LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health has two new department chairs.

Ann Chou, Ph.D., MPH, joined UAMS as professor and chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management. Alexandra Marshall, Ph.D., MPH, also was named  chair of the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education. Both appointments were effective Aug. 1.

Chou comes to UAMS from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, where she served as a professor in the Department of Family and Preventative Medicine. Chou previously held faculty positions at the University of California, Berkley; the University of California, Los Angeles; the University of Southern California; and Indiana University-Purdue University. Chou earned bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and Asian studies at Harvard University, a Master of Public Health degree at Yale University, and a Master of Arts degree and a doctorate from the University of California, Berkley.

                                                           Ann Chou, Ph.D

As a researcher, Chou has received grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

“Dr. Chou will provide a new approach to Health Policy and Management,” said Mark Williams, Ph.D., dean of the college. “She has extensive experience working with esteemed organizations, such as the Veterans Administration.”

An associate professor in the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, Marshall is also an alumna of the college having earned a Master of Public Health degree from UAMS before gaining a doctorate in health behavior with minors in adolescent development and human sexuality from Indiana University. Marshall was a faculty member at the University of Central Arkansas before coming to UAMS in 2014. Marshall has focused much of her research on community-engaged approaches to addressing health care disparities among sexual and gender minority populations. She has also led several research projects addressing health disparities among marginalized and underserved groups with funding from the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute, the National Institutes of Health and HRSA.          

“Marshall is a native Arkansan who’s been with the College of Public Health since 2014,” Williams said. “She will bring a fresh direction to the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education and lead the department’s research and education mission in new directions.”          

Williams said he is excited about how Marshall and Chou will further the goals of the college while expanding the impact of their respective departments.  

                                                         Alexandra Marshall, Ph.D.

“Department chairs in the College of Public Health creatively direct their departments and search for solutions to Arkansas’ infectious and chronic disease issues,” Williams said. “The college’s faculty, staff and students dedicate themselves to serving Arkansans through public health research, education and service. I’m eager to work alongside our two new department chairs as they build upon that standard.”

The Department of Health Policy and Management strives to upgrade the health and well-being of Arkansans by generating, disseminating and applying the evidence needed for sound policy and managerial decision-making within the health system.

The Department of Health Behavior and Health Education aims to improve individual and population health through research, workforce training and community-based programs that promote healthy behaviors.