores the methodological challenges of developing policy
responses to global health issues, the implementation of health policy, and best practices in
the delivery of effective, ethical, and culturally-appropriate health interventions for various
settings. Enrollment restricted to students admitted to the MPH program.”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
 Item #22: ANTH is identified as an affected discipline, but no signature or email support is
provided. Please provide.
 In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade. Can all of
the student presentations be completed in a single week?
PH 563
 Item #8: To conform with typical catalog style, the catalog description has been edited as
follows“Introduces a collaborative approach to research that equitably involves all partners in the
research process and recognizes the unique strengths that each partner brings. Addresses the
theories, principles, and strategies of community-based participatory research, the advantages
and limitations to using this approach, and some of the skills necessary for participating
effectively in community-based participatory research. Prerequisite: PH 504”
Please approve this change or provide an edited version.
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In the “writing requirement” section of the syllabus, an “essay” is mentioned as a separate
assignment from “papers”. This “essay” is not listed in the graded assignments.
In the syllabus, please provide a more complete description of the course assignments (paper;
presentations) and provide information on their relative contribution (%) to the grade. Note that
no time is set aside for student presentations in the schedule.