This story originally published on July 15, 2015 in observance of the COPH’s 30th anniversary celebration.

“USF was chosen as the place for Florida’s College of Public Health,” Dr. Peter Levin wrote in 1984, “because of the broad base of knowledge found in the many colleges of the University and the unique Tampa location.”

Levin, the college’s first dean, expounded further, noting that not only faculty from the colleges of medicine and nursing, but from business, education, engineering, natural sciences and social sciences were “key to the development of the college.”

Three decades of growth and innumerable success stories later, former Fla. Rep. Samuel P. Bell III shed more light on the founding of COPH.

Like many created entities of any kind, it all started with one person’s idea and another person’s decision to act on it.

The idea person was Robert Hamlin, a graduate of the Harvard University College of Public Health. He brought his idea to Bell, dubbed “the godfather of the college” by Charles Mahan, another founder who was COPH dean from 1995 to 2002.

“He had retired to Florida and realized that there was not a college of public health in Florida,” Bell recalled of Hamlin. “He contacted my staff director, John Phelps, with the idea, and John and I discussed the idea and decided that we should pursue the project. When we began the effort, we discovered that there had not been a college of a public health created anywhere in the country for more than 20 years, and most emphasis was on clinical health.

From left: Dr. Donna Petersen, dean of the USF College of Public Health, the late Robert Hamlin and Rep. Sam Bell, “the godfather of COPH.”

“As a member of the Florida Legislature, I could see the results of public health problems – mental health issues, alcoholism, child abuse, heart attack and stroke brought on by lack of exercise and obesity, infant mortality, etc. – yet there was no focus to address these issues. In addition,” Bell said, “there was a shortage of trained public health workers as problems grew and population increased.”

Where to establish the college as a physical entity turned out to be fairly obvious. Logic dictated that the state’s first college of public health had to be part of a public university that had a medical school and was located in an urban area, and USF was the only institution in the state that met all three requirements.

“There was no bill,” Bell said of the necessary legislative action that followed. “The college was first created by a line item in the state appropriation. Of course, we had to work the proposal through the Board of Regents and the USF administration.”

All of it moved with surprising quickness and ease, he said, underscoring an idea whose time had come. Naturally, it didn’t hurt that its biggest proponent was in prime position to do it the most good.

“The College’s success must first recognize the man who made it all possible,” said Dr. Heather Stockwell, the first faculty hire in the college’s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics.

“Without Sam Bell,” she said, “there would be no COPH.  Before our college was formed, there were no schools of public health in Florida. It was through the vision and leadership of Sam Bell that our college was formed and its funding secured in its early years so that it could grow and develop into the College we are all so proud of today!”

From left: Dr. Martha Coulter, Dr. Heather Stockwell and Dr. Peter Levin, first dean of COPH, ca. 1988.

“Sam Bell was absolutely committed to the idea that there needed to be a strong college of public health in this state,” Dr. Martha Coulter agreed. “He single-handedly got absolute support for us from the state legislature, so that we were not dependent completely on federal funds and training grants.”

“There was not much opposition to the effort,” Bell said. “It really flew under the radar. I was in leadership during all of this time and was chair of the appropriations committee in the House for the years 1985 through 1988, for four sessions. Before that, I had chaired the rules committee and was majority leader, so I was in a position to get support. After the College was initially approved, I was able to guide funding.”

If founding the college had seemed relatively easy, running it in the early days was not. Being the only college of public health in Florida created a heavy work load at the same time it underscored the demand for what a college of public health delivers.

The first year, Coulter and the other two faculty members in the Department of Community and Family Health traveled regularly to teach at the Florida Department of Health offices in Tallahassee and at USF-Sarasota, as well as in Tampa, said Coulter. There simply was no one else to do the job.

From left: Jennifer Harrell, filmmaker and documentarian Frederick Wiseman, Dr. Marti Coulter and the late James Harrell in an undated photo.  The Harrell Center is named for Harrell and his wife, Jennifer.

“Of course, this was before you could take things online,” she said, “and it certainly was a lot easier for us to go there than for all of them to come here.”

Simply finding space was another challenge. Originally housed on the first floor of the present Continuing Education building, the fledgling college wouldn’t see its own building for another seven years.

Community and Family Health had a particularly hard time finding a permanent home, Coulter said. It would reside alongside the college’s other departments in the present Continuing Education building, then move to the first floor of the University Professional Center, then find space in the Florida Mental Health Institute (now Behavioral and Community Sciences) building.

“I had to bend my head down to get into the attic to get into my office,” recalled Dr. Paul Leaverton, first chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics.

“Then we took over the auditorium. It used to be a basketball auditorium – just wherever we could find room, and that was where we were ’til ’91, when we moved into this building. We kept moving around in funny little quarters, so this building was really nice – and it still is.”

COPH groundbreaking ceremony for it’s $10-million building, March 1990.

Artist’s rendering of the COPH building.

A royal opening

Almost everyone expects fanfare at any major debut, the opening of a new building at a major university posing no exception, but probably no one expected the kind of pomp and circumstance that played at the USF College of Public Health’s opening of its own building in 1991.

A month before the building’s official dedication, two weeks before faculty and staff even began moving in, the first lecture was delivered by a scientist, and yet the affair was literally regal.

With an entourage of attendants by her side, Professor Dr. Her Royal Highness Princess Chulabhorn of Thailand, a biochemist, arrived in a police-escorted motorcade of limousines to speak about her research on medicinal plants.

Leaverton talked recently about how the building’s unusual opening came to pass.

“In the late ’80s, I had done a lot of work in Thailand with NIH and Thai scientists on the epidemiology of aplastic anemia,” Leaverton said.

Thailand had an unusually high rate of the rare but serious blood disorder, Leaverton said, and the group set out to investigate why.

“My colleague over there was probably the top scientist in Thailand. He was a really good medical scientist,” he said, “and he was also the king’s doctor.”

The king was a believer in education, Leaverton said, and his four children eagerly shared that belief. All earned advanced degrees, and two earned doctorates. Leaverton’s Thai counterpart was a friend of Princess Chulabhorn’s, having done post-graduate work with him in Germany.

“So even though she’s a multimillionaire as the king’s daughter, they took it to heart that they should give back to the community. So she got an education in science and directs her own research institute, mostly in cancer.

“I had not met her, but I had heard of her and knew she liked to give lectures occasionally, so I asked my friend, ‘Do you think she’d ever like to give a lecture at USF?’ He said, ‘I’ll ask her.’

A short time later, back at USF and ready to re-settle into his routine, Leaverton had a surprise waiting for him.

“The next thing I know, my phone’s ringing, and it’s the ambassador from Thailand asking if I’d like the princess to speak at USF.”

The answer was yes, and the ambassador personally flew down from Washington to make the arrangements.

“He sounded pretty upset,” Leaverton said, “but they have to handle the royal family with kid gloves. Turned out he was a wonderful man, and he came down a couple of times. We had to meet with the mayor of Tampa and the chief of police to make sure the princess got a motorcade from the airport to her hotel – she took over three floors at the new Wyndham – and from her hotel to USF and back again, no stopping at red lights. So it was quite a show.

“The building wasn’t scheduled to open until December, but to make her schedule, she could only come in November, so the dean opened the building just to accommodate her, which I thought was nice.

News story on Thailand’s Princess Chulabhorn’s royal visit for the COPH opening, November 1991.  Pictured with the princess (left) are Drs. Peter Levin (second from left) and Paul Leaverton, who watch as a student from Thailand extends a greeting.

“It was a packed audience. She gave a very technical lecture that no one understood except the biochemists, but it was a big show, and we got to have lunch with the president of the university. It was a royal opening for the college.”

When the college first opened for classes, Leaverton said, a few students were admitted even before the departments were created. After they were created, the departments didn’t last long initially.

Dean Levin created the initial four of COPH’s present five departments and recruited four professors from other institutions to chair them.

From left: Dennis Werner, senior research coordinator, Jan Marshburn, research assistant, and Lesley Bateman, PR and development coordinator, move into the new COPH building in November 1991.

Leaverton was brought in from the National Institutes of Health, and before that, the University of Iowa, to head Epidemiology and Biostatistics. Dr. Stewart Brooks would leave the University of Cincinnati to lead Environmental and Occupational Health. Dr. Stan Graven came from the University of Missouri to direct Community and Family Health. Dr. Tom Chirikos from Ohio State University would take the reins in Health Policy and Management.

“In early ’85,” Leaverton recalled, “the dean got to thinking maybe we didn’t need departments. We could just follow what he called the Texas model – no departments, just one big happy family. But the four chairs who had been recruited to be chairmen of departments objected mightily, and besides, I tried to convince the dean, students tend to think of themselves along discipline lines anyway, whether you call them departments or not. So he relented and re-created the four departments.”

Typical of the new departments, “Epi and Biostats,” as Leaverton calls it, consisted of two people. He and Stockwell were it for the time being, but that was about to change, although maybe not as quickly as they would have liked.

“The legislature was wonderfully generous,” Leaverton said. “They gave us a lot of tenure-track lines, almost unheard of in the creation of a new school. As chairman of Epi and Biostats, I had six tenure-track lines. Two of them were filled by Dr. Stockwell and me, but we had to recruit for the other four.

“Dr. Stockwell and I both had pretty high standards – she had been at Hopkins. We had a file of about 30 people. We rejected all of them. We didn’t think they were good enough to be on our faculty.

“So we had to start the recruiting process all over again, and she and I did all the teaching for that first year, because we were a two-person faculty. We did have a few adjuncts, maybe, here and there, and we eventually filled the faculty positions for the next year.”

Leaverton chaired the department until 1995, then remained as a professor for another six years. He retired as an emeritus professor in 2001.

Memories

The founders and early leaders of COPH have more memories than just those that deal with the college’s inception and its early operation, more memories than space could ever allow, including a few on the lighter side.

“When she was president of the university, she knew everybody on campus,” Coulter recalled of Betty Castor, “and when I got the funding to start the Harrell Center, I was walking across the campus behind the administration building, and she was walking back to her office from somewhere. She saw me all the way across the grounds and yelled out, ‘Hi, moneybags!’

Sam Bell and Betty Castor, former USF president and Florida Secretary of Education, at the COPH 25th anniversary gala, December 2009.

“She knew everybody and supported everybody, and no matter that I was an associate professor in the College of Public Health, she knew.”

“I recall conducting a final exam in epidemiology one evening in which two unusual events occurred,” said Leaverton. “First, a student came to me in obvious pain. She had accidentally put the wrong kind of eye drops in her eyes, which were nearly swollen shut. Okay, she was excused.

“Then, another lady went into labor. We called 911 and sent her to the hospital. It turned out to be a false alarm – she delivered two weeks later. Maybe my exams were too frightening.”

“Being a fan of Chevy Chase and SNL, especially his take-offs on the clumsiness of President Gerald Ford, I purposely stumbled up the auditorium stairs and fell against the podium on the stage, scattering papers everywhere,” Mahan recalled. “This was at one of our graduation convocations. Instead of the audience laughing at my parody of Chevy, they all thought it was real and rushed to the stage to help me – very embarrassing! I think it’s funny now, but I have a very bizarre sense of humor.”

The particulars vary from person to person, but the size, scope and overall success of the college are unanimous themes for the people who were there in its earliest days. In one way or another, all said they could not have foreseen in 1984 what it is on its 30^th anniversary.

“I don’t think we could have imagined,” Coulter said, “the ability to move as strongly as it has in the direction of being a research one university – USF as a whole and the College of Public Health as a leader in that regard. I don’t think we quite envisioned it that way. That has been very exciting.

“Also, the expansion of the whole global health department, the global health focus, and the ability to do international public health work with researchers that are in the global health unit. That really hadn’t been anticipated,” she said.

“I think Donna Petersen coming here was a huge milestone,” she added. “I think she is absolutely extraordinary. Without Donna’s leadership, we could not have gone as far as we’ve gone. She’s given us a lot of support for community-based research, and that’s been critical in terms of the direction that we’ve gone.”

“I’m very pleased with how well our students have done,” Leaverton said. “It’s kind of shocking, in a way. As I look back, we must have organized the curriculum pretty well, Heather [Stockwell] and I. We had to basically design it from scratch. We set up some pretty good courses, and they essentially stayed the same for a long time. We had some good faculty who kept the standards high.

COPH student Sherri Berger as a model for a National Public Health Week poster, March 1996.  She now is chief operating officer at the Centers for Disease Control.

“I actually saw some memos that said, ‘Don’t take Epi and Biostats at the same time, it’s too hard. You have to take them separately,’” Leaverton said. “Sometimes I would take some pride in that. We never made soft courses. Our courses were tough.”

Past, Future and Present

The few shortcomings the college’s founders can think of actually only further reflect the college’s success.

“If I could change one thing,” Stockwell said, “it would be to have a much larger building. The college’s rapid growth has resulted in a need for more space. Maybe we could add a floor?”

“Our beautiful building should have been built to be able to add additional stories,” Mahan concurred.

For Leaverton, it would be an epidemiology laboratory, something he said he and Dr. Doug Schocken, a cardiology professor, tried twice to get funded by NIH.

“If I could do that over, I would pursue that even more vigorously. But we tried,” he said.

Mahan said he sees the college’s future dependent upon “a stronger marriage” between the college and the state and local health departments.

Former COPH Dean Dr. Charles Mahan (above left, below right) participates in an exercise with the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Hazardous Materials Unit, April 2000.

“What if you got your medical degree or nursing degree but never saw a patient and never went into a hospital? Well, why are we giving people public health degrees, and they never set foot in a health department, and they don’t work in the community, which is where the problems are?”

Mahan believes that national accreditation of health departments should be as universal as accreditation for colleges and universities, and that closing the gap between public health education and practice is the way to achieve it. COPH would help a health department earn accreditation, with the understanding that once it became accredited, it would become an “official outpost of the USF College of Public Health.”

“I hope the emphasis on a strong research program will continue,” Leaverton said. “Public health programs need to be based upon sound science, of course. I hope that never changes.”

“What I would like to see the college do is continue on the path that it’s on in terms of really being a leader in the country in community-based research,” Coulter said, “increasing its role as an intermediary between research and practice, and having a committed sense of responsibility to community service providers.”

“Over the next five years,” Stockwell said, “I think – or at least I hope – that public health in general will focus on a positive approach to health, not just disease prevention but improving the quality of health and health maintenance for all our citizens. To do this there will need to be a strong interdisciplinary approach to developing strategies that focus on primary prevention and sustainability at the community level.

“I think our college is uniquely positioned to address these issues,” she said. Its interdisciplinary educational focus positions it as a leader in public health education, and our emphasis on the development of high-quality, collaborative, community-based  research seeks to provide critical information to policy makers to address current and future public health concerns locally, nationally and internationally.”

From left: Susan Webb and Drs. Michael Reid and Phillip Marty establish the Public Health Leadership Institute with a grant from the CDC and ASPH, January 1995.

Stockwell remained with COPH until 2014, when she retired as professor emerita.

But between all the memories of COPH’s beginnings, all its history, successes, scarce shortcomings and envisioned futures stands the here and now.

“If imitation is the greatest form of flattery,” he said, “then we should be flattered, because every university in the state wants a college of public health.

“The College is having impact around the world. I had thought it would be a mecca for public health in Florida and a source of information and advice for state decision-makers. It has done that and much more. We now have graduates working on every continent. Our faculty are internationally recognized. Our students are studying and doing internships around the world. We are attracting major grants, and the research continues to grow.

“I am very proud of what the College has become and what it has done to touch lives around the world,” the college’s “godfather” concluded.

“It has far exceeded my hopes and expectations.”

The USF College of Public Health solves global problems and creates conditions that allow every person the right to universal health and well-being. Make a gift today and help the COPH to advance the public’s health for the next 30 years and beyond. 

Story by David Brothers, USF College of Public Health; photos courtesy of COPH and various faculty.

Related media:
30th anniversary website

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The University of South Florida today announced that it is naming its College of Public Health Building after the Honorable Samuel P. Bell, III.

Bell, who passed away on March 14, is considered the “father” of USF’s College of Public Health and was a longtime champion of USF and Florida residents.

“Sam Bell was a passionate champion for the University of South Florida, and we are proud to honor his profound legacy by dedicating the College of Public Health building in his name,” said USF President Rhea Law. “His influence and impact on public health policy will continue to benefit our university, region and state for generations to come.”

A House leader from Volusia County from 1974 to 1988, Bell identified a growing need for public health professionals in the U.S. He sponsored legislation to create Florida’s first college of public health at USF in 1984 due to the university’s unique combination of having an urban setting and a medical school. 

“There would be no college of public health, no building to name, without a Sam Bell,” said Donna J. Petersen, senior associate vice president of USF Health. “He was a tireless advocate for public health and used his passion, his position and his powers of persuasion to create out of nowhere, the first college of public health in the state of Florida, at USF.”

Petersen, who also serves as dean, added that it was the only college of public health in the state for many years, and that Bell served as the first and only chair of its advisory council for nearly 40 years.  

“He was a huge presence in this building. All of us convene and learn in the Sam Bell auditorium,” she said. “Students benefitted from his generosity in the scholarships he supported and from his wisdom when he guest-lectured in the classroom. He came to our events and he enthusiastically supported new initiatives like the Salud Latina program. We know and love Sam inside the college. Naming the building proclaims to the outside world how much Sam meant to us.”

Bell laid the groundwork for Florida Healthy Kids, a government-subsidized insurance plan that became the model for the national Children’s Health Insurance Program. His work led to Florida leading the nation in regulating tap water temperature to prevent scalding deaths, improved the process for subsidized adoptions for children with special needs, established a network of neonatal intensive care units and fought to ensure passage of the bill requiring child restraints in automobiles.

“We are so grateful to Sam Bell, whose determination and passion for public health laid the groundwork for the USF College of Public Health to become the national leader that it is today,” said Charles J. Lockwood, executive vice president of USF Health and dean of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. “We are delighted that we can rename the college’s headquarters as the Samuel P. Bell, III Building to honor his legacy and reflect his many contributions to improving the lives and health of all Floridians.” 

In 1989, Bell married then-Florida Education Commissioner Betty Castor, who would become USF’s fifth president. Bell met Castor when both were serving in the state Legislature. They created a family of six children, and now, 10 grandchildren. Castor today announced an additional legacy gift to the College of Public Health. 

“Sam had a deep passion for serving the citizens of this state and this university in so many ways,” Castor said. “He would have been humbled and honored knowing his legacy will live on through his beloved college because of the students, faculty and patients he cared about so deeply.”

The university also announced a $100,000 gift from Florida Healthy Kids to establish an endowed fund focused on future discoveries in child health insurance and health policy, which will be used to offer scholarships to masters- and doctoral-level College of Public Health students.

The couple’s philanthropy continues to have a major impact on USF. In addition to the College of Public Health, Bell served on the advisory boards for WUSF Public Media and the Center for Strategic and Diplomatic Studies. He also served on the USF Foundation Board of Directors, and along with Betty, endowed scholarships for USF’s College of Public Health, School of Music and women’s athletics.

“Sam Bell’s contributions to the University of South Florida are immeasurable,” said USF Foundation CEO Jay Stroman. “Through their philanthropy, service and advocacy, Sam and Betty have forever changed our USF community for the better. There is no one more deserving than Sam Bell for this honor and his legacy will endure for generations to come.”

Bell’s previous recognitions from the university include a 2009 USF honorary Doctor of Public Health as well as the university’s highest honor to a non-alum, the Class of ’56 Award, presented in 2018. He was posthumously awarded USF’s Distinguished Citizen Award at the university’s 2023 spring commencement in May.

Story reposted from USF Newsroom

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The USF College of Public Health (COPH) announced it has received a $100,000 gift from Florida Healthy Kids to establish an endowed fund in honor of the late Samuel P. “Sam” Bell, the college’s founder.

The gift will fund scholarships for doctoral students and post-doctoral fellows at the college studying child health policy.

Bell, who died in March, was a former Florida state legislator who tirelessly championed many public health causes, especially those that benefitted children.

Among some of his many initiatives, he advocated for the regulation of tap water temperature to prevent scalding injuries and death; rallied for subsidized adoptions for special needs children; and fought for the passage of a bill requiring child restraints in cars.

One of Bell’s enduring legacies is the establishment of Florida Healthy Kids, a government-subsidized insurance plan that has become the model for the national Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

At a ceremony held Oct. 10 naming the building housing the college after Bell, Dr. Stephanie Haridopolos, chair of Florida Healthy Kids, announced the $100,000 gift.

“To compound his good work and innovative ideas for the CHIP program for years to come, we, as a board, decided to create for the COPH the Sam Bell Memorial Endowment Fund in the amount of $100,000,” Haridopolos said to the crowd of roughly 200, which included USF President Rhea Law and former USF President Betty Castor, the wife of the late Bell.

After the gift’s announcement, Dr. Donna Petersen, senior associate vice president of USF Health and dean of the college, spoke to the crowd and made note of Bell’s passion for both students and the welfare of children.

“For the Florida Healthy Kids Corporation to create this endowment with a $100,000 gift to the College of Public Health brings Sam’s legacy full circle,” Petersen said. “It is extraordinary because it reflects Sam’s enduring legacy in promoting the health of children, and his unwavering trust in us, the College of Public Health, to develop the next generation of scholars and leaders to ensure we continue to advocate for the best policies for children.”

Dr. Steve Freedman, a COPH professor of health policy and pediatrics and Florida Healthy Kids ad hoc board member, said earmarking the funds for doctoral students studying child health policy made sense, given Bell’s ability to use policy to bring public health initiatives to fruition.

“Focusing the doctoral fellowship on child health policy was a reflection of Sam’s commitment to the health of Florida’s children and his success using the policy process to achieve those ends,” Freedman said. “Advanced work in connecting public health to public policy is so clearly manifest in Sam’s public and private history.”

Chinyere Reid, a COPH doctoral student and a recipient of one of several scholarships endowed by Bell and Castor, told gatherers that scholarships such as hers not only lighten the financial load of a student, but they also act as an inspiration.

“Sam Bell’s generosity has touched the lives of countless individuals, including mine and many public health students here at USF,” Reid said. “As I’m about to graduate and transition into a public health career, I aspire to follow in his footsteps promoting the well-being of families and the community at large, just as he did. Sam Bell’s legacy will continue to shine brightly through the lives of scholarship recipients like myself, who are committed to making a positive impact on the world one small step at a time.”

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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Samuel P. Bell III, a former legislator in the Florida House of Representatives and founder of the USF College of Public Health (COPH), was posthumously awarded USF’s Distinguished Citizen Award at the university’s 2023 spring commencement held May 7.

Bell died on March 14, 2023, at the age of 83.

USF’s Distinguished Citizen Award is one of the university’s highest honors and recognizes a U.S. citizen—usually a Floridian—who has rendered distinguished public service to those in the USF community and the state as a whole.

Bell was honored for his tireless support of USF and the people of Florida.

He served in the Florida House from 1974 to 1988. He lobbied the Florida Legislature to create a college of public health to train the next generation of public health officials and serve the health needs of Floridians.

In 1984, the USF College of Public Health (COPH), the first college of public health in the state, opened its doors.

Bell laid the groundwork for such public health initiatives as Florida Healthy Kids, a government-subsidized insurance plan, as well as the subsidized adoptions of special-needs children and regulation of tap water temperature to prevent scalding deaths.

He also served on numerous USF boards, including the advisory boards for WUSF Public Media, the Center for Strategic and Diplomatic Studies and endowed scholarships to the COPH, USF’s School of Music and the women’s basketball team.

“Sam Bell was a champion for USF and an advocate for making our communities better places to live,” commented USF President Rhea Law. “Not only did I have an opportunity to see Sam’s impact on the university, but I was also fortunate to work with him during my legal career and benefit from his smart, effective approach to creating good public policy.  We’re proud to honor Sam’s legacy as a very deserving recipient of the Distinguished Citizen Award.”

Betty Castor, Bell’s wife and former USF president, accepted the award, presented by COPH Dean Donna Petersen, on his behalf.

Noting that his “dedication, loyalty and love belonged to the University of South Florida,” Castor reminded the audience of the many accomplishments of Bell, his vast service to USF and the accolades the college he founded has garnered.

 “The trajectory of the college has been nothing short of miraculous. Sam was always the number-one champion, cheering every step of the way. Not one to sit on the sidelines, he was personally involved in the college serving as an affiliate professor. He met with faculty and students, traveled to the global office in Panama and visited with master’s degree students in faraway Uganda. He was eternally grateful when Dean Donna Petersen presented—err—negotiated a parking space close to the building. That was a gift! Sam established endowments for public health students and most recently established a new endowment in public health policy.”

Castor concluded her comments by noting that Bell “understood USF more than most and was immensely proud of its history and accomplishments. Sam Bell was a proud Bull!”

To view the commencement ceremony and Castor’s comments, click here.

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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Samuel “Sam” P. Bell, III, father of the USF College of Public Health (COPH) and overall champion of USF, died March 14 at the age of 83.

Bell, the husband of former USF president Betty Castor, served in the Florida Legislature for 14 years. He dedicated himself to improving health policies throughout the state, particularly those policies that affected children.

When USF recognized his contributions to the university and the community several years ago with the prestigious Class of ’56 Award, he commented that by honoring him, he hoped the university was really honoring the COPH.

“It’s my main claim to fame,” he told a reporter at the time. “I had no particular connection to the college when we embarked on bringing a school of public health to Florida,” he added. “But the decision to bring it to USF turned out to be a great choice in every way. At USF, the COPH is seen as an equal partner in the health system.”

Bell’s contributions to public health are long and illustrious.

He helped bring about Florida Healthy Kids, a government-subsidized insurance plan that became the model for the national Children’s Health Insurance Program. His efforts also led to the state’s regulation of tap water temperatures to prevent scalding injuries, the subsidization of adoptions of special needs children and the establishment of a network of neonatal intensive care units.

“Sam’s contributions to children and public health truly helped shape our state,” said Laura Kolkman, a USF COPH Advisory Council member, a council that Bell once chaired. “I’m honored to have known him and call him a friend.” “His work will live on through USF and the many children’s causes he championed,” added Dana Nafe, another advisory council member.

Bell worked tirelessly on behalf of the university and college.

According to Kara Steiner, senior director of development USF Health, Bell established three funds in the college, one for graduate students to study public health disparities in Africa, one for the general needs of the college when he was chair of the Dean’s Advisory Council, and most recently, a scholarship for students studying public health policy. He also supported the Salud Latina program, jump-started numerous other scholarships in honor of retired faculty members for programs like health management, tropical medicine and maternal and fetal health and initiated the Global Health Symposium, which took place in 2019.

“Sam was the first one to contribute to get things moving,” said Steiner, who worked with Bell on many initiatives and scholarships. “In our last meeting, his goal was to get the directorship of the Chiles Center endowed to ensure that the health of women and babies remains a priority for our college and the state of Florida in perpetuity. No one loved the USF College of Public Health more than Sam Bell and his impression on the college, its faculty, research, students and programs will be felt for decades to come.”

According to COPH Dean Donna Petersen, it’s Bell’s commitment to service that will be his lasting legacy.

“I don’t know what drove him to be so dedicated to service and improving the human condition. But he was and he did, in everything he touched,” Petersen said. “He was strong and persuasive, but always gracious and kind. He was someone who just seemed to deeply understand people at both the individual and collective level. He understood that people need to be cherished and that communities need to be supported. Whether it was his role as a lawmaker, philanthropist, advocate or volunteer, he was inspired by the things that would make a difference in people’s lives. And in so doing, he inspired us to want to keep doing everything we can to make a difference, too.”

Visitation will be held on March 30, 2023. A memorial service will be Friday, March 31, 2023. For more information on the funeral arrangements and to read more about Bell’s life and service, click here.

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

The post The COPH pays tribute to its founder, Sam Bell appeared first on College of Public Health News.

The University of South Florida community is deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Samuel P. “Sam” Bell, who is considered the “father” of the USF College of Public Health. He and his wife, former USF president Betty Castor have been deeply connected to the University of South Florida’s growth and success for decades.

“Sam Bell was a champion for USF. From his strong advocacy that led to the creation of our College of Public Health to his generous philanthropy that supports many of our students and programs, Sam’s impact is felt every day at USF. On behalf of the USF community, I extend my deepest condolences to his wife Betty Castor, a former USF president, and their entire family,” USF President Rhea Law said. “I was also fortunate to work closely with Sam during my time with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney. His smart, thoughtful and caring approach to public policy was tremendously beneficial to our law firm and our community. He will be missed.”

Bell represented Volusia County in the Florida House of Representatives from 1974 to 1988, where he was instrumental in pushing legislation that created the state’s first accredited public health college in 1984.

During his time in the legislature, Bell recognized a dual problem. He saw there were public health issues affecting Florida communities, such as infant mortality, tuberculosis and the need for clean drinking water. He also saw employees in the state’s county health departments were aging with no one in line to continue their work.

He lobbied to create Florida’s first college of public health to train a new generation of public health professionals, with USF chosen as its home due to its unique combination of having an urban setting and a medical school.

Over the next four decades, Bell watched the college grow from his words on a page to an internationally respected entity. According to U.S. News & World Report’s 2022 rankings, the USF College of Public Health is now the No. 1 public health college in the state and No. 16 nationwide. Bell served as the first and only chair of the dean’s advisory board.

“The College of Public Health exists because of Sam Bell. Everything we stand for is because of him. Sam Bell was a champion of champions. Everything he did, he did for good,” said Donna Petersen, dean of the College of Public Health and the university’s chief health officer.

The College of Public Health was the first of many USF projects Bell took an interest in. His contributions have played a crucial role in lifting USF to become a major player on the national and international stage.

An avid public radio listener, Bell served on the board for WUSF Public Media. He was a board member for the USF World Center for Strategic and Diplomatic Studies, bringing prominent international speakers to campus, and the Center for Urban Studies. Bell also served on the USF Foundation Board of Directors.

Among his many philanthropic contributions to the university, he endowed scholarships for the USF School of Music, the College of Public Health and women’s basketball. In conversation about the dozens of students who benefitted from his generosity, he spoke with pride about “our students” and “our graduates.”

An avid supporter of all USF women’s intercollegiate athletes, he and his wife, Betty Castor, could be seen cheering for the Bulls at nearly every women’s basketball home game.

In recognition of his distinguished service to USF and its community, Bell was awarded an honorary degree in 2009 as well as the university’s highest honor to a non-alumnus, the Class of ’56 Award, in 2018. He was also awarded an honorary doctorate of law from Flagler College and the Outstanding Member of the House Award from the Miami Herald.

“It is hard to describe the sheer magnitude of Sam Bell’s contributions to the University of South Florida,” said USF Foundation CEO Jay Stroman. “Through his philanthropy, his service and his advocacy, Sam Bell leaves a legacy that will endure for generations. We couldn’t be more appreciative of his unwavering commitment to leave this world a better place than when he entered it.”

Beyond USF, Bell was at the forefront of progressive policies, programs and laws that ensure Floridians, particularly children, have access to quality, affordable health care. His work with the nonprofit Institute for Child Health Policy resulted in Florida Healthy Kids, a government subsidized insurance plan that became the model for the national Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Thanks to Bell, Florida led the nation in efforts to regulate tap water temperatures to prevent scalding deaths. His work resulted in subsidized adoptions of children with special needs and established a network of neonatal intensive care units to ensure the youngest, sickest patients had the very best care.

Bell was born in West Virginia, moving with his parents and younger brother to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, just as he began high school.

He attended Dartmouth College and Duke University School of Law, then joined a Daytona Beach law firm. He spent the next four decades practicing civil law, becoming partner in several firms, including Pennington Moore Wilkinson Bell and Dunbar, now Buchanan, Ingersoll and Rooney.

Bell met Castor when both were serving in the state Legislature. They married in 1989, creating a family of six children and, now, 10 grandchildren.

“We were so fortunate to be the beneficiary of his foresight, his wisdom, his passion and his generosity,” said Petersen. “Our hearts are broken, but in his honor and memory, we will honor his legacy every way we can. We are forever indebted to this amazing human being.”

Reposted from USF Foundation

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USF Health hosted its virtual 5K, “Run Family Violence Out of Tampa Bay,” from April 17-18. With 107 registrants, the effort raised more than $7,200 that will go to directly support the The USF College of Public Health (COPH) Harrell Center’s priorities.

The 5K was endorsed by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and news of the event was distributed through multiple social media channels. Participating leaders included former USF President Betty Castor, former Florida House representative Samuel P. Bell, III, COPH board members, faculty and community organization leaders such as Mindy Murphy from the Spring of Tampa Bay. The Harrell Center also thanked Lennar Homes and many of their other donors for contributing to the event’s success.

The Harrell Center serves as an intermediary between academia and practice to address family violence across the life span. To address this mission, the center connects the technical assistance needs of community organizations with USF students and faculty who have the skills to manage these needs.

However, one challenge the center faces is trying to meet the needs of the community through academic solutions, such as research, evaluation, training and advocacy, without an allocated budget.

“We rely on student volunteers and the faculty’s orientation toward community engagement,” Dr. Abraham Salinas-Miranda, assistant professor and director of the Harrell Center, said. “All the funds raised from the 5K are being utilized for community-based projects that don’t have a funding stream through USF. Our students can learn while working with projects that advance evidence-based practices. The community can address challenges that they have not been able to address.” 

Salinas-Miranda said that one of the things he liked most about the event was the sense of connection with family, friends and the community who were all supporting their cause.

“I think it’s really amazing that despite this being our first 5K and the COVID-19 pandemic causing the race to be virtual, we had over 100 participants. The community response to the event was really inspiring,” Salinas-Miranda said. “We would like to thank everyone who participated and donated! We will make sure to put every penny to good use to address family violence in our community.”

Click here to see more photos from the event.

Related media:
LifeLine video playlist on YouTube

Story by Caitlin Keough, USF College of Public Health

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The USF College of Public Health’s (COPH) Activist Lab will hold its third annual boot camp on advocacy. The 2021 event will be held virtually on Jan. 29 and will focus on advocacy and pandemics, particularly COVID-19.

“These exciting boot camps allow participants to not only learn about advocacy and policy changes, but to focus on particular public health issues and change,” said Dr. Karen Liller, director of the Activist Lab and a COPH professor. “This is a true hands-on experience. Boot camp participants will work in groups to create issue papers for the legislators and/or policymakers that will help improve the public’s health.”

The COPH’s Activist Lab provides seminars, webinars and other educational opportunities for faculty and students—both undergraduate and graduate—to learn public health advocacy skills and competencies. 

After a welcome kickoff from the COPH’s Dean Dr. Donna Petersen and Liller, the audience will hear presentations from those in the thick of COVID-19 prevention, control and research, including the COPH’s Dr. Tom Unnasch and Dr. Marissa Levine. New this year will be a panel discussion that follows the presentations; this will allow for questions and answers from the audience about the pandemic.  

Following the panel discussion, participants will be instructed by representatives of the Shimberg Health Sciences Library on how to research pandemic strategies and advocate for change. 

“This is important,” commented Liller, “as after presentations the participants will break into groups to develop an issue paper for policymakers and/or legislators about pandemic topics. The topics include contact tracing, rapid response to pandemics, mental health issues, and firearms and violence during pandemics. Each group will present their issue paper to all participants and it will be critiqued by present and/or past legislators and public health officials.”

Some of the legislators and public health officials scheduled to take part in the boot camp are Samuel P. Bell III, a COPH affiliate faculty member, advisory board chairman and former Florida state legislator; Ronald Glickman, staff attorney with the Second District Court of Appeals and former Florida state legislator; and US Rep. Kathy Castor (tentative). 

“COVID-19 and pandemics are critical issues to address now and into the future,” said Liller. “Public health professionals will need strong advocacy skills to make their voices heard. I believe strongly that all public health students and others should attend these boot camps, as advocacy and policymaking are critical skills for all to learn so that public health efforts succeed.

To register for the event or to learn more, click here.

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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From the film festival to Delta Omega to a fun night out, the USF College of Public Health’s presence at the 2019 American Public Health Association Annual Meeting and Expo was a trifecta! Bulls descended on Philadelphia from Nov. 2-6.

This year’s annual meeting marked the third time in the college’s history that a video was selected for the APHA Global Public Health Film Festival. USF COPH: The world is our classroom is one of a handful of videos that aired in the “Sick Planet” category.

In observance of the college’s 35^th anniversary, this year’s APHA reception was also ramped up a notch.

More than 120 Bulls and public health colleagues showed up for the festivities at Lucky Strike. “The bowling alley and game room provided the perfect setting for a fun celebration,” said COPH Dean Donna Petersen.  “Friends old and new mixed and mingled while playing pool, ping-pong, oversized Connect Four and even bowling!”

Special guests included COPH founder The Honorable Sam Bell and former USF System President Dr. Betty Castor. Retired COPH Dean Charlie Mahan and wife Dee Jeffers were also in attendance. In fact, the reception fell on Dr. Mahan’s birthday.

“The college is the recipient of a $35,000 anonymous gift,” announced Kara Steiner, USF Health’s director of annual giving & alumni engagement. “Because it’s a match opportunity, any gift amount to any COPH fund counts!”

Steiner challenged attendees to make a gift of $35, $350 or $3500. Giving Tuesday, an annual day of giving celebrated the day after Cyber Monday is one way to do so.

Before closing out the night, Petersen introduced the newest addition to the COPH family—gourmet dark chocolate direct from Ecuador. Attendees were given an opportunity to sample dark chocolate varieties with and without almonds.  Watch for new product lines to be available on campus and in local stores, all in support of the college, Ecuadoran farmers and chocolate producers through our latest global venture.

This initiative is part of the USF College of Public Health’s yearlong 35th anniversary celebration.  To learn more about giving to the COPH, contact Kara Steiner ’06 at ksteiner@health.usf.edu or (813) 974-3023.

Story by Natalie D. Preston, USF College of Public Health

The post COPH gets lucky in Philadelphia appeared first on College of Public Health News.

A jewel in the crown of the University of South Florida, the College of Public Health (COPH) was founded in statute by the Florida Legislature in 1984 as the first school of public health in the state.

“USF was chosen as the place for Florida’s College of Public Health,” Dr. Peter Levin, the college’s first dean wrote in 1984, “because of the broad base of knowledge found in the many colleges of the University and the unique Tampa location.”

Three decades of growth and innumerable success stories later, former Fla. Rep. Samuel P. Bell, III shed more light on the founding of COPH. It all started with one person’s idea and another person’s decision to act on it.

The idea person was Robert Hamlin, a graduate of the Harvard University College of Public Health. He brought his idea to Bell, dubbed “the godfather of the college” by Charles Mahan, another founder and COPH dean from 1995 to 2002.

“He had realized that there was not a college of public health in Florida,” Bell recalled of Hamlin. “He contacted my staff director, John Phelps, with the idea, and John and I discussed the idea and decided that we should pursue the project.”

Since the COPH’s founding, the college has provided excellence in public health education, leadership, advocacy, research and service.

This July, the COPH is celebrating 35 years of educating public health professionals. Make plans now to participate in events in Tampa, around the nation and online that recognize this historic milestone.

Read more about the founding of the COPH here.

Upcoming events:

Festivities are planned for the next 12 months! Here’s a sample of offerings for the 35th anniversary.

• COPH Birthday Party—On July 12, faculty, staff and students are invited to celebrate the COPH’s 35th birthday! Like most birthday parties, we will have cake, punch, giveaways, and sing “Happy Birthday!” Complimentary, 5-minute chair massages will be the icing on the cake!

• 7@7 Dinner with Alums—On Sept. 19, here’s your chance to not only meet an alum but have dinner with him or her and ask up-close-and-personal questions about how to make your degree work for you or get involved on campus. Alumni can also help you decide what path you should choose if you’re unsure. Open to all COPH students.
• USF Health Homecoming Tailgate—Mark your calendar for Oct. 12 and plan to connect with fellow Bulls as we cheer on our football team! Enjoy food and beverage, swag, and family fun! Ticket information to come.
• In Your Neighborhood Series— The COPH is coming to St. Petersburg, Washington D.C., Atlanta and Chicago! Connect with COPH alumni over dinner and visit with current faculty.
• Gasparilla Distance Classic—Run, walk, jog and do whatever it takes to cross the finish line! There are multiple distances to choose from, and Team #usfcophrocks will have participants represented in all of them. Save the date for Feb. 22-23 and prepare to kick asphalt!
• Talent Show—Do you have the music within you? Do you have movement? Want to let you comedic side out? The college is filled with talent and we want to celebrate it. Stay tuned for more information and start practicing now!
• Alumni Awards Ceremony—The college is home to a plethora of awesome graduates. Make plans to nominate one (or two, or more) for a COPH alumni award.

Stay up-to-date on the festivities by vising the 35th anniversary website. It’s one-stop shopping for events, news, giving and more.

This initiative is part of the USF College of Public Health’s yearlong 35th anniversary celebration.  To learn more about giving to the COPH, contact Kara Steiner ’06 at ksteiner@health.usf.edu or (813) 974-3023.

For additional information or to help plan 35th anniversary events, contact Caitlin Keough at caitlinkeough@health.usf.edu.

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