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Alumni
Southern Spotlight
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Joseph B. McCormick ‘64
Regional Dean and James H. Steele Professor
U of Texas Houston School of Public Health
Brownsville, Texas
Talk about making a difference. Dr. Joseph McCormick ’64 has
been a leader in the fields of research when it comes to
communicable diseases. He has headed an epidemiology unit at the
Institut Pasteur in Paris where he worked on the epidemiology of
vaccines and vaccine preventable diseases. He’s also conducted
research on biosafety level 4 viruses such as Ebola. He’s been
heavily involved in the study of HIV/AIDS in Africa,
co-authoring numerous papers in major journals and established a
key point in the natural history of HIV infection in Africa, by
testing specimens saved in his lab from the 1976 Ebola outbreak,
including isolation of the oldest HIV virus. Joe lead the
original team that did the first AIDS investigation in Africa.
His history and expertise lead him to service as the assistant
to the director, division of HIV/AIDS at the Centers for Disease
Control. In the first 2 years of his tenure in Texas, he has
worked with colleagues to establish the first Hispanic Health
Research Center, funded by the NIH and focused on the health
issues of Hispanic people.
“Florida Southern was perfect for me. I received a great deal
of personal attention from the faculty, from my English
professor as a freshman to my chemistry and math teachers as a
senior. Classes were small, and for those like me who had no
clue what undergraduate college demands would be, the nurturing
and caring environment was ideal. All of these wonderful people
(professors) had profound and individual influences on my young
life, and prepared me for all that I have done. Interestingly,
it was a Florida Southern Alumna, Sue (Bennett) Colvert, my
piano teacher in Indiana, who suggested I consider FSC and who
helped me apply and gain a scholarship. Without her
encouragement, I would never have gone there, indeed might never
have gone to college at all.”
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