Columbia Street Lecture

This annual lecture began in 2021 to inspire, interrogate, and explore the intersection of the ideas of healthcare and public health, and to spur actions that move these ideas forward together. This lectureship was created by donations to honor the career of Dr. Russell Harris, an internationally renowned expert in prevention who, with others, helped educate a generation of MD-MPH students.  Dr. Harris wanted the lecture to honor all faculty and students who have walked back and forth across Columbia Street over the years to bridge the worlds of healthcare and public health.

The Columbia Street Lecture is inspired by the main north/south corridor through campus. Columbia Street separates the Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health at UNC.  For several decades, medical, nursing, and public health faculty and students have crossed Columbia Street to bring the fields together.  At UNC, we pride ourselves in the research collaborations and training that have resulted from crossing Columbia Street, yet we know there are more ways we can work to bring these two fields together.

Prior Lectures

2021  Steven Woolf, MD, MPH, Professor C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Distinguished Chair in Population Health and Health Equity Director Emeritus and Senior Advisor, VCU Center on Society and Health.  View 2021 lecture here. 

2022 Monica R. McLemore RN, MPH, PhD, FAAN, Professor in the Child, Family, and Population Health Department and Interim Director for the Center for Anti-Racism in Nursing, University of   Washington School of Nursing. View 2022 lecture here.