Purpose
The TDH Academic Health Department (AHD) provides opportunities for students, faculty, and academic institutions to partner with the Tennessee Department of Health. The AHD centrally manages student experiences including internships, fellowships, medical residencies, and collaborative projects. The goal of the AHD is to engage students, educators, and new graduates in meaningful practice to protect and improve the health and well-being of people in Tennessee.
What We Do
Education: Engaging with timely, relevant topics to increase knowledge and skills. This two-way communication contributes to both Workforce Development and faculty connection with practitioners.
Relationship-building: Networking among practitioners, faculty, and students in areas of mutual interest builds and extends trust.
Practice-focused research: Relevant research opportunities are identified as stakeholders discuss needs, emphasizing the iterative cycle where research translates to practice and practice informs research.
Improving the public’s health: The ultimate goal is to ensure that prevention interventions are supported by science and effective in practice in order to improve the public’s health. This motive drives all other outcomes.
| Focus Areas | Services Offered |
| Service Learning | Internships |
| Practice Experience | Fellowships |
| Workforce Pipeline Development | Shadowing |
| Institutional Engagement | Scholarships |
| Continuing Education | Classroom Visits |
| Connections to Research Opportunities | Expert TDH Staff Lectures |
| Exchange of Faculty and Staff | Tours of TDH Facilities |
| Academic Meetings and Symposia | AHD Affiliation Agreements |
For students interested in a public health career, visit the Public Health Careers Explorer to see what could be a good fit for you!
Our Partnerships
Our partner organizations include the Tennessee Public Health Association, Health Occupations Students of America, and tnAchieves. Through these partnerships, we engage high schoolers, those looking to pursue a degree in public health, and those already in degree programs. We offer a number of scholarships to support conference attendance and higher education in health-related fields as part of our strategic mission to build a robust public health workforce.
Our Academic Health Department Advisory Committee
The AHDAC helps guide the strategic direction of the Tennessee Department of Health’s Academic Health Department in service to academic institutions, students, and the public health workforce including advisement on programming, goals, objectives, and sustainability. The AHDAC is composed of 11 faculty members representing public health programs at 11 Tennessee institutions of higher learning.