Professor Wins Two Education Awards.
“I love seeing students get that ‘aha’ moment,” says Matthew Fox (SPH’02, ’07), professor of epidemiology and global health.
For his dedication to teaching and to the field of epidemiology, Fox recently received two awards: the 2020 Boston University Provost’s Scholar-Teacher Award and the Society for Epidemiologic Research’s (SER) Noel Weiss and Tom Koepsell Excellence in Education Award.
Fox has taught at the School of Public Health for nearly 20 years, and is also an alum of the school, receiving a Master of Public Health in epidemiology and biostatistics, as well as a Doctor of Science in epidemiology. He has taught several doctoral-level courses, including Advanced Epidemiology, Quantitative Bias Analysis Methods for Epidemiologic Research, Simulated Problems for Learning Epidemiology, and Novel Analytic Methods for Epidemiology.
The BU Provost’s Scholar-Teacher Award recognizes scholars who excel as teachers inside and outside the classroom, and who contribute to the art and science of teaching and learning.
In Fox’s award notification letter, the Provost’s Faculty Teaching Awards Committee said they selected Fox as this year’s recipient not only for his “outstanding teaching and scholarship,” but his “commitment to integrating the two, enhancing the challenge and rigor of the education we offer our students.”
The SER Excellence in Education Award is awarded each year to a member of SER who has made substantial contributions to the field of epidemiology through teaching, mentoring, and/or training. Fox has been a longtime member of SER, the oldest and largest epidemiology society in North America, and was elected to the board as a member-at-large in 2019. At SPH, he serves on the Faculty Development Committee and mentors junior faculty members, as well as doctoral students. He also teaches short courses at other institutions.
Fox says he is honored to receive both awards. “There’s so much I love about teaching,” he says. “I love elevating students, and I feel privileged to have the opportunity to learn from them and have them challenge me on things, which pushes me to learn more.”
Fox’s research interests focus on HIV treatment outcomes, infectious disease epidemiology of HIV and childhood pneumonia, and epidemiologic methods. He also serves as a deputy editor of the Journal of the International AIDS Society, and co-hosts the Free Associations podcast with Donald Thea, professor of global health, Christopher Gill, associate professor of global health, and Jennifer Rider, assistant professor of epidemiology.
He predicts that the coronavirus pandemic will spark interest in the field of infectious disease epidemiology as people broaden their understanding of the role and impact of epidemiology.
“I suspect that this pandemic will also change the curriculum for public health in general, not just epidemiology,” says Fox. “We will turn our attention to public health planning and infrastructure, preparedness and thinking through what needs to be in place for public health emergencies before they arrive, when they arrive, and as they are being mitigated.
“It’s a compelling example for the entirety of public health,” Fox says. “Every department within the School of Public Health will be able to contribute to this effort.”
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