Our History

CGHE strives to advance global health equity through direct research, institutional capacity-building, and, especially, support for UVA students’ participation in meaningful global health research and engagement. We prepare students to become the next generation of global health leaders. To achieve this goal, we partner with institutions, faculty members, students, and communities across the globe, including in Virginia and the United States.

CGHE evolved from the Office of International Health, originally established in 1978 by Dr. Richard Guerrant and an original Rockefeller Foundation award. As such, CGHE may be one of the oldest university based centers of global health. The center's focus was never exclusively outside of our national boundaries but, rather, inclusive of our commitment to communities struggling with health disparities everywhere.

CGHE’s commitment to identifying and ending health disparities is a clear through-line in our research activities, capacity building, and collaborative activities. We believe that all disciplines can contribute to this effort. The CGHE University Scholar Awards are open to all undergraduate and graduate students on Grounds, supporting scholars from the Schools of Law, Medicine, CLAS, GSAS, Nursing, Batten, Curry, Education and Human Development, Architecture, Data Science, Commerce, and Batten.