Search for:

Mission

PSY student from Exec. Summary

The College of Health and Human Sciences prepares scholars, develops leaders, translates theory to practice and advances knowledge of human behavior, health and quality of life.

Key Characteristics:

  • An interdisciplinary environment for discovery, learning and engagement
  • Faculty and graduates who are leaders in health and human sciences
  • Research that advances knowledge and is responsive to ever-changing conditions
  • Applications of knowledge to improve people’s well-being
  • Engagement with diverse constituencies and communities to address a broad spectrum of human needs

Vision

Our college’s people and programs have an increasingly positive impact on the behavior, health and quality of life of people.

We Make Lives Better.

Our people, academic programs, research and engagement efforts will focus on the following areas, all in the service of improving human health and quality of life.

Developmental Health and Wellness: The College of Health and Human Sciences promotes optimal development across the lifespan. We aim to help all individuals thrive physically, socially, emotionally, intellectually, environmentally, occupationally, financially and cognitively. For example:

  • Understanding how biological, behavioral, social and environmental factors protect or threaten health and mitigate or contribute to risk for adverse clinical outcomes.
  • Identifying how families can support healthy development, resilience, disease prevention and mental health.
  • Designing and evaluating the efficacy of interventions for children with developmental, behavioral and communication disorders, and advancing methods for ensuring effective education of children and adolescents.
  • Determining how relationships can foster optimal development across the lifespan.

Healthy Lifestyles and Vital Longevity: We promote optimal aging, including prevention of chronic disease and disability, the treatment of diseases of aging, caring for individuals with chronic disease and disability, and enhancing quality of life. We develop new technologies, therapies and applications to enhance healthy aging, well-being, relationships and longevity in all communities and in the workplace. We seek to understand how lifestyle, dietary and environmental choices impact health and longevity. For example:

  • Promoting healthy lifestyles, preventive/protective health-enhancing strategies, and treatment for infectious and chronic diseases and age-related disabilities and conditions.
  • Establishing how environmental, recreational, occupational or behavioral exposures may influence or cause disability or disease.
  • Defining genetic and biologic mechanisms of neurological disease and diseases of aging, along with underlying social, cultural and structural determinants of disease onset and progression.
  • Understanding the impact of infectious and chronic disease, neurologic injuries and military service on the long-term health of individuals and families, including mental health.

Sustainable and Thriving Communities and Organizations: We focus on encouraging sustainable and thriving organizations and communities, locally and globally. We seek to reduce health and wealth disparities, support the development of diverse and inclusive communities, and ensure the long-term health of the environment. We foster hospitality, inclusion and resilience among all individuals and communities from all backgrounds. For example:

  • Establishing methods to reduce social biases, food insecurity, systemic inequalities and health disparities and their consequences.
  • Detecting and countering risk and mechanisms for infectious disease spread in local and global contexts.
  • Ensuring sustainable, accessible, high quality and cost-effective healthcare organizations and systems of care.
  • Determining and disseminating methods for sustainable protection of the earth’s environment, with special emphasis on tourism and food policies and practices.
  • Promoting the adoption of policies and practices that support healthy lifestyles within Indiana, the United States and globally.