Tulane University announced that Celia Scott Weatherhead, a generous benefactor who has donated more than $160 million to the university, is the new namesake of the university’s graduate school of public health. Weatherhead, a 1965 graduate of Tulane’s Newcomb College, made this significant contribution to support the institution in becoming one of the leading public health schools globally. The exact amount of her recent donation was not disclosed, but it is expected to be substantial in aiding the school’s growth and development.
Her and her late husband Albert’s cumulative contributions over the years constitute the largest sum ever received by the university. This latest gift will contribute to the expansion of the school’s campus in downtown New Orleans and enhance research funding, with the aim of establishing it as the top school of its kind in the United States and one of the best worldwide. The Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, founded in 1912, focuses on various research and educational areas such as biostatistics, maternal and child health, epidemiology, nutrition, health policy, clinical research, environmental health sciences, and violence prevention.
Thomas LaVeist, the dean of what is now named Tulane’s Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, expressed gratitude for Weatherhead’s transformative donation, stating that it will significantly advance research on critical diseases and complex global issues. The contribution will also equip future generations of students with the necessary skills and knowledge to make a positive impact on the world. Weatherhead, who has previously served on Tulane’s governing body, currently sits on the Public Health Dean’s Advisory Council, the school’s top advisory board.