Instructional Technology, Health, and Cultural Studies

Health and Safety Faculty

Charles Hamilton, DrPH (University of Oklahoma)

Faculty responsibilities include instruction of graduate courses related to administrative, planning, and policy aspects of public health and advising of MPH students concentrating their study in health planning/administration.  He serves as Director of the MPH program, which is nationally accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health.  He instructs an online public health leadership course and serves on the Executive Committee for the Tennessee Public Health Workforce Development Consortium.

The Tennessee Public Health Association awarded him the R. H. Hutcheson, Sr., MD Award in 2004, recognizing his career achievements in public health.  He coordinates a campus-wide interdisciplinary graduate seminar series addressing public health related issues and research. With three colleagues external to the Knoxville campus, he initiated the East Tennessee Public Health and Preventive Medicine Forum in 1995 to foster closer working relationships between those in academia and those in public health or preventive medicine practice. Providing leadership for these efforts reflects a professional commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration which also extends to his research.

Research interests are influenced by educational preparation in environmental health, health planning, and health administration. Access to health services, especially primary care; training and facilitating interdisciplinary health teams; and engaging communities in use of health planning techniques are focal areas of research.  Applied research opportunities associated with community health practice are available due to his active networking with local and regional health organizations.  For PH 560, course design includes team involvement of students in community projects; and students individually are encouraged to participate in community research studies.