In 2016, public support for the Common Core State Standards and school vouchers continues to fall, with vouchers viewed more favorably by Democrats than Republicans. Support for charter schools remains steady, as does backing for the federal requirement that students be tested annually. Teachers think 10% of their colleagues are performing unsatisfactorily, but the percentage…

Researchers have identified a potential molecular mechanism through which lead, a pervasive environmental toxin, may harm neural stem cells and neurodevelopment in children. The study, from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, suggests that lead exposure can lead to oxidative stress—a process that can change cell behavior and has been linked with health problems—among…

Are there any ways of preventing or delaying the development of Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of age-associated dementia? While several previously published studies have suggested a protective effect for cognitive activities such as reading, playing games, or attending cultural events, questions have been raised about whether these studies reveal a real cause-and-effect relationship or…

Henry Louis Gates Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Research Institute at the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research, has welcomed twenty-four Fellows for the 2016-2017 academic year. “We are delighted to welcome one of our most distinguished and diverse classes of W.E.B. Du Bois Research Institute…

The Harvard Initiative for Learning and Teaching (HILT) annual conference is an event designed to engage Harvard faculty (and some students and academic professionals) in a University-level dialogue about teaching and learning innovation. This year’s event will showcase varied interactive instructional approaches and considerations for Harvard in an evolving education landscape. See the full conference program and…

Four Richard L. and Ronay A. Menschel Senior Leadership Fellows will join the Division of Policy Translation and Leadership Development at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health this academic year. Each fellow will teach a course during the term that he or she is at the School. Dr. Muhammad Pate, M.D., Nigeria’s former minister of state…

Heat waves are becoming more common, but the number of hospital admissions for heat stroke has declined significantly in the United States in recent years, according to a new study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health published in the journal Environmental Health. In one of the largest studies of its kind, researchers examined…

People who work in “green” offices that are well-ventilated and have low levels of indoor pollutants and carbon dioxide may have significantly better cognitive function than people working in more traditional office environments, according to a recent study from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Center for Health and the Global Environment (CHGE), SUNY Upstate…

The rate of cigarette smoking among U.S. adults has declined substantially during the presidency of Barack Obama, according an article published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Author Michael Fiore, M.P.H. ’85, writes that since 2009, smoking rates have dropped about 0.78 percentage points per year and are now at 15.3 percent. If this…

Children traumatized by war can still go on to lead normal lives, according to Theresa Betancourt, associate professor of child health and human rights and director of the research program on children and global adversity at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. In an interview with DW.com published Aug. 21, 2016, Betancourt said that…

Exposure to community violence may put the health of youth born with HIV infection at risk, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health researchers. They found that children and youth with perinatal HIV (PHIV) who reported exposure to violence in the past year—34 percent of the nearly 300…

A new collaborative effort by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Boston University School of Public Health aims to address the health effects of exposure to multiple negative environmental and social factors—such as air pollution, excess noise, lack of green space, and crime—in communities across Massachusetts. The Center for Research on Environmental and Social Stressors in…

Frequently experiencing the stress caused by racial discrimination—whether in the form of lower wages in the workplace than one’s peers or living in a poor neighborhood with a high rate of violence and little access to fresh fruits and vegetables—can significantly impact peoples’ mental and physical health, says David Williams, Florence Sprague Norman and Laura Smart…

Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) — which are less than 100 nanometers (one millionth of a millimeter) in diameter — can make the colors in digital printer inks pop and help sunscreens better protect against radiation, among many other applications. They may even help prevent infectious diseases. But as the technology becomes more widespread, questions remain about the potential…

When fast food joints are on every corner and fruits and vegetables are costly at the local market, how can parents make sure their children eat a healthy diet? How can low-income parents ensure their children get enough exercise when they don’t have a safe place to play outdoors? What’s the best way to limit…

A 20-year rise in cardiovascular disease (CVD) in China appears to have been spurred largely by increases in high blood pressure, according to a study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Increasing body mass index (BMI), decreasing physical activity, a high prevalence of smoking, and unhealthy diet have also contributed to the growing burden…

The task of addressing global societal, economic, and environmental issues from the perspective of one university campus in any part of the world seems a daunting exercise in futility. But when multifaith voices from around the world gather to talk about the common challenges facing students and institutions of higher education, the planet becomes a…

Former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel joins the 2016 class as a visiting fellow Cambridge, Mass. – Harvard’s Institute of Politics (IOP), at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, today announced the selection of the 2016 IOP fall resident and visiting fellows. “We have an extraordinary class of Fellows. They are the perfect guides…

Some bacteria, called fusobacteria, commonly found in the mouth, use a sugar-binding protein to stick to developing colorectal polyps and cancers, according to a new study by researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine. While certain fusobacteria have previously been shown to worsen colorectal cancer in animals…

A new free online course from Harvard University will explore the principles guiding humanitarian response to modern emergencies as well as the challenges faced by responders when providing aid. Humanitarian Response to Conflict and Disaster—offered through HarvardX, the University’s branch of the online education platform edX—begins Aug. 30, 2016. Already, more than 9,000 students from 175 countries…

Stunting—a condition in which children’s physical growth is lower-than-normal for their age—afflicts approximately 160 million children under age five around the world. It can diminish children’s cognitive development and put them at a higher risk for degenerative diseases. The condition is broadly understood to be a consequence of growing up undernourished and in poverty, but Harvard T.H.…

Two years after Medicaid coverage was expanded under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in their states, low-income adults in Kentucky and Arkansas received more primary and preventive care, made fewer emergency departments visits, and reported higher quality care and improved health compared with low-income adults in Texas, which did not expand Medicaid, according to a…

For the first time ever, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has issued a travel advisory to a part of the continental U.S.—a one-square-mile area in the Wynwood Arts District of Miami, where 14 people were infected with Zika after being bitten by local mosquitoes. CDC Director Thomas Frieden urged pregnant women who live and…