Former FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, International Public Health Leader, to Speak at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Class of 2022 Convocation

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health will hold its Class of 2022 Convocation Saturday, May 21, at 3:30 p.m. EDT. The first in-person Convocation in two years will be held at the Johns Hopkins University’s Homewood campus, on the Homewood Field, with a rain date of Sunday, May 22, at 9:30 a.m. This year’s keynote speaker is Margaret Hamburg, MD, an internationally recognized leader in public health who served as the 21st chair of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from 2009 to 2015. She currently serves as chair of the Commonwealth Fund Commission on a National Public Health System. The Commission aims to articulate a vision for reform of the U.S. public health infrastructure at the federal, state, and local levels. She served as New York City’s health commissioner from 1991 to 1997.

The event will also be streamed online.

Bloomberg School Class of 2022 graduates head out into the world as the COVID-19 pandemic advances into its third year. During their time as students, the new graduates witnessed the impact a pandemic has on individual lives, collective populations and health care systems—and matriculating public health students. The Class of 2022 demonstrated resiliency and resolve, many contributing to the pandemic response, others focusing on other urgent issues and research. As they pursue their professional lives—some as public health practitioners, others continuing their studies—the Class of 2022 will join a network of more than 27,000 alumni in over 150 countries.

The Convocation ceremony will also feature Ellen J. MacKenzie, PhD, ScM, dean of the Bloomberg School, and Bloomberg School student and faculty speakers. The Bloomberg School has been ranked the #1 school of public health by U.S. News & World Report since the magazine began ranking schools of public health in 1994.

Hamburg has held many distinguished health policy positions throughout her career. She recently retired as foreign secretary for the National Academy of Medicine and completed her terms as president and board chair of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. At the FDA, she worked to advance regulatory science, modernize the regulatory process, and globalize the agency. Prior to the FDA, she was founding vice president and senior scientist at the Nuclear Threat Initiative. Her other past positions include assistant secretary for planning and evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and assistant director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Hamburg earned her BA from Harvard College, her MD from Harvard Medical School, and completed her medical residency at Weill Cornell Medical Center. Among her many honors and recognitions, she is an elected member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the National Academy of Medicine. 

The Class of 2022 is the largest in the School’s history: 1,282 graduates from 67 countries, including the U.S. Of these, 105 will receive doctoral degrees and 1,177 will receive master’s degrees, including seven Master of Science in Nursing/Master of Public Health degrees conferred by the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. The final Class of 2022 graduate numbers will be released the week following Convocation.  

Media may quote from the comments and pull audio and video from the event.

• WHAT: 2022 Convocation for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
• WHEN: Saturday, May 21, at 3:30 p.m. EDT | Rain date: Sunday, May 22, at 9:30 a.m.
• WHERE: Homewood Field at the Homewood campus.
• MEDIA: Media interested in attending the event in person must register in advance. To register, contact Carly Kempler at [email protected]. Media can also view the Class of 2022 Convocation streamed online.
• SOCIAL MEDIA COVERAGE: To follow and participate in social media coverage of the Class of 2022 Virtual Convocation, use the hashtag #JHU2022. Twitter account: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health @JohnsHopkinsSPH

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