The Greenwall Fellowship Program in Bioethics and Health Policy
Supported by the Greenwall Foundation General Background
The Greenwall Fellowship Program in Bioethics and Health Policy provides an unparalleled opportunity for fellowship and faculty development training in bioethics and health policy. It is a collaborative effort of The Johns Hopkins University (JHU) and Georgetown University (GU). Together, JHU and GU constitute one of the largest and most diverse faculty in bioethics anywhere. At JHU, Greenwall Fellows work with faculty of the Berman Institute, the Philosophy Department, the School of Medicine, and the Bloomberg School of Public Health. At Georgetown, Fellows work with faculty of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, the Philosophy Department, and the Law Center. The Greenwall Fellowship program and its faculty cover much of the waterfront of issues and methodologies in bioethics, from ethics and advances in biomedical science, to ethics and public health and health policy, to ethics and clinical care. The defining focus of the Program, however, is bioethics and public policy. Although we provide fellows who wish an exposure to clinical medical ethics with clinically oriented opportunities, our primary emphasis is the intersection of scholarship in bioethics with the formation and evaluation of public policy. 
Program of Study
Greenwall Postgraduate Fellows commit to a two-year program of study and experiential learning tailored to their particular interests and backgrounds. The program includes: A. Seminars All Greenwall Fellows participate in a specially designed, year-long, topical seminar featuring distinguished guest faculty as well as faculty of JHU and GU, and in a course on methods in bioethics taught by Tom Beauchamp (GU). As the field of bioethics is interdisciplinary, each class of Greenwall Fellows is interdisciplinary by design. We take this interdisciplinarity into account when designing seminars. Faculty are invited to expose Greenwall Fellows to multiple perspectives and to engage them in cross-disciplinary conversation. B. Summer Internship In keeping with the focus on public policy, a distinctive feature of the Greenwall Fellowship Program is the summer policy internship. Fellows have had extraordinary experiences working on the staffs of members of Congress (Kennedy, Clinton, Jeffords, Hatch, and Waxman), at federal agencies (FDA, USDA, CDC, CMS, and DHHS), at the Institute of Medicine, and the Bioethics Institute Advisory Commission. C. Research Opportunities The Greenwall Fellowship Program is designed for people who are ready to conduct their own research in a supportive and mentored environment. The objective is for fellows to pursue their scholarly agendas as their interests in bioethics mature. We do not discourage, but neither expect nor in all cases encourage fellows to work on the research projects of faculty. In this regard, we do not follow the “laboratory” model of fellowship training in which fellows learn by advancing the work of their lab director. Instead, we focus on helping fellows to identify and concentrate on their own research objectives, establish realistic time tables for the conduct of their work, and find appropriate faculty to serve as critical readers and mentors. We do offer fellows opportunities to work with faculty on large collaborative, interdisciplinary projects, opportunities that fellows pursue if they find them of interest. For example, fellows have participated in interdisciplinary projects in genetic screening, health and human rights, embryonic stem cell research, personal identity and neuroscience, medical privacy, Medicare reform, and reproductive genetics. D. Teaching Opportunities Greenwall Fellows have the opportunity to teach in relevant divisions of both JHU and GU. Fellows frequently teach in their field of origin. For example, philosopher fellows teach regularly in the GU and JHU philosophy departments, law fellows teach at GU Law Center, and medicine fellows at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. In addition, however, the Fellowship program facilitates opportunities for fellows to teach outside of their primary discipline. Philosophy and law fellows have, for example, taught bioethics courses to medical and public health students, an attractive option to those fellows who are interested in gaining experience teaching in an interdisciplinary environment. Teaching is not, however, a requirement of the Program, and some fellows elect not to teach during their fellowship years.
Postgraduate Fellowship Stipend
Each postgraduate fellow will receive a total financial package for two years of $111,650. With the approval of the Greenwall Fellowship faculty, fellows will allocate the support between stipend and tuition depending on their interests and needs. In addition, the Greenwall Postgraduate Fellowship includes health insurance for both years.
Executive Committee
The Greenwall Fellowship Program is directed by Ruth R. Faden, Ph.D., M.P.H., Philip Franklin Wagley Professor of Biomedical Ethics and Director of The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics. The Greenwall Fellowship Executive Committee includes the following faculty: - Tom L. Beauchamp, Ph.D., Professor of Philosophy and Senior Research Scholar, Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University;
- M. Gregg Bloche, M.D., J.D., Professor of law, Georgetown University Law Center;
- Gail Geller, Sc.D., M.H.S., Associate Professor, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Core faculty, Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics;
- Maria Merritt, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public health; Core faculty, Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics; and
- Jeremy Sugarman, M.D., M.P.H., M.A., Harvey M. Meyerhoff Professor of Bioethics and Medicine, Deputy Director for Medicine, Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics.
Academic Programs Available to Postgraduate Greenwall Fellows
In addition to the academic program of the Greenwall Fellowship previously described, Greenwall Fellows also have the option of applying to and participating in other academic and degree programs at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Georgetown University. Greenwall Fellowship applicants are encouraged to apply first to the Greenwall Fellowship Program, and then, if accepted, to consult with Greenwall Fellowship faculty before applying to other academic programs. Greenwall Fellowship awards do not automatically guarantee acceptance into these academic programs. Greenwall Fellows must meet the application requirements of and be accepted through the usual admissions process of each program. The following academic programs are available to Postgraduate Greenwall Fellows: Masters of Public Health
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health The overall objective of the M.P.H. program is to prepare public health professionals to draw on the knowledge and skills from a variety of disciplines to define, critically assess, and resolve public health problems. The core curriculum includes grounding in: - the philosophical and historical basis of public health, conveying the concept of concern for the health of populations;
- the statistical basis of public health, including quantitative reasoning, quantitative problem-solving, computer applications and demography;
- the epidemiological basis of public health;
- the social and behavioral aspects of public health programs;
- the environmental science basis of public health;
- the biological basis of public health;
- theory of management of health services; and
- public health practice.
Greenwall Fellows may apply to this program during the first term in the fall and begin taking academic courses for credit immediately upon beginning the fellowship.
Masters of Philosophy in Bioethics
Georgetown University Georgetown University's Department of Philosophy aims to equip its students both with technical skills in philosophy - logical, linguistic, exegetical and phenomenological - and with thorough knowledge of the great traditions of Western philosophy - ancient, medieval, modern and contemporary. The deliberately pluralistic complexion of the Department is intended to enhance the student's appreciation and practice of philosophy as a discipline of dialogue and dialectic among competing positions, approaches, and schools. Applicants to this program should have a strong background in philosophy and should already have established their credentials in an area of interest to bioethics (e.g. medicine, law). GRE scores are required, and the submission of a writing sample and several letters of recommendation from philosophers is strongly advised. Requirements for the degree include 30 credits of course work (or 24 credits plus a masters thesis); at least three bioethics courses and three non-applied ethics courses; a clinical practicum if the student has insufficient clinical experience; and final examinations in proseminars that serve as comprehensive exams. Students normally carry nine hours per semester and are in residence about 1 1/2 years. Interested Greenwall Fellows are encouraged to apply during the fall (by November 1) of the first year of the fellowship for January admission into the Masters of Philosophy degree program. However, Greenwall applicants may apply simultaneously for a Greenwall Fellowship and for September admission to the Masters of Philosophy program at Georgetown University. Two separate applications are required. In each application, specify that you are applying to both programs simultaneously, and also whether you wish to attend one program in the event you are not accepted into the other. Information on the admission process and application materials for the Masters of Philosophy at Georgetown are available from and must be returned directly to The Department of Philosophy, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057. General Internal Medicine Fellowship,
School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medicine Some of our past M.D. fellows have coordinated their Greenwall Fellowship with their GIM Fellowship. For more information: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/gim/fellowship/index.html
10-Year History
Our fellows have an impressive publication record. As a result of research done while a fellow, Greenwall Fellows have published in such journals as the New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of the American Medical Association, Health Affairs, Philosophy and Public Affairs, Ethics, Philosophical Studies, Health Economics, Journal of Social Philosophy, Journal of Clinical Ethics, Journal of Medical Ethics, Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics, Jurimetrics, Health Care Analysis, American Journal of Bioethics, Fertility and Sterility, Hastings Center Report, Journal of General Internal Medicine, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, Yale Journal of Health Policy, Law and Ethics, Indiana Health Law Review, University of North Carolina Las Review, American Journal of Law and Medicine, and Milbank Quarterly. Fellows have also contributed essays to books published by such presses as Cornell, University of Michigan, and Oxford University. One fellow completed a book forthcoming from Routledge. We have 10 years experience training Greenwall Fellows and our alumni are among the next generation of leaders in bioethics at Universities throughout the United States, and beyond. Former Greenwall Fellows are now on the faculty of the University of California - San Francisco, Duke, Ohio State University, George Washington University, University of South Carolina, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, University of Edinburgh, Johns Hopkins University (3 former fellows), University of Minnesota (2 former fellows), Moravian College and the University of Delaware.
How to Apply for the Postdoctoral Greenwall Fellowship in Bioethics and Health Policy
Most Fellows have doctoral degrees in medicine (M.D.), philosophy (Ph.D.) or law (J.D. or LL.B.). On occasion, we have accepted Fellows with doctoral degrees in public health, biomedical sciences, religious studies, social sciences, nursing or a related field. To apply, please send the following to the Greenwall Fellowship Office address listed below: - a cover letter,
- a personal statement describing why you want to be a Greenwall Fellow,
- a copy of your CV,
- three letters of reference,
- official copies of undergraduate and graduate/professional school transcripts, and
- copies of your written and/or published work
The Greenwall Fellowship Program in Bioethics and Health Policy
The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics
100 North Charles Street
Suite 740
Baltimore, MD 21201
The Selection Process
The Greenwall Fellowship Program is intended for people who are early in their careers. Greenwall applicants are subdivided by discipline (medicine, philosophy and law) and reviewed by a selection committee composed of program faculty with relevant disciplinary backgrounds. Typically, only one Fellow per year is accepted from each discipline. Applicants from fields other than law, medicine and philosophy are reviewed on an ad hoc basis. Finalists for the philosophy position are usually interviewed at the annual meeting of the American Philosophical Association’s Eastern Division. Therefore, the application deadline for philosophy candidates is December 1st. Finalists for the other two positions are reviewed on a rolling basis and are generally invited to Johns Hopkins for personal interviews. Selection decisions for all applicants are based on academic record and ability, demonstrated interest in bioethics and public policy, references, and the personal statements. Questions concerning eligibility should be directed to the Program’s Deputy Directors as follows: Law and philosophy candidates should contact Dr. Maria Merritt (mmerritt@jhsph.edu); All other candidates should contact Dr. Gail Geller (ggeller@jhmi.edu).
The Application and Selection Schedule
The deadline to apply for the Fellowship is December 1st of the year prior to the year the applicant wishes to begin the Fellowship. For instance, applicants wishing to begin the Fellowship in September 2008 must send in their applications no later than December 1, 2007. Applications will be accepted up to two years before the date applicants hope to begin the Fellowship.
NOTE TO PROSPECTIVE PHYSICIAN-APPLICANTS: We are only accepting applications for the Fall of 2009. You can either submit your application now for consideration among next year’s pool of applicants, or wait for the Dec. 1, 2008 deadline. For more information, please contact: Greenwall Fellowship Program
Margie Cummins, Greenwall Fellowship Program Coordinator
410-502-6900
fellows@jhsph.edu |
