The National Library of Medicine began administering a $3.68 million grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to develop tomorrow’s leaders in public health informatics at four universities — Columbia, the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the University of Utah and the University of Washington.

Students at the sites will receive training in basic information science and public health principles, focused preparation in applying informatics to public health problems, and on-site experience with public health agencies. All four sites currently host informatics training programs supported by NLM, and the new public health program will build on this existing base of experience.

Graduates of the program are expected to pursue a variety of career tracks. Some will enter directly into governmental public health agencies, while others will conduct research and train future generations of public health information professionals.