Core Objective
Georgia Southern’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health (JPHCOPH) will be moving to a newly renovated Hendricks Hall this fall. When it arrives, the College will take the reins of a brand new Core Research Lab facility.
The lab will include a Bio-Safety Level 3 (BSL3) lab and will be one of roughly a dozen of its kind in Georgia.
“A BSL3 lab will increase research productivity that will help us better understand how various agents move through the environment and impact the health of our communities, open opportunities for greater funding for the College and Georgia Southern, provide health-related research opportunities for interested Georgia Southern students, and support the work of other health professionals in our region,” said environmental health professor Kari Fitzmorris. “We need and want to protect the health of the public and must do all we can through research and community projects to realize this objective.”
The mission of JPHCOPH is to enhance health and eliminate health disparities of rural communities and underserved populations in Georgia and the southeastern region, the nation and the world through excellence in public health workforce development, research, professional service and community engagement. The lab, which is dedicated to analyzing soil, air and water samples from the surrounding areas in an effort to find and remove contaminants, will facilitate these goals.
“Developing this BSL3 lab will expand our capacity to meet our mission,” said Fitzmorris. “The contributions of JPHCOPH and this lab will complement the University’s mission as a dynamic doctoral university, and support our focus on service and outreach to our region, state, nation and world.”
While construction was underway, a planning committee was organized to develop lines of communication with on-and off-campus groups about the new facility as well as form standard operating procedures that will guide the maintenance and use of the lab upon its opening.
The first proposed project for Fall Semester 2010 will be the examination of municipal wastewater and solids to determine biological contaminant content and inactivation, particularly in well water for surrounding rural areas.
“The faculty members at the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, especially our Environmental Health Sciences faculty, are excited about the opportunity to embark on this level of public health research pertinent to rural and under-served populations in southeast Georgia,” said Dean of JPHCOPH Charles J. Hardy.
Because of the high level of research the laboratory can support, the University expects to attract more grants and research funding opportunities, thus creating a more efficient program of study for JPHCOPH students. Students will receive the opportunity to gain hands-on research experience in the laboratory.
According to Fitzmorris, the facility will provide research experience needed for adequate training in the fields of environmental health science and epidemiology. “The training our students will receive in this lab as they prepare to embark on careers dedicated to improving the health of our communities will be invaluable,” added Hardy. Initially, only graduate students will conduct research in the labs with faculty. However, over time undergraduate students may collaborate in the process after appropriate training.
JPHCOPH determined the need for the environmental health laboratory when the College was created in 2006 and has been working toward establishing the facility.
The entire Core Research Lab will be comprised of two labs for undergraduate chemistry, two labs dedicated to teaching, and two BSL3 research laboratories. Each will promote the goal of continuing education and resources toward the overall public health.