The Colorado School of Public Health continues its upward trajectory among the nation’s leading schools of public health, rising to No. 17 in the latest rankings released by the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research.
The annual assessment evaluates institutions based on research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In 2025, the Colorado School of Public Health secured more than $22 million in NIH funding, marking a steady climb from its No. 18 position in the prior year’s rankings.
This milestone reflects sustained growth in the school’s research enterprise. Since first entering the Top 20 in 2020, ColoradoSPH has increased its NIH funding by more than $10 million — an achievement that underscores both the depth and breadth of its scientific work.
“Climbing in the Blue Ridge rankings reflects the strength of the Colorado School of Public Health’s research portfolio and our capacity to address the most pressing health challenges facing Colorado and the nation,” said Dana Dabelea, associate dean of research.
Over the past year, ColoradoSPH investigators received significant NIH awards supporting work in diabetes treatment and prevention, cancer research, and injury and violence prevention. These investments reinforce the school’s commitment to addressing real-world challenges facing Coloradans while also advancing public health education, research, and practice.
“In a rapidly shifting funding landscape, our faculty and staff continue to rise to the challenge with creativity, resilience, and an enduring commitment to improving public health,” said Cathy Bradley, dean of ColoradoSPH. “Their ability to innovate — while staying laser-focused on the needs of our communities — is what makes this achievement possible.”
ColoradoSPH’s unique three-university collaborative model contributes to its overall research impact. Because faculty research conducted at Colorado State University is attributed through CSU’s academic units, the Blue Ridge rankings only reflect funding received by investigators based at the University of Colorado Anschutz Campus. Across all three campuses, CSU, CU, and UNC, ColoradoSPH researchers secured nearly $27 million in NIH funding.
Together, these gains highlight the school’s growing role as a hub for public health discovery, innovation, and policy-relevant research in Colorado and beyond.
For more information about research and initiatives at ColoradoSPH, visit:
https://coloradosph.cuanschutz.edu