Baldwin
Wallace
University
has
named
Dr.
Swagata
Banik
as
dean
of
graduate
studies
and
research.
His
appointment
began
on
July
1.
BW first hired Banik nine years ago to develop a new undergraduate public health major. He has since led the program through significant growth in enrollment as professor and chair of the BW Department of Public Health & Prevention Science.
"Under Dr. Banik's leadership, the undergraduate program has become an exemplar of faculty-undergraduate collaborative research in the area of population health," said BW Provost Stephen Stahl. "In addition to establishing a successful undergraduate program, he was instrumental in developing BW's relationship with the MetroHealth System that resulted in our Master of Public Health (MPH)."
As
the
new
dean
of
graduate
studies
and
research,
Banik
will
be
responsible
for
the
University's
growing
portfolio
of
graduate
programs
and
sponsored
research.
While BW has long been recognized for excellent graduate programs in business and education, along with newer health care-related graduate degrees, Banik is charged with developing leading-edge certificate and degree programs that meet the needs of Northeast Ohio.
"Specifically, he will nurture the School of Business in its ongoing evolution to stackable certificates and flexible MBA delivery and specializations," Stahl says.
BW also sees growth potential in newer business offerings such as the Master of Accountancy and specializations in sport and hospitality management in concert with regional and international partners in Brazil, China and India.
Banik
will
also
work
to
support
and
enhance
thriving
graduate
programs
in
education
and
health
sciences.
In recent years, BW added education graduate programs in school and district leadership and STEM teaching, along with health sciences graduate programs in physician assistant (PA) and speech-language pathology (SLP), which have notched the highest board passage rates in the state.
As BW builds on that record of excellence and establishes new programs in health sciences, Stahl says Banik is charged with increasing international engagement and regional collaboration. "In particular, BW looks to Dr. Banik to build all of these programs in partnership with Northeast Ohio agencies, organizations, industries and municipalities."
Banik
is
a
well-respected
scientist
with
ongoing
research
projects
in
the
U.S.
as
well
as
in
Bangladesh,
India
and
Nepal,
all
backed
by
highly
regarded
public
and
private
funders
such
as
the
National
Institutes
of
Health
(NIH)
and
others.
His
focus
is
on
community-based
approaches
to
the
mitigation
of
health
disparities.
"Dr. Banik is a natural fit to oversee research activities in his new role, as well," says Stahl. "A hallmark of the public health major at BW is the high degree of involvement of undergraduate students in original research and the success of these students in getting these works published in peer-reviewed journals."
Banik is the founding director of the Center for Health Disparities Research and Education at BW. The Center promotes education and research to address public health issues throughout Northeast Ohio and will house a new collaborative U.S. Corporation of National and Community Service (CNCS)-funded AmeriCorps grant written by Banik and colleagues at partner institutions.
