Paul Emmett Leaverton, PhD, age 90, passed away peacefully with his beloved wife, Su, by his side on April 25, 2025, in Tampa, Fla.
He was born on July 30, 1934, in Irvington, Iowa, to Paul and Muriel (Body) Leaverton. Paul graduated from Indianola High School and earned his doctorate in biostatistics from Iowa State University in 1963. He served two years in the Army in the Public Health Service in Atlanta, Ga.
Paul was an internationally recognized biostatistician, and a highly respected colleague and friend of our college. Paul launched biostat at COPH and recruited and built the foundation for our college鈥檚 success.
Dr. Jay Wolfson, senior associate vice president of USF Health and founding faculty member with the USF COPH
Paul dedicated his life to advancing public health and education. He was a Professor of Biostatistics at the University of Iowa College of Medicine before joining the National Center for Health Statistics in Rockville, Maryland, and the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. Later, he founded and chaired the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics College of Public Health at the 猫咪视频app in Tampa. He retired from USF in 2001 with the title of Professor Emeritus. His distinguished academic career earned him the Professorial Excellence Program Award and the USF Health Science Center Distinguished Teaching Award. He coauthored two books and published over 100 scholarly manuscripts on biostatistics and epidemiology.
Paul married Pauline (Kinney) Leaverton in 1956, and they later divorced. In 1988, he married Su (Saepang) in Tampa, and they shared many joyful years together.
Paul had a deep passion for sports, especially cheering for the Iowa Hawkeyes, Iowa State Cyclones, and Tampa sports teams. He was also a fan of Dixieland jazz music and was an avid reader. His wit and love for his family will be missed.
Overall, I had a highly educational experience in the program, in no small part thanks to the support and mentorship I received from Drs. Ran Nisbett (global health practice), Elizabeth Pathak (epidemiology) and Paul Leaverton (professor emeritus, epidemiology).
Reflections from a 2017 alumni feature story with Dr. Jennifer Peregoy
He is survived by his sons, Scott (Cheryl Fiala) and Tom (Tana) Leaverton; his grandchildren, Holly (Eric) Sitzmann, Emily (Jake Jerome) Leaverton, Chloe Leaverton, Michael Schmitt, and Tommy Schmitt; and his great-grandchildren, Emmett and Evelyn Sitzmann.
He was preceded in death by his parents; sisters Joan Smith, Norma Sandven, and Eileen Leaverton; brother Don Leaverton; and his great-granddaughter, Eleanor (Ellie) Sitzmann.
A celebration of life will be held on Monday, May 12 from 2 to 5 pm at the Arbor Greene Community Center Gathering Room at 18000 Arbor Greene Dr in Tampa to honor Paul's memory and legacy.
Memorials in Paul's honor can be directed to Don't Kiss the Babies, dktb.org a foundation dedicated to the health and well-being of babies and young children, established in memory of his first great-granddaughter, Ellie.
Obituary from
In celebration of the USF College of Public Health鈥檚 30th Anniversary, a series of stories were published chronicling the college鈥檚 history. 鈥溾�� includes colorful reflections from Leaverton.
鈥淚鈥檓 very pleased with how well our 猫咪视频apps have done,鈥� Leaverton said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of shocking, in a way. As I look back, we must have organized the curriculum pretty well, Heather [Stockwell] and I. We had to basically design it from scratch. We set up some pretty good courses, and they essentially stayed the same for a long time. We had some good faculty who kept the standards high.
鈥淚 actually saw some memos that said, 鈥楧on鈥檛 take Epi and Biostats at the same time, it鈥檚 too hard. You have to take them separately,鈥欌�� Leaverton said. 鈥淪ometimes I would take some pride in that. We never made soft courses. Our courses were tough.鈥�
Upon learning of Leaverton鈥檚 passing, Professor Emerita Dr. Heather Stockwell shared reflections on working with her colleague and friend in the college鈥檚 Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics.
He joined a dedicated group of faculty committed to the development of the first college of public health in the state of Florida. Paul was the first biostatistics faculty hired by the college. And, he was the perfect choice. Paul brought a unique blend of biostatistics expertise and epidemiologic expertise especially in the area of cardiovascular diseases. Prior to joining the COPH, Paul served in leadership roles at the National Center for Health Statistics and then the NHLBI of NIH.
It was a very hectic time for the new college developing curricula, teaching classes, providing service to state and local health departments, and all while developing research programs.
Biostatistics is often the most daunting course for many 猫咪视频apps. Paul will be remembered as the face of biostatistics for hundreds of 猫咪视频apps. He made biostatistics concepts understandable to even the most 鈥渂iostatistics adverse鈥� 猫咪视频apps. His skill as a teacher was recognized by 猫咪视频apps when they named him the Outstanding Teacher of the Year.
Paul went on to author a self-instruction book, 鈥淎 review of biostatistics (5th edition); a program of self-instruction.鈥� This book was subsequently published in several foreign languages- an achievement of which Paul was deservedly proud.
As the college grew, departments were formed and Paul was deservedly chosen as the first chair of epidemiology and biostatistics. The formation of departments meant that Paul added administrative responsibilities to his already extensive teaching, research and service activities. The department thrived, faculty were hired and doctoral programs were added to curriculum in biostatistics and in epidemiology. Paul鈥檚 leadership was critical to our success.
My memories of Paul during these early years also include some fun times including the annual USF faculty/staff softball competition. Every year Paul led the college鈥檚 team. Despite Paul鈥檚 best efforts we frequently went down in defeat, but we had a great time and never let our limited softball skills limit our enthusiasm, dampen our spirits, or diminish our optimism for next year!
Now as the college celebrates its 40th anniversary, it is with sadness I learned of the passing of Paul Leaverton the first chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. His contribution was enormous! Paul, you will be missed.
Dr. Heather G. Stockwell,
Professor Emerita
Leaverton鈥檚 excerpt is from 鈥�.鈥� Photos courtesy of COPH archive.