8/7/2017
PITTSBURGH, Aug. 7, 2017 – The University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health has named Noble A-W Maseru, Ph.D., M.P.H., as the new director of the Center for Health Equity and associate dean for diversity. Effective Aug. 15, he also will join the school’s faculty as professor of public health practice in the Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences.
Maseru, who is experienced in diversity-related public health issues, most recently served as health commissioner for the City of Cincinnati Health Department for more than a decade.
“Dr. Maseru devoted his energies to achieving a healthier Cincinnati through establishing strategic partnerships with numerous public, private and grassroots agencies, with the overall goal of elevating the department’s health equity impact on Cincinnati—particularly in vulnerable and underserved populations,” said Donald S. Burke, M.D., Dean of Pitt Public Health. “We are delighted to have him join our faculty and bring his expertise to Pittsburgh.”
Pitt Public Health’s Center for Health Equity was established in 2011 with a mission of reducing premature mortality rates among disadvantaged populations in southwestern Pennsylvania. The center aims to achieve this by understanding and decreasing health disparities in underserved populations throughout the region.
“The University of Pittsburgh Center for Health Equity is taking initiative to reduce excess mortality and decrease violence while educating and engaging the community,” Maseru said. “I am excited to pursue my goal of promoting diversity initiatives at a center that is an excellent resource to the community.”
Prior to joining the City of Cincinnati Health Department, Maseru served as the health director and health officer of the Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion. He is the founding director of the Morehouse School of Medicine’s Master of Public Health Program, the first accredited Council on Education of Public Health Master of Public Health Program at a Historically Black College or University.
Maseru earned his Ph.D. in health policy from Clark Atlanta University and served on the advisory board and admissions committee for the Preventive Medicine Residency Program at Morehouse School of Medicine. He earned his M.P.H. at Emory University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Wayne State University.
He engages in social justice advocacy and philanthropy efforts for the Walter Rodney Foundation.
