A. Blake Waters, PhD, MPA

Dr. Waters is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, Division of Public Health. His research and teaching emphasis is in the improvement of public administration processes and procedures as a means of reducing health risk factors. He has experience teaching both undergraduate and graduate level courses. He joined the faculty in July, 2019 after teaching for 10 years as an adjunct professor.

Prior to coming to the University of Utah, Dr. Waters was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Health at Utah Valley University where he chaired/served on numerous community and university committees including Outcomes Evaluation, Faculty Search, Public and Community Health Research, Writing Enriched, and Accreditation committees. He has served as a member of the Faculty Senate. He was appointed to assist the Associate Dean in the College of Health and Public Service in developing and evaluating a standard method of program improvement and assessment. Dr. Waters oversaw the Health Services Administration Advisory Board and was elected by his peers to serve on the UVU Writing Enriched Committee.

Prior to joining UVU, Dr. Waters was employed as a health data analyst/program planner for the Salt Lake County Health Department. During his 28 years with the Health Department he led many programs in various roles. He developed innumerable procedures, policies, and training curriculum. Dr. Waters was instrumental in developing and managing multiple programs that earned national and international recognition. He developed the first diesel emission control program in the nation which served as a template for programs throughout the nation and worldwide including Puerto Rico, Canada and China. His work with developing and assessing improvements in restaurant inspection protocols was recognized internationally and adopted by numerous agencies throughout the country.

Dr. Waters made significant contributions to the Salt Lake County Health Department. He served as chair of the Incentive Award Committee, Performance Evaluation Revision Committee, Upper Management Training Team and the Employee Value Committee. He also served as a member of the Career Ladder Promotion Standards Committee, Employee Issues Committee, and the Organizational Development Committee. These committees were instrumental in changing the culture of the Health Department and in improving employee retention and morale which was vital to increasing the impact of Health Department programs on the community.

As first author, Dr. Waters is the author of several journal feature articles related to improving public health processes including articles published in the Journal of Environmental Health (JEH). Two of his articles served as feature articles in the JEH, Examination of the Association Between Announced Restaurant Inspections and Inspection Scores and Impact of Internet Posting of Restaurant Inspection Scores on Critical Inspections. He has presented his research at local and national conferences and association meetings including the National Environmental Health Association Conference and the National I/M Solutions Conference.

Dr. Waters graduated Cum Laude from the University of Utah School of Medicine in Environmental Health, earned a Master of Public Administration degree and PhD in Public Health from the University of Utah. He was accepted into numerous honor societies including Delta Omega Honor Society in Public Health and Pi Alpha Alpha National Honor Society in Public Administration.

Throughout his career, Dr. Waters has received numerous awards and recognitions for his service and achievements including the Samuel J. Crumbine Consumer Protection Award for Excellence in Food Protection (2012) and the Salt Lake County Health Department Vision Award (2015).

Research Statement

The improvement of public administration processes and procedures as a means of reducing health risk factors.

Selected Publications