UMBC recognized for research, leadership in health policy

Two prominent national organizations have recognized UMBC faculty in recent weeks for their significant contributions to the fields of public health and gerontology. The awards are a reflection of the distinguished teaching, research, service, and leadership of two UMBC social sciences faculty in their areas of study and across disciplines.

Nancy Miller, professor of public policy, received the Philip G. Weiler Award for Leadership in Aging and Public Health from the American Public Health Association (APHA).

The award is presented to an outstanding person or organization who has made significant contributions to the field through policy, research, education, or service and has contributed to the Aging and Public Health Section through leadership activities or funding and policy initiatives.

“The Aging and Public Health Section of the American Public Health Association has provided exceptional opportunities for me, as well as my students, to develop as professionals in the field of aging,” says Miller. “I am extremely appreciative of the recognition provided by the section members in their selection of me to receive the Philip G. Weiler Award for Leadership in Aging and Public Health.”

Professor Miller has research interests in chronic disease, disability, and long-term care, with a particular focus on access to care. She has conducted extensive interdisciplinary health policy research through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and as a faculty member in the health policy track in the School of Public Policy at UMBC. She is a recipient of the University System of Maryland Regents Faculty Award for Excellence in Mentoring.

Kevin Eckert, professor in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Health Administration and Policy, was recently selected to receive a 2017 Administrative Leadership Honor from the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE).

The honor recognizes high-level college and university administrators who have made exceptional efforts and decisions in support of gerontology or geriatrics education. Eckert’s areas of study include cultural anthropology, anthropology of aging, long-term care, research design/qualitative methodologies, and senior’s housing and aging services. He is co-author of Inside Assisted Living: The Search for Home (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009) and is co-PI on a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to study “The Subjective Experience of Diabetes among Urban Older Adults.”

“I’m honored to receive this award and thank UMBC for the support it has provided to advance gerontology in higher education over the years,” says Eckert.

Read more about the American Public Health Association and the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education.