Scholars working with coach during onsite.
The Public Health Management Certificate is a year-long program that is designed to prepare mid-career professionals for leadership roles, ensuring organizations of all sizes have a pipeline of talented leaders to maintain continuity and progress in public health management. With a focus on developing strategic management and leadership skills, this program equips scholars with crucial skills to address complex workplace challenges effectively.
This program comprises six course blocks covering a wide array of content, including Organizational Systems, Managing People and Teams, Financial Management, Conflict Resolution, Communications, and Program Evaluation. The capstone of the program is the integrated project, where scholars apply the concepts and content from the course materials directly to their work environments.
“We do this during the program to ensure they don’t become too abstract,” explained Christine Ector, the Program Manager. “When prospective scholars apply to the program, they decide on a project to work on that will be beneficial to them and their public health organization.” This approach ensures that both the scholars, their supervisors, and their organizations will benefit from the time spent in the program. “The greatest benefit comes when the course materials are applied,” Christine added.
One of the unique aspects of the integrated project is the ongoing support and feedback scholars receive from the three seasoned coaches throughout the duration of the program. “Nicole, Bud, and Mary have amazing backgrounds and experience,” Christine noted. “They meet with scholars regularly to review the progress being made on the projects, offer guidance, provide insight and encouragement, and help scholars integrate course materials into their workplaces.”
In addition to the support from coaches, scholars also receive monthly feedback from their peers in the program that can help advance their project work. “We’ve structured the program in such a way that scholars learn course materials and then apply them directly to their work, all with an eye toward completing their integrated project,” Christine said. “We’ve found that this greatly enhances the depth of learning for scholars while empowering them to be nimble and responsive to specific challenges and opportunities within their organization.”
A recent graduate, Kathleen Rees gave an example of the beneficial outcomes of the program structure. “I drew a lot from the course materials as I conducted my project. Specifically, I utilized systems mapping and negotiation tools to advance this project. I also relied on the program evaluation tools and templates to make sure we could measure and grow this project in a sustainable manner.”
As another recent graduate, Juan Gamez-Briceno, navigated his final project, his colleagues experienced the benefits of the program. “As I began applying the course materials to team meetings at work, my peers saw immediate impacts of the program. Our communication improved as a team, as did our goal setting, and we’ve seen a lot of positive changes and developments,” Juan noted.
Visit the Public Health Management Certificate to learn more about the program, faculty, and course materials, and to apply for this fall’s cohort. Applications for the 2025–26 cohort are being accepted through May 31, 2025.
