VCU School of Public Health

Beginning Aug. 17, 2026, the RamsXpress will help connect the community to both downtown VCU campuses!

This point-to-point shuttle service is adding two additional stops near One Capitol Square — the home of .

Catch the RamsXpress at:
📍 8th and Main St. when heading west towards Monroe Park Campus
📍 8th and Franklin St. when heading east towards MCV Campus

The shuttle runs Monday-Friday from 7 a.m. - 7 p.m. for all members of the VCU Community.

Use this link in the comments to see the route or track the RamsXpress in real time using the Ride Pingo app.

💰 Thinking about applying for a Wright Center Translational Science Pilot Award?
Start here. Join us for an informational webinar covering what prospective applicants need to know:
✅ Eligibility criteria
✅ The application process
✅ Funded research areas
✅ Example projects from past cycles
✅ Key information for prospective applicants

Our pilot awards are designed to generate the preliminary data and proof-of-concept that turn a promising idea into a fundable federal grant. In 2025, we awarded $100,000 across four interdisciplinary projects at $25,000 each — spanning cardiac digital twins, AI-assisted brain imaging, lung cancer diagnostics, and statewide health data infrastructure.

🗓️ When: August 26, 2026 │ 12:00 PM
📍 Where: Virtual via Zoom
🔗 Register: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/yjet1DEvQ6ChwFG6DmvBDg #/registration

For the fourth year in a row, the VCU Graduate School's Non-traditional Thesis/Capstone Project Award goes to an M.P.H. alum.

Rose McMullen, M.P.H., graduated in May 2026, after completing her capstone project on the efficacy of Henrico County's Learn2Swim program. See how she explore swimming and drowning prevention with a public health lens for this award-winning project at the link below.

We're so proud of M.P.H. student Aastha Patel for being one of 34 interns in the Virginia Department of Health's Internship Academy this summer. Last month, she presented her work in their Poster Symposium. It was titled, "Improving Self-Pay Patient Collections Through Revenue Cycle Review and Process Improvement."

She's here with Education Administrator Katherine Peterman, M.P.H., M.Ed.

We're kicking off our Epi Forum Seminar Series with professor and department chair, Samar El Khoudary, Ph.D., M.P.H., FAHA.

Join us on Tuesday, Aug. 18 at 12 p.m. to hear Dr. El Khoudary share her seminar, "Interdisciplinary Epidemiology in Practice: Insights from Women’s Cardiovascular Health."

Light refreshments will be served so consider joining in person at Capitol Square, 830 E Main St., Room 644.
Or join on Zoom by registering here: https://epidemiology.vcu.edu/seminar/

"During the past year, we advanced our accreditation process, expanded our academic programs, strengthened our research enterprise, and deepened our partnerships across VCU, Richmond and Virginia. I am incredibly proud of what our relatively young School has accomplished while continuing to define who we are and what we want to become," said Monica Swahn, Ph.D., M.P.H., dean of the School of Public Health.

It's clearly been a big year for . Since we just marked one year with Dr. Swahn as dean, we highlight her reflections on the past year and our plans for the years ahead in this blog.

One year in: Building the future of public health at VCU Dean Monica Swahn reflects on the School of Public Health’s growing momentum, VCU’s collaborative strengths and a vision for public health that is local, global and ready for the future.

Watch out! Construction ahead 🚧

Take note of these changes happening around campus so you know where to find what you need this semester:

⚠️ Hunton Student Center closed in May and some offices relocated to the VMI Building.
⚠️ The Health Sciences Library is relocating to Hunton's space later this year. Throughout the moving process, all VCU Libraries’ digital resources will be available around the clock for use in classrooms and clinical settings. Reference and research consultation and instruction will be offered throughout the transition.
⚠️ In December, the MCV Campus Recreation Center, an indoor recreation facility located in the Jonah L. Larrick Student Center, will temporarily close and will move to 610 N. 10th St.
⚠️ Larrick is slated for demolition in spring 2027 as it's the site for the new School of Dentistry building.

Get more details in the link below.

Big grant news!

Shaojun Tang, Ph.D., assistant professor in the VCU Biostatistics Department, just received one of three American Cancer Society Institutional Research Grants. These funds provide new investigators with necessary resources to more rapidly develop their research, generate pilot data and publish their results.

Dr. Tang's project is titled, "A Deep Learning Framework Integrating scRNA-seq and Histological Image Data for Precision Modeling of Oral Cancer."

Learn more about these grants and other awardees via VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center: https://www.masseycancercenter.org/research/intramural-funding/acs-institutional-research-grants/

We have news! 🗞️

Nicholas Thomson, Ph.D., will join in September as our first associate dean for research.

"Dr. Thomson understands how to bring people and disciplines together, support investigators at every stage of their careers and move strong ideas toward meaningful impact. His leadership will be central to building the research culture and infrastructure that will propel our School forward," said Dean Monica Swahn, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Get the full story in the comments below ⬇️

The recipients of the VCU 2026 Quest Fund have been announced and 's Erin Britton, Ph.D., M.P.H., is among them!

This unique, competitive internal grant, empowers faculty to launch pilot studies or restart research programs that drive cross-campus collaboration and innovation. You can learn more about this process and see all awardees at the link in the comments.