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The field of public health, “promotes and protects the health of people in the communities where they live, learn, work, and play”, according to the American Public Health Association. It is a versatile discipline with opportunities in both public and private sectors, and at the local, state, national, and global levels. In the public health field, you can make a difference in health equity and accessibility.

Customize your undergraduate degree with a specific concentration depending on your interests and career goals. Regardless of which concentration you choose, all undergraduate students will complete a minimum of 120 credits, including 45 credit hours of general education core curricula, 25 credit hours of required public health coursework, and 3 credit hours of a culminating/capstone project.

Community health concentration (Select a track)

• Health behavior
• Special populations
• Public/health policy
• Environmental studies

This concentration integrates many disciplines and allows you to personalize your study with electives from programs, such as environmental studies, communication, social work, sociology, psychology, political science, or health and human performance to create an educational experience unique to you.

This may involve blending the required public health curriculum with coursework from the subject areas above to create an individualized multidisciplinary educational experience. Students may also want to focus their studies around working with a specific population to promote health equity for all members of a community. This concentration prepares the undergraduate to enter the public health workforce upon graduation in numerous professional fields and community settings, such as health departments, non-profit organizations, hospitals and health systems, governmental agencies, schools, and private businesses. A BSPH also provides the foundation for future graduate degrees, such as a masters’ in public health, social work, occupational therapy or healthcare administration.

Learning outcomes:
1. Discuss the diverstiy and unique public health-related needs of specific populations in the context of achieving health equity.
2. Build trust and rapport with communities served.
3. Outline strategies to build individual and community capacity.

Pre-clinical concentration

This concentration provides the undergraduate students with a strong foundation in the basic sciences and is most relevant for students who may want to continue their education by pursuing a graduate degree in a health profession, such as a pharmacy, physical therapy, or physician assistant program.

Learning outcomes:
1. Demonstrate a robust understanding of various science and math concepts and how they relate to public health knowledge and skills.
2. Compare and contrast individual health approaches and population-based public health approaches to care.
3. Prepare to advocate for public health issues within the health care context.

Opioid Impact Family Support Specialist

Through a grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Concordia is providing education and training to professionals in Wisconsin and Michigan to treat individuals suffering from opioid abuse/addictions. 

Wisconsin and Michigan have significant populations experiencing substance use disorders (SUD), as there is a disconnection in treating these individuals in a meaningful manner that will help to move them toward discontinued use or overcoming their addictions. To address the needs, Concordia is providing education to those who express an interest in positively impacting the lives of individual’s suffering from the effects of opioid use disorder (OUD). 

This program will enhance and expand paraprofessionals knowledge, skills, and expertise. It aims to increase the number of peer support specialists and other behavioral health-related paraprofessionals who work on interprofessional teams to provide services to children whose parents are impacted by opioid use disorders (OUD) and other substance use disorders (SUD), and their family members in guardianship roles.

There's a special focus on demonstrating knowledge and understanding of the specific concerns for children, adolescents, and transitional aged youth in high need and high demand areas who are at risk for mental health disorders and SUDs.

To be part of this study you must be a ������ϲ����� or CUAA campus student enrolled in the certificate program. This program is open to all Concordia students in any area of study. Students will be selected based on an application process that consists of a one-two paragraph essay and a professional resume.

Those who participate will:

• Demonstrate increased knowledge and capacity to help individuals and families with opioid use disorders (OUD) or substance use disorders (SUD)
• Receive full tuition for the online certificate program including modules, and coverage for the 3-credit, 8-week online course “Drugs, Society and Human Behavior” and a $5,000 living stipend
• Have the flexibility to work through self-paced online learning modules after the completion of the academic course (above). Followed by 48 hours of experiential learning opportunities at designated partner sites
• Complete a pre and post test to demonstrate knowledge gained

If you are a current ������ϲ����� or CUAA student, in any degree program, 

If you are a non-degree seeking student, please fill click here for more information and to apply.

For more information, please contact Sara Casali, MSW, CSW at Sara.Casali@cuw.edu

This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling 2.2 million over the course of 4 years with 100% funded by HRSA/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA/HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please see this website: .