News Story

Optometry dean joins CPH faculty

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Posted 01/17/2012

Melvin Shipp, OD, DrPH, dean of The Ohio State University College of Optometry, has recently joined the College of Public Health Division of Health Services Management and Policy as a joint professor.

“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Shipp into the Division of Health Services Management and Policy. He has a long standing interest in health policy and the tremendous potential to influence public health policy nationally and internationally,” said Allard Dembe, ScD, chair, Division of Health Services Management and Policy.

Dr. Shipp is president of the American Public Health Association (APHA) and has been an active member of APHA for more than 25 years, serving in a variety of leadership positions.

Shipp has advised several federal institutions, notably, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the National Eye Institute (NEI) of the National Institutes of Health. In 2006, he co-chaired the development of a CDC-sponsored vision health initiative, “Improving the Nation's Vision Health: A Coordinated Public Health Approach.”

Shipp is a fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and a diplomate of the academy's Public Health and Environmental Optometry Section, chairing the Section from 1999-2001. He is a past president of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry and is a member of the national board of directors of Prevent Blindness America.

Shipp earned his Doctor of Optometry from Indiana University, his Master of Public Health from Harvard University, and his Doctor of Public Health from the University of Michigan.