About Us

Delta Omega is the honorary society for graduate students in public health. The Society was founded in 1924 at Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health. There are more than 100 chapters and 20,000 members throughout the world. Membership in Delta Omega reflects the dedication of an individual to increasing the quality of the field, as well as to the protection and advancement of the health of all people. The national office is located at the Association of Schools of Public Health in Washington, D.C. Any questions concerning Delta Omega can be sent to Executive Secretary Allison Foster at afoster@asph.org or visit the Delta Omega web page at www.deltaomega.org. For information about the Gamma Mu Chapter at West Virginia School of Public Health, contact Faculty Advisor Elizabeth Claydon.

The constitution and by-laws were adopted in 1927, and have been amended occasionally since. The National Council, composed of elected officers and representatives of each chapter, meets annually. The annual meeting includes a scientific, and a business program. It is usually held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the American Public Health Association. Each chapter conducts the principle Delta Omega activities. The chapters elect new members each year from three groups: students who are candidates for a graduate degree in public health, faculty members at the school of public health, and alumni actively engaged in public health work.

Since Delta Omega's establishment in 1924, the meaning and scope of public health has broadened tremendously. While it is still seriously concerned with problems of environmental sanitation and communicable disease control, public health action has come to embrace all aspects of health and disease in populations. These include the planning, organization, and support of health promotion, disease prevention, and medical care. Basic to modern public health are the social sciences as well as the natural sciences--both in the United States and internationally.