Working/Functional Title
Associate/Full Professor Tenure System
Position Summary
The College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University (MSU) invites applications from well-funded senior or mid-career data scientists or biostatisticians for a tenured full-time research position (Associate or Full Professor) in the highly prolific and rapidly growing Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health in Flint, Michigan. This generous position offers a unique opportunity for an established researcher and biostatistician who is interested in supporting departmental research while also pursuing their own interests in implementation, intervention, or policy research in topics that are both relevant to Flint and beyond. These include equity, social determinants of health, behavioral health, healthy behaviors, chronic disease, maternal-child health, firearm violence, and environmental justice, among others. A $25 million gift from the Flint-based Charles Stewart Mott Foundation allows us to largely or fully guarantee salary coverage for researchers who are willing to move their research portfolios to MSU. Highly accomplished senior faculty may have the opportunity to receive the title of C. S. Mott Endowed Professor.
An innovative premise. Located in Flint, Michigan, the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health seeks to build on strong and energetic growth in research. Flint has a long history of community activism and involvement. It is one of the birthplaces of community-based participatory research (CBPR) and includes nationally recognized community pioneers and citizen scientists. For example, the first community representative to be President of the American Public Health Association in its 100+ year history, beginning her term in 2023, is a member of the Flint community. In 2011, the Flint community (including Flint-area hospitals) approached MSU with a proposal to create an academic Department of Public Health in Flint. Their idea was that the department would improve health through community-identified public health solutions, provide an economic driver for Flint, and lead the nation in health equity informed policy change. MSU agreed and took an unprecedented community- participatory approach, building the Flint community into the Department and its governance, including focus areas, priorities, and faculty to hire. Through 1000+ surveys and more than 100 interviews, community members identified the top public health needs of Flint, providing the areas of focus for the new unit, which began as a Division in 2015. Community members make up and continue to make up much of the faculty search committee tasked with hiring the best public health researchers in the country to address these issues. What began as a Division in 2015 became a Department in 2022, spurring a new phase of growth and development.
This radical experiment in community-partnered departmental administration has been wildly successful both in funding and in real-world impact. Departmental faculty have obtained over $200 million in extramural funding in areas of high importance originally identified by the Flint community, including health equity, social determinants of health (e.g., violence, safety, the built environment, education, employment), behavioral health (e.g., mental health and substance use), healthy behaviors (e.g., screening/prevention), and chronic disease. Recent events have also highlighted maternal-child health and environmental justice. Primary research methodologies are action-oriented: implementation science (including sustainment), dissemination and communication, intervention and services research, and research to change health policy. The Department also includes three health geographers whose work focuses on identifying and eliminating the effects of racism on the built environment. Community members are ready to work alongside researchers to improve conditions here, nationally, and globally. Among its many projects, the Department currently includes two NIH-funded Centers (one in maternal health equity and the other in suicide prevention) and the first state-wide unconditional and universal cash prescription program for pregnant/postpartum people and infants.
The current opportunity. Led by Founding Department Chair Jennifer Johnson, PhD, we seek to attract and generously support new research colleagues who are committed to conducting the high caliber, high impact, and community-partnered research that has come to characterize the department. To support this work, we are seeking one or more biostatisticians to assist with study design, data management and analysis, and training; and to contribute to transparent and accessible communication of findings to the Flint community and beyond. Areas of expected expertise include but are not limited to health economics, policy analysis, implementation science, geospatial analysis, biostatistics and research design, AI analytics, agent-based modeling, Bayesian modeling, causal inference, and measure development. We are seeking exceptional mid‐to‐advanced career investigators to fulfill this role while also pursuing their own research interests. These are tenured, full-time research, medical school faculty positions through which we can largely or fully guarantee salary coverage for researchers who are willing to move their research portfolio to MSU. There are no classroom teaching responsibilities but numerous opportunities for research mentorship if desired. In addition to biostatistics leadership, leadership opportunities in implementation science, in developing a health equity focused postdoctoral T32 training program, and in other areas are available. Because the Department is young, many things are possible.
Salaries are very competitive and the cost of living is low. Michigan offers a good quality of life, with many outdoor activities, more than 3,000 miles of Great Lakes shoreline (the longest freshwater coastline in the world), and a rich cultural heritage and diversity which includes Motown, Indigenous peoples, and the most Arab Americans of any U.S. state. Michigan has a rich history in the automobile industry and a thriving arts scene.
Michigan State University is an affirmative action/equal opportunity university. Our department is equity-focused. Candidates from diverse and minority backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply. To apply, please visit https://careers.msu.edu/en-us/job/520521/associatefull-professor-tenure-system. Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the positions are filled. Questions may be directed to Jennifer Johnson, PhD, Department Chair (JJohns@msu.edu), or Amber Pearson, PhD, Search Committee Chair, (apearson@msu.edu). Learn more about the Department at publichealth.msu.edu
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, age, disability or protected veteran status.
Required Degree
Doctorate -Public Health or related
Minimum Requirements
- PhD in Biostatistics, Data Science, Epidemiology, or related field.
Desired Qualifications
- Leadership experience in developing/overseeing a biostatistics or data core.
- Interest in health equity, social determinants of health, behavioral health, maternal-child health, or environmental justice.
- Experience mentoring junior investigators and trainees.
Required Application Materials
- Cover letter
- CV
- Names and contact information for 4 people who could serve as professional references.
Special Instructions
Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the positions are filled. Questions may be directed to Jennifer Johnson, PhD, Department Chair (JJohns@msu.edu), or Amber Pearson, PhD, MPH, Search Committee Chair, (apearson@msu.edu). Learn more about the Department at publichealth.msu.edu.
Review of Applications Begins On
01/19/2026
Website
publichealth.msu.edu
MSU Statement
Michigan State University has been advancing the common good with uncommon will for more than 160 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU pushes the boundaries of discovery and forges enduring partnerships to solve the most pressing global challenges while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.
