Dolinoy, Peterson reappointed as department chairs at Michigan Public Health
Today, the University of Michigan Board of Regents approved the reappointments of two key leaders at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Karen E. Peterson will extend her tenure as chair of the Department of Nutritional Sciences, and Dana Dolinoy as chair for the Department of Environmental Health Sciences. Both chairs are set to serve additional three-year terms starting September 1, 2024.
The regents also approved Peterson for a five-year term as the Stanley M. Garn Collegiate Professor of Nutritional Sciences, reflecting her commitment to pioneering research in nutritional sciences and global public health and uncovering how toxicants and diet interact to impact growth, maturation and the cardiometabolic risk across the life course. Her career, which includes fostering the development of nutrition professionals through innovative programs, emphasizes her contributions to every facet of academic life and her role in shaping the future of community health initiatives. Peterson was appointed inaugural chair of the Department of Nutritional Sciences in 2015.
Dolinoy, who was named the NSF International Chair of Environmental Health Sciences in 2017, is renowned for her exceptional teaching and research. In 2021, she was one of the inaugural recipients of the Mid-career Biosciences Faculty Achievement Recognition (MBioFAR) award from the University of Michigan Biosciences Initiative, which awards mid-career faculty with discretionary funding to facilitate innovative and higher-risk research that might not otherwise be supported by conventional granting agencies. Her work has been instrumental in advancing understanding of the epigenetic mechanisms influencing health, and how environmental factors play a role in gene expression and disease susceptibility. In addition, Dolinoy serves as the director of the Lifestage Environmental Exposures and Disease Center (M-LEEaD).
“Dana and Karen’s steadfast leadership and unwavering commitment to excellence, innovation and collaboration have helped to advance teaching, research and service at Michigan Public Health and shape public health locally and globally,” said Dean F. DuBois Bowman. “I look forward to continuing to work with them to lead our school into the future.”
The three-year chair terms are effective through August 31, 2027.
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