Pack comes to ETSU from West Virginia University School of Medicine where he was an associate professor in the department of community medicine and director of the Ph.D. programs in public health sciences. He holds B.S., M.P.H., and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where his dissertation study focused on explaining sexual risk behavior among youth in the criminal justice system. Pack later completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Emory University School of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
His research has been published in a variety of publications such as the Journal of HIV/AIDS Prevention in Children and Youth, Vaccine, Journal of Adolescent Health, American Journal of Health Behavior, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Pediatrics, Journal of Urban Health, Youth and Society, and the Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition. In addition, he is a reviewer for six journals and has made presentations at numerous national meetings.
Recently, his research has focused on prescription drug abuse in Appalachia. While at West Virginia University, he received a $1 million grant to launch a statewide prescription drug abuse hotline, and he also developed a community-based intervention program for prescription drug abuse in rural West Virginia.
Dr. Randy Wykoff, Dean of Public Health, said: I am deeply proud of the quality of the faculty in the college, and the opportunity to add someone of Robs experience, perspective, and enthusiasm builds on our capabilities in a truly exciting way.
In October 2007, the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) approved ETSUs request to establish a College of Public Health, one of only a few in the Appalachian region. The university was later accepted as an Associate Member of the Association of Schools of Public Health. ETSU is currently pursuing full accreditation for the college through CEPH.
