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Thomas A. LaVeist

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Thomas A. LaVeist is an American public health scholar, academic administrator, and policy expert. He is the dean and Weatherhead Presidential Chair at the Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. He was previously the chairman of the Department of Health Policy and Management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. He is founding director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions, and served as the William C. and Nancy F. Richardson Professor in Health Policy at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. His work examines how social conditions, public policy, and institutional factors shape health outcomes and disparities in access to care. He was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2013.[1]

He has published more than 150 articles in scientific journals, including JAMA, Health Affairs, American Journal of Public Health, American Journal of Sociology, and other leading health and social policy journals.[2]

Early life and education

Thomas LaVeist was born and raised in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn, New York.[3]

He obtained his B.A. in Sociology from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) in 1984. At UMES, he was a member of the football team and Phi Beta Sigma fraternity. He received his M.A. in sociology in 1985, and his Ph.D. in medical sociology from the University of Michigan in 1988. He completed his postdoctoral fellowship in Gerontology and Public Health Policy & Administration at the University of Michigan School of Public Health in 1990. He received a certificate in 2004 from Johns Hopkins University in Leadership Foundations. LaVeist is also certified in organizational governance through the National Association of Corporate Directors.[4]

During his time at the University of Michigan, he helped found the National Black Graduate Students Association.[5]

Career

LaVeist joined the faculty of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in 1990, where he served for 25 years. He held multiple roles, including professor of health policy and management and professor of sociology, with joint appointments in the School of Medicine. He was the founding director of the Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions.[6]

He later joined the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health as professor and chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management.

In 2018, LaVeist was appointed dean of the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine at Tulane University.[7] His leadership has focused on institutional strategy, financial sustainability, and aligning academic programs with workforce needs. During his tenure, the school secured a major philanthropic naming gift.[8]

Research

LaVeist’s research focuses on structural and environmental determinants of health, including the role of residential context and access to resources in shaping population outcomes.

He is known for the Exploring Health Disparities in Integrated Communities (EHDIC) study, which found that disparities in health outcomes are reduced when populations live under similar social and economic conditions. |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17999196/

He has also conducted research on the economic burden of health inequalities, including studies estimating their cost to the United States economy.[9][10]

Public engagement and media

LaVeist is the creator and executive producer of The Skin You’re In, a documentary and public engagement project examining disparities in health outcomes in the United States. The film has been featured in film festivals, including the Montreal International Black Film Festival and regional programming such as the New Orleans Black Film Festival.[11][12]

In addition to his academic work, LaVeist has contributed to public discussions on health policy through writing and media. He was among the co-authors of a 2021 New York Times opinion piece addressing disparities in the impact of COVID-19 on Black Americans.[13]

Professional service

LaVeist has served in national leadership roles in public health and higher education. He served as chair of the board of directors of the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health.[14][15]

He has also served on advisory boards including the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra.[16]

Honors and awards

LaVeist was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2013.[17] His honors include the Innovation Award from the National Institutes of Health.[18]

Works

  • 2000, The DayStar Guide to Colleges for African American Students. Simon & Schuster/Stanly Kaplan Publishing.
  • 2003, Eight Steps to Help Black Families Pay for College. Princeton Review
  • 2005, Minority Populations and Health: An Introduction to Health Disparities in the United States. Jossey-Bass.
  • 2012, Race, Ethnicity and Health: A Public Health Reader. Jossey-Bass
  • 2017, Legacy of the Crossing: Life, death and triumph among descendants of the world's greatest forced migration. Diasporic Africa Press
  • 2025, Advancing Health Equity for All: On the Front Lines of Justice in New Orleans. Oxford University Press.[19]

Personal

LaVeist is also an active jazz musician.

References

  1. "Thomas LaVeist Elected to Institute of Medicine". Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
  2. "Thomas LaVeist - Faculty Directory - Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health". Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
  3. "Thomas LaVeist Biography". The HistoryMakers.
  4. "Thomas LaVeist, Ph.D." thecobbinstitute.org.
  5. "Dr. Thomas LaVeist". shepherd.edu.
  6. "Named Professorships, Deanships, and Directorships -- The Johns Hopkins University". jhu.edu.
  7. "National equity and health leader named dean of Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine". Newswise.
  8. "After Historic Gift, Tulane University Names Public Health School for Donor". Forbes.
  9. LaVeist, Thomas A. (2023). "The Economic Burden of Health Inequalities in the United States". JAMA.
  10. "NIH-funded study highlights financial toll of health disparities in the United States". National Institutes of Health.
  11. "The Skin You're In". Montreal International Black Film Festival.
  12. "Black Film Festival New Orleans is Dec. 6–14". Gambit.
  13. "The Fullest Look Yet at the Racial Inequity of Coronavirus". The New York Times. February 7, 2021.
  14. "Meet our new chair-elect, Dr. Thomas LaVeist". ASPPH.
  15. "Dr. Thomas LaVeist named ASPPH Board Chair". Tulane University.
  16. "New Orleans Jazz Orchestra Reopens with Concert Series". OffBeat.
  17. "Thomas LaVeist Elected to the Institute of Medicine". Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
  18. "LaVeist Receives NIH Innovation Award". Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
  19. "Advancing Health Equity for All". Oxford Academic.