Please note: The content of the Massive Open Online Course, “Tobacco & Nicotine: Public Health, Science, Policy, and Law,” is solely the responsibility of the authors and contributors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH or the Food and Drug Administration.
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The Center for the Assessment of Tobacco Regulations (CAsToR), in collaboration with the University of Michigan Center for Academic Innovation, has produced a Massive Open Online Course, “Tobacco & Nicotine: Public Health, Science, Policy, and Law” available now on Coursera. Through a series of lectures, interviews, readings, and assessments, the course tells the story of smoking and tobacco and nicotine product use, focusing on the United States while also presenting important information and insights relating to the global epidemic and key examples of the experiences of, and actions taken by, other nations. This online, asynchronous, seven-module course is designed to be taken over a seven-week period but can be completed at your own pace. You can opt to earn a certificate via Coursera for $49, or you can audit the course free of charge. University of Michigan faculty, students, and staff can earn the Coursera certificate for free by signing up through Michigan Online.
The course features 18 noted experts via recorded lectures, original interviews, and a closing panel discussion on the future of tobacco control. Expert contributors include, among others, Mitch Zeller, former Director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products; Mike Moore, former Attorney General of Mississippi who led the litigation that resulted in the historic Master Settlement Agreement; Dr. Ken Warner, Professor Emeritus and Dean Emeritus at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and an expert on the history and public health story of tobacco control; Dr. Robert Proctor, Professor of History at Stanford University who specializes in scientific controversy; Dr. Howard Koh, Professor of the Practice of Public Health Leadership at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and former U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health; and Dr. Mike Cummings, Professor at the Medical University of South Carolina and an authority on industry behavior and tobacco litigation. A complete list of guest contributors can be found on this page.
* Cliff Douglas, course host and former lead instructor for this course, was, throughout the entire period of the development of the course and at the time of its launch (May 2023), the Director of the University of Michigan Tobacco Research Network (UMTRN), as well as a Co-investigator with the Center for the Assessment of Tobacco Regulations (CAsToR) at the University of Michigan, Georgetown University, and the BC Cancer Research Institute. As of October 2023, he released his affiliations with UMTRN and CAsToR and became the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Global Action to End Smoking. The content of this course was not affected by his new role, nor will Mr. Douglas receive any revenue from this course at any point.
