Sara Plaspohl, Dr.P.H. (’78, ’89, ’92, ’10)
2024 Alumni Award Winner – Talon Award
Dr. Sara S. Plaspohl is a native Savannahian and has accrued a professional career supporting the public health of the local community for more than 45 years. She received her A.S. in Dental Hygiene in 1978 from Armstrong State College, her B.S. in Dental Hygiene Education in 1989 from Armstrong State College, her Master of Health Sciences (M.H.S.) in 1992 from Georgia Southern University, and her Doctor of Public Health (Dr.P.H) with a concentration in Community Health Behavior and Education in 2010 from Georgia Southern University. She earned distinction as the first Dr.P.H. graduate of the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health at GSU, supporting qualification requirements for the new college to earn CEPH accreditation. She achieved certification in 2012 as a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES).
Her career began as a registered dental hygienist in 1978, delivering primary oral hygiene care in private dental practices. She then transitioned to a new career at Memorial Health University Medical Center (MHUMC) that started in 1994, beginning as a Market Research Analyst within Research and Business Development, advancing on to serve as Senior Market Research Analyst. In 1999, she joined Memorial’s Ethics and Compliance Division, serving first as the Institutional Review Board Administrator, followed by promotion to Research Ethics Officer for the 530-licensed bed tertiary care facility. She provided leadership and regulatory oversight for the protection of human subjects in 350+ clinical trials conducted at the institution. She achieved certification as a Certified IRB Manager (CIM) and Certified IRB Professional (CIP), enabling her to speak as a subject matter expert at national conferences and served as an external consultant for human subject protections programs within the U.S.
Shortly after beginning her work at MHUMC, Dr. Plaspohl also began teaching part-time for the Department of Health Sciences at Armstrong State College, teaching courses in epidemiology and biostatistics. In 2010, Dr. Plaspohl left Memorial to teach as a temporary instructor at Armstrong, followed by permanently joining the Department of Health Sciences as a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Health Sciences one year later. She served on numerous university, college, and departmental service committees. In 2012, she chaired Armstrong’s initiative to become one of the first tobacco-free universities within the state of Georgia, based upon her dissertation research experience pertaining to an assessment of tobacco-free policies at U.S. universities.
Her public health research agenda included the efficacy of school-located influenza vaccine programs and the historical impact of Spanish Influenza on the Savannah community in 1918. She became MPH Program Coordinator in 2013. She completed a Governor’s Teaching Fellowship in 2016 and earned tenure and promotion shortly after that. She served as interim Department Chair for Health Sciences and Kinesiology from 2018-2019, then advanced on to serve as Associate Dean for the Waters College of Health Professions from 2019 until retirement at the end of 2021, at which time she was granted the distinction of being Associate Dean Emeritus.
Within the local community, Dr. Plaspohl has served as a board member for the Chatham County Board of Health (2016-2020), Georgia Southern University Alumni Association (2018 to 2021), and Hospice Savannah (2020-present). She is a member of GSU’s JPHCOPH Development Council (2021 to present). Notable awards and recognition include the Georgia Public Health Association Barfield Award in 2013, Armstrong Atlantic State Notable Alumni Award in 2013, the Women’s Empowerment Award for Outstanding Armstrong State University Faculty in 2016, and the Armstrong Student Government Association Hero Award in 2017.
Throughout her academic career, Dr. Plaspohl’s passion focused on promotion of public health and mentoring students for success. She continues to serve as an accreditation site visitor for the Council on Education for Public Health, a professional service activity she began in 2011. After retirement, she began work as an academic public health accreditation specialist, providing consulting services to support universities as their public health schools and programs go through the accreditation process. Personal interests include golf, painting, travel, and gardening.