In the summer of 2022, after a rash of mass shootings, the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH) convened a task force on gun violence prevention made up of experts from 13 member schools.

Dr. Karen Liller, a USF College of Public Health Distinguished University Health Professor and injury-prevention researcher, was one of those experts.

The task force worked to review existing literature, identify needs and gaps and develop recommendations for strategies informed by evidence that can be used by schools and programs of public health, as well as the ASPPH as an organization, to help fight gun violence.

In January, the ASPPH’s task force released its report,  “Gun Violence Prevention: An Academic Public Health Framework.”

“It was our goal to develop recommendations that could be implemented over time so that schools and programs [of public health] and the ASPPH could develop and help lead strategies for significant change in a consistent manner,” Liller said.

The ASPPH’s recommendations center on four domains:

• Education and training
• Research
• Policy and advocacy
• Practice

Liller said some of the specific recommendations for schools and programs of public health include:

• Incorporating gun violence prevention into curricula and creating new curricula if needed.
• Providing seed funding for research on gun violence prevention.
• Actively advocating for change.
• Practicing community-based participatory research. “Students should be participating in a wide array of areas including internships and practicums related to gun violence prevention,” Liller explained.

Liller said she also hopes the ASPPH will work to develop a legislative agenda for gun violence prevention and provide a resource site for the modules and curricula on gun violence.

“It was important for me and the entire task force to make sure this report does not just sit on a shelf,” Liller noted. “We were careful to develop recommendations that are doable and include not only what schools and programs can do, but how the ASPPH can support our efforts. We will monitor our progress with real-time tracking while the ASPPH formally reevaluates the progress of the report’s recommendations in three years.”

Participating in the task force was a career highlight, Liller said.

“Working with this group of scientists was so fulfilling,” she commented. “It was exciting to hear a diversity of ideas as to how we can make change. We worked together well, and everyone did their part to review the information and develop and revise recommendations.”

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health