On June 30, Carolyn C. Meltzer, MD, dean of the Keck School of Medicine of USC, announced the appointment of Ricky N. Bluthenthal, PhD, as chair of the Department of Population and Public Health Sciences (PPHS), effective July 1, 2025. Bluthenthal has served as interim chair since July 1, 2024.

Bluthenthal is a Distinguished Professor of PPHS whose expertise spans a broad range of research disciplines, including clinical psychology, sociology, harm reduction and community-based behavioral interventions to mitigate health disparities. He has also served as the Keck School’s inaugural associate dean for social justice and as director of the Justice through Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Well-Being and Social Transformation (JEDI-WeST) program.

Bluthenthal’s numerous awards include: the John P. McGovern Award for Excellence in Medical Education from the Association for Multidisciplinary Education & Research in Substance Use & Addiction; the William Foote Whyte Distinguished Career Award from the Sociological Practice & Public Sociology section and the Senior Scholar Award from the Drugs and Society section of the American Sociological Association; the Distinguished Scientific Contributions to Public Interest from the American Psychological Association; and the Distinguished Social Sciences Alumni Award from the Social Sciences Division of the University of California Santa Cruz.

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