Member Profiles

Suzet McKinney, DrPH, MPH
Principal, Director of Life Sciences
Sterling Bay
Chicago, Illinois

Dr. Suzet McKinney serves as Principal and Director for Sterling Bay’s Life Sciences Division. In her role, she oversees Sterling Bay’s relationships with the scientific, academic, corporate, tech and governmental sectors involved in the life science ecosystem. Prior to joining Sterling Bay, she served as CEO/Executive Director of the Illinois Medical District. Dr. McKinney also is the former Deputy Commissioner of the Bureau of Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response at the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), where she oversaw the emergency preparedness efforts for the Department and coordinated those efforts within the larger spectrum of the City of Chicago’s Public Safety activities, in addition to overseeing the Department’s Division of Women and Children’s Health.

Dr. McKinney also is an Instructor in the Division of Translational Policy and Leadership Development at Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health and as Adjunct Assistant Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health. She also serves as a mentor for the Biomedical Sciences Careers Project, also at Harvard University.

David Fleming, MD
Distinguished Fellow, Trust for America’s Health (TFAH)
Bainbridge, WA

Dr. David Fleming is a Distinguished Fellow at the Trust for America’s Health, a faculty member at the University of Washington School of Public Health and is active in several organizations working on issues of health equity.

Most recently, Dr. Fleming was Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer for PATH, a global health organization working across the world. Before joining PATH in 2014, Dr. Fleming served as the director and health officer for Public Health – Seattle and King County. Previously, he was the director of Global Health Strategies at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Dr. Fleming also served as deputy director at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and as the state epidemiologist for the Oregon Health Division.

Jennifer A. Horney, MPH, PhD
Professor, College of Health Sciences
STAR Health Sciences Complex
Newark, Delaware

Dr. Jennifer Horney is Professor and Founding Director of the Program in Epidemiology and Core Faculty at the Disaster Research Center at the University of Delaware. Her research focuses on measuring the health impacts of disasters, as well as the linkages between disaster planning and household actions related to preparedness, response, and recovery. Dr. Horney has led interdisciplinary research projects funded by the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences, National Science Foundation, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Academies of Sciences, the Department of Homeland Security, and other federal, state, and local agencies.

Dr. Horney was a member of a team of public health practitioners who responded to Hurricanes Isabel, Charley, Katrina, Wilma, Irene, and Harvey where she conducted rapid assessments of disaster impact on the public health of individuals and communities. She has also provided technical assistance to public health agencies globally around disasters, infectious disease outbreaks, and pandemic influenza planning and response.

David Leroy Lakey, MD
Chief Medical Officer
The University of Texas System
Austin, Texas

Dr. David Lakey serves as the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and Chief Medical Officer at The University of Texas System, and as Senior Advisor to the President and Professor of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center Tyler. He also serves as the executive sponsor for the Texas Collaborative for Healthy Mothers and Babies, the executive sponsor for the Texas Health Improvement Network, and as the presiding officer of the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium.

Dr. Lakey formerly was the Commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, where he oversaw the state’s disease prevention and emergency preparedness programs, family and community health services, environmental and consumer safety, regulatory programs, and mental health and substance abuse prevention and treatment services. He led his agency’s response through numerous high-profile events including the H1N1 pandemic, multiple hurricanes, and the Dallas response to Ebola.

Dr. Lakey served as president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) in 2011-2012 and the ASTHO Alumni President (2019-2021).

Marissa J. Levine, MD MPH
Professor, Public Health Practice
Director, Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice
University of South Florida
Tampa, Florida

Dr. Marissa Levine is Professor of Public Health Practice at the University of South Florida (USF) College of Public Health (COPH) and collaborating faculty to the Department of Family Medicine at the USF Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, Florida. Her primary focus is on sustainable and equitable population health improvement. Dr. Levine also directs the USF Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice at COPH where she teaches leadership.

Dr. Levine has completed 16 years of state government service, which culminated in being appointed as the Virginia State Health Commissioner from 2014-2018. As Commissioner, she led the effort to respond to Ebola and Zika. Dr. Levine previously held leadership positions at local and state levels within Virginia Department of Health from 2002-2014, where she was involved in the state’s response to the H1N1 pandemic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Levine has been a public health advisor at local, state, and national levels as well as a frequent media guest expert.

Brent Pawlecki, MD, MMM
Chief Health Officer
Wells Fargo & Company
Akron, Ohio

Dr. Brent Pawlecki joined Wells Fargo in October 2021 as the Chief Health Officer. In this role, he advises on the design of the benefit plans, oversees the on-site / near-site clinic strategy, and promotes employee population health and well-being strategies. Dr. Brent also participates on the pandemic task force and other public health efforts and provides general medical expertise to company leadership to promote a healthy, engaged, and high-performing workforce.

Prior to joining Wells Fargo, Dr. Brent worked for The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company for 10 years where he designed and implemented a global health strategy, oversaw global clinics to ensure effectiveness, analyzed medical data to develop wellness program to address employee needs. Prior to The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Dr. Brent served as the Corporate Medical Director at Pitney Bowes leading numerous professional, business and health initiatives to improve healthcare access and quality of care. Dr. Brent also served as an Attending Physician in the Emergency Department at Bridgeport Hospital and in medical practice on Long Island, New York.

Catherine C. Slemp, MD, MPH
Public Health Policy and Practice, Consultant
Milton, West Virginia

Dr. Cathy Slemp is a public health consultant working with organizations at community, state, and national levels. Dr. Slemp served as West Virginia’s State Health Officer from February 2019 through June 2020 and as state health officer and state Emergency Preparedness Director with the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health from 2002–2011. In 2008-09 she chaired ASTHO’s Directors of Public Health Preparedness. Throughout her career, Dr. Slemp has worked closely with public health agencies, health care facilities, and other partners to build both epidemiology and emergency preparedness infrastructure within communities.

Dr. Slemp’s recent activities include serving as an action-learning coach for the Public Health Institute’s National Leadership Academy for the Public’s Health, working with multi-sector teams to advance health equity in communities. She also works on various efforts to both model, measure, and advance our nation’s health security and resilience. In addition to serving on CPR’s Board of Scientific Counselors, Dr. Slemp serves on the National Preparedness and Response Science Board, US Department of Health and Human Services, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.

Kasisomayajula Viswanath, PhD, MA, MCJ
Lee Kum Kee Professor of Health Communication
Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health (HSPH)
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI)
Director, Center for Translational Health Communication Science, DFCI/HSPH
Director, Harvard Chan India Research Center
Co-Director, Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness
Boston, Massachusetts

Dr. K. “Vish” Viswanath is Lee Kum Kee Professor of Health Communication in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and in the McGraw-Patterson Center for Population Sciences at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI). He is also the Faculty Director of the Health Communication Core of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. Other additional administrative and scientific leadership positions held by Dr. Viswanath include Director of the Center for Translational Communication Science, DFCI/Harvard Chan; Director, Harvard Chan, India Research Center and Co-Director, Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness, Harvard Chan. He is the founding Director of DF/HCC’s Enhancing Communications for Health Outcomes (ECHO) Laboratory.

Dr. Viswanath’s work focuses on translational communication science to influence public health policy and practice. His primary research is in documenting the relationship between communication inequalities, poverty and health disparities, and knowledge translation to address health disparities. He has served and continuing to serve on several national committees including for the US Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine.

Dawn P. Wooley, PhD, SM [NRCM], RBP, CBSP
Professor, Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology, and Physiology
Wright State University
Dayton, Ohio

Dr. Dawn Wooley, PhD, SM [NRCM], RBP, CBSP is a Professor at Wright State University and a certified biosafety professional. Her research expertise includes the molecular mechanisms of HIV mutation, recombination, and pathogenesis, the use of viral vectors for gene transfer, and the biosafety of viral vectors in laboratory and animal research. Dr. Wooley conducted postdoctoral research with Nobel Laureate Howard Temin at the University of Wisconsin.

Paula Bryant, PhD
Director, Office of Biodefense, Research Resources, and Translational Research (OBRRTR)
Associate Director, Biodefense & Emerging Infectious Diseases Product Development
Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease
Rockville, Maryland

Dr. Paula Bryant is the Director of the Office of Biodefense, Research Resources, and Translational Research, and the Associate Director for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases Product Development at NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious diseases (NIAID). In these roles, she oversees the late preclinical and early clinical development of vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics for NIAID priority pathogens. Dr. Bryant joined NIAID in 2013 as a Senior Scientific Officer dedicated to vaccine concept acceleration, where she was responsible for identifying and shepherding innovative vaccine concepts and technologies into viable product development pathways. Before joining NIAID, Dr. Bryant served as the Chief of the Translational Medical Division of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency’s (DTRA) Chemical and Biological Technologies Directorate, the Joint Science Technology Organization (JSTO). Prior to government service, Dr. Bryant was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Microbiology at The Ohio State University where she established a research program examining the interaction of intracellular pathogens with the class II MHC antigen processing and presentation pathway.

Kristin L. DeBord, PhD
Acting Deputy Director
Office of Strategy, Policy, Planning, and Requirements
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR)
Washington, District of Columbia

Dr. Kristin DeBord is the Acting Deputy Director for the Office of Strategy, Policy, Planning, and Requirements (SPPR) in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR). In this role, she helps to oversee the policy-planning lifecycle, ensuring ASPR’s operational preparedness and response capabilities coincide with ASPR’s priorities, align with broader policy and planning considerations, and are adequately resourced based on strategic priorities.

Dr. DeBord formerly was Director for SPPR’s Strategy Division where she was responsible for providing a strategic perspective on national health security to identify and advance preparedness and response initiatives for ASPR and HHS. She also served as a Senior Science Advisor in ASPR, where she led a range of preparedness and response activities related to pandemic influenza and other highly infectious disease outbreaks.

She also has served as the Senior Science Advisor to the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the HHS Office of Security and Strategic Information, covering issues related to emerging biotechnologies, biosafety/biosecurity, and CBRN threats. She has served as a Program Officer at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), managing contracts for the development of vaccines and therapeutics against various respiratory pathogens.

Denise M. Hinton, RADM
Chief Scientist
Office of the Chief Scientist
Food and Drug Administration
Silver Spring, Maryland

RADM Denise Hinton is FDA’s Chief Scientist. In this capacity, she is responsible for leading and coordinating FDA’s cross-cutting scientific and public health efforts. The Office of the Chief Scientist works closely with FDA’s product centers, providing strategic leadership and support for FDA’s regulatory science and innovation initiatives, including the Advancing Regulatory Science Initiative, the Critical Path Initiative, health informatics, scientific professional development, scientific integrity, and the Medical Countermeasures Initiative (MCMi).

RADM Hinton previously served as Deputy Director of the Office of Medical Policy (OMP) in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER), where she concurrently served as Acting OMP Director from 2014 to 2016. There, she led the development, coordination, and implementation of medical policy programs and strategic initiatives, including the efficient integration of rapidly evolving science and new technologies into the drug development and regulatory review processes. RADM Hinton’s work involved close collaboration with other CDER program areas, FDA product centers, and a broad variety of stakeholders.

RADM Hinton joined FDA in 2002 in CDER’s Division of Cardiovascular and Renal Products and, later, served in the center’s former Division of Training and Development. Before coming to FDA, she was an officer in the U.S. Air Force.

Christina Egan, PhD, CBSP
Deputy Director, Division of Infectious Diseases
Chief, Biodefense and Mycology Laboratories
Wadsworth Center
New York State Department of Health
Albany, New York

Dr. Christina Egan is the Deputy Director of the Division of Infectious Diseases as well as the Chief of Biodefense and Mycology Laboratories at the Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health. The Division of Infectious Diseases is comprised of over 200 scientists that perform infectious disease related testing as well as basic public health related research on infectious diseases including Arboviruses, tick borne pathogens, and Mycobacteria. She is currently serving on the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity and has served on the National Biodefense Science Board and is the recipient of the 2019 North American Global 3Rs Award and the 2017 APHL Leadership in Biosafety and Biosecurity Award. Dr. Egan has been involved with other national laboratory preparedness and response related committees including the Association of Public Health’s Preparedness and Response Committee and Biosafety and Biosecurity Committees as well as several CDC Laboratory Response Network committees and workgroups.

Dr. Egan’s research interests include improved diagnostics in the field of Biodefense, using platforms such as real-time PCR, next generation sequencing, and microsphere immunoassay and nucleic acid arrays.

Laura Magaña, PhD
President and Chief Executive Officer
Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health
Washington, District of Columbia

Dr. Laura Magaña Valladares is the President and CEO of the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH). Prior to joining ASPPH, Dr. Magaña dedicated over 30 years to leading the transformation and advancements of public and private universities in Mexico, educational organizations in the United States, United Nations programs, and non-governmental organizations in Central America and Europe. She was most recently the academic dean of the National Institute of Public Health, and ASPPH-member, in Mexico. Her diverse portfolio features research, training, and technological developments in national and foreign universities, with a focus on learning environments and the use of technology in education.

Dr. Magaña is an active member of professional and scientific educational committees around the globe, including the Public Health Institutes of the World, World Federation of Public Health Associations, Association of Schools of Public Health in Europe, Latin-American Global Health Association, National System of Researchers, and the National Academy of Medical Education in México.

Parham Jaberi, MD, MPH
Public Health and Preparedness
Chief Deputy Commissioner for Community Health Services
Virginia Department of Health
Richmond, Virginia

Dr. Parham Jaberi serves as the Chief Deputy to the State Health Commissioner, providing strategic direction and leadership to the agency’s programs supported by 3700 full-time employees and a total budget of $737 million. He oversees seven program offices including Office of Environmental Health Services, Office of Drinking Water, Office of Radiological Health, Office of Emergency Preparedness, Office of Emergency Medical Systems, Office of Licensure and Certification, and Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Dr. Jaberi works collaboratively with other state agencies including Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, Department of Emergency Management, federal agencies including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Environmental Protection Agency, academic institutions including Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Virginia, and other local public and private institutions to advance public health in Virginia.

Benjamin P. Chan, MD, MPH
State Epidemiologist
New Hampshire Department of Health & Human Services
Division of Public Health Services
Concord, New Hampshire

Dr. Benjamin Chan is the State Epidemiologist for the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. He provides medical and epidemiology support to the Division of Public Health Services, which has included responding to emerging infectious disease threats such as Ebola and Zika, and to emerging environmental health concerns from perfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) drinking water contamination. He has also been working closely with local, state, and national partners to prevent and respond to emergent antibiotic resistant infections through strengthening state and national surveillance and promoting antibiotic stewardship. He has made it a priority to work towards closer collaboration and integration between the fields of public health and clinical medicine.

Dr. Chan is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) in the specialties of Internal Medicine and Infectious Disease, and by the American Board of Preventive Medicine (ABPM) in Public Health and General Preventive Medicine.

Michele Askenazi, MPH
Director of Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communicable Disease Surveillance
Tri-County Health Department
Greenwood Village, Colorado

Michele Askenazi is the Director of Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communicable Disease Surveillance for the Tri-County Health Department (TCHD), the largest local health department in the State of Colorado.

Ms. Askenazi has served in a lead role for many response-related efforts including outbreaks, mass casualty incidents, and natural disasters such as floods and fires. She also established a Public Health Incident Management Team for TCHD to enhance their depth and skills to provide management to all-hazards incidents, whether TCHD serves in a lead or support role. Most recently, she served as the Incident Commander at TCHD for the COVID-19 response. Ms. Askenazi oversees the Emergency Preparedness and Response, Communicable Disease, Syndromic Surveillance, COVID-19 and Workplace Safety and Security Programs at TCHD. She serves as a member of the NACCHO Preparedness Policy Advisory Group (PPAG).

Before coming to TCHD, Ms. Askenazi served as an Epidemiologist for the Michigan Department of Community Health and later for the Orange County Health Care Agency in Orange County, California, where she also served as a Research Analyst for their Bioterrorism Program.

Jamie Ritchey PhD, MPH
Director, Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc.
Tribal Epidemiology Center (ITCA TEC)
Phoenix, Arizona

Dr. Jamie Ritchey has been in her current role as the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc., Tribal Epidemiology Center (ITCA TEC) Director for over nine years. In this role, her focus, at the direction of Tribal leadership, is to enhance public health capacity within Tribal communities in Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. The ITCA TEC currently provides technical assistance and training for Tribal health programs through a series of grants, contracts, and Cooperative agreements with the Indian Health Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and others.

Dr. Ritchey is a solution-oriented public health practice epidemiologist with nearly 20 years of applied public health experience. Her key skills include, public health program development and design, leadership, program evaluation, disease surveillance and epidemiologic analysis, report and publication development, public health grant writing, and public speaking.

A.J. Schall, Jr.
Director, Delaware Emergency Management Agency
Governor’s Homeland Security Advisor
Department of Safety & Homeland Security
Smyrna, Delaware

A.J. Schall Jr. is the Director of the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) and was named the Governor’s Homeland Security Advisor. Director Schall has been actively engaged in the front lines of emergency response, serving as the Chief of the Aetna Hose, Hook and Ladder Company (Newark, DE), and currently is Deputy Chief. Under Mr. Schall’s Directorship, DEMA has facilitated multiple State of Emergencies, FEMA Graded Exercises and launched an UAV program.

Director Schall’s background includes business, public safety, and emergency management.In the winter of 2020, Schall began as an adjunct professor at the University of Delaware. Over the years Director Schall has continued his professional development, completing the US Army War College Commandant’s National Security Program in 2016, and most recently the Naval Post Graduate School Executive Leaders Program.