24 Facts About Paul Cornely

Paul Bertau Cornely was an American physician, public health pioneer, and civil rights activist.

Paul Cornely was elected President of the American Public Health Association in 1970.

Paul Cornely's mother was Adrienne Mellon and his father Eleodore Cornely.

Paul Cornely moved to the United States as a teenager, and grew up mainly in Harlem and, later, then Detroit.

Paul Cornely attended the University of Michigan, where he earned his bachelor's degree, medical, and public health degrees.

Paul Cornely was a student during the Great Depression and had to work to support himself throughout his studies.

Paul Cornely later recalled that, during his final year of medical school, he did not know whether he would be able to complete his training because of the lack of jobs for funding it.

In 1934, Paul Cornely joined the faculty of the Howard University College of Medicine.

At Howard, Paul Cornely developed a program that concentrated on public health provision to underserved communities.

Paul Cornely worked in preventative medicine and, in 1942, was named Head of the Department of Bacteriology.

Paul Cornely found that the dormitories were overcrowded and rarely provided suitable facilities for personal hygiene or studying.

On his return to Howard University, Paul Cornely wrote a series of recommendations to improve the living conditions of students at HBCUs.

Paul Cornely worked alongside Dorothy Celeste Boulding Ferebee, an African American gynecologist and civil rights activist.

Paul Cornely became involved with the civil rights movement in the 1950s and planned the Imhotep National Conference on hospital integration.

In 1963, Paul Cornely attended the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, for which he served as the medical coordinator.

At Howard University, Paul Cornely advocated for culturally sensitive training to be given to white healthcare providers.

In particular, Paul Cornely called for psychiatrists and psychologists to better recognize the impacts of racism and discrimination on mental health.

Paul Cornely led several initiatives to increase the representation of people of color in healthcare, from physicians to policymakers.

Paul Cornely visited Houston, California, and Montana, where he observed chronic neglect and abuse of people of color at the hands of government officials.

Paul Cornely frequently called out pseudoscientific studies, all of which ignore the social determinants of health and well-being, that claimed Black people were inherently inferior to whites.

Paul Cornely was aware of the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment throughout its existence, and taught it as a case study to African-American medical students at Howard University.

In 1973, after almost forty years at Howard University, Paul Cornely retired as a Professor Emeritus of Community Health.

In 1962, Paul Cornely was the founding President of the District of Columbia Public Health Association, which went on to become the Metropolitan Washington Public Health Association.

Paul Cornely became a naturalized American citizen in 1934, the same year he married Mae Stewart.