Our Bureau
St Bonaventure, NY
Swagata Banik, Ph.D., has been named the new dean of the Dennis R. DePerro School of Health Professions at St. Bonaventure University.
Banik, who serves as the Medical Mutual Endowed chair for Public Health and Population Health at Baldwin Wallace University in suburban Cleveland, was selected dean of the DePerro School after a national search; he begins work at SBU January 21.
A faculty member and academic administrator at Baldwin Wallace since 2011, Banik also held prominent roles as dean of Graduate Education and Research, director of the Center for Health Disparities Research and Education, and chair of the Department of Public Health and Prevention Sciences.
Banik said he’s “deeply grateful for the opportunity to join St. Bonaventure” as dean of the DePerro School. “The future of health and wellness lies in expanding access to care, eliminating disparities, and fostering culturally responsive institutions and providers who genuinely value and compassionately serve their communities,” he said.
“Inspired by Bonaventure’s mission of compassionate service, I am committed to creating a culture where service and compassion are at the heart of health care education, empowering our students to make a meaningful impact in the lives of those they serve,” he said.
An active scholar, Banik has published extensively, serves on editorial boards for leading journals, and holds leadership roles in various civic and professional organizations.
“People here who had a chance to meet him were so impressed with Dr. Banik, not only for his wide range of expertise in the health professions, but for the passion he conveyed when discussing the initiatives that matter most to him,” said Dr. David Hilmey, SBU’s provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. “His research on health disparities among marginalized communities couldn’t be better aligned with our Franciscan mission.”
Located in iconic Francis Hall, the School of Health Professions offers four undergraduate programs (Health Science, Public Health, RN to B.S. in Nursing, and a Dual Degree Nursing Program) and four graduate programs (Master of Public Health, Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, Master of Science in Occupational Therapy and Master’s Entry to Nursing Practice).
The nation’s first Franciscan university, St. Bonaventure University is a community committed to transforming the lives of the students inside and outside the classroom, inspiring in them a lifelong commitment to service and citizenship.
