BSC Member Profiles

Chair

David Leroy Lakey, MD

Vice Chancellor of Health Affairs and Chief Medical Officer
The University of Texas System
Austin, Texas

David Lakey, M.D. is the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and Chief Medical Officer at The University of Texas (U. T.) System, and Professor of Medicine at The University of Texas at Tyler Health Science Center. He 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. He also serves on the state's COVID Expert Vaccine Allocation Panel.

At the national level, Dr. Lakey was selected to serve as commissioner on the Commonwealth Fund Commission on a National Public Health System in 2022. Additionally, Dr. Lakey serves on the national boards of the March of Dimes and Trust for America's Health, and on the Board of Scientific Advisors for the Office of Readiness and Response at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He served as president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) from 2011 to 2012 and as the ASTHO Alumni President from 2019 to 2021. Dr. Lakey is a proud member of the Texas Medical Association (TMA) and America Medical Association (AMA). He has received numerous awards, including the 2015 TMA President's Award and the 2021 AMA's Foundation Award for Health Education.

Members

Julie Fischer, PhD

Senior Technical Advisor for Global Health
CRDF Global
Arlington, Virginia

Dr. Julie Fischer is the Senior Technical Advisor for Global Health. Dr. Fischer has over 20 years of global health experience in infectious disease research, laboratory systems strengthening, and public health preparedness.

Prior to joining CRDF Global, Dr. Fischer was an Associate Research Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and the Director of the Elizabeth R. Griffin Program at Georgetown University. She led a multidisciplinary team to promote evidence-based biosafety and biosecurity practices, and to help partner nations strengthen their capacities to detect and characterize disease threats rapidly, reliably, accurately, and safely. Before she joined Georgetown, Dr. Fischer held leadership positions at George Washington University's Milken Institute School of Public Health and the Global Health Security Program at the Stimson Center. Her international experience includes serving as a microbiologist supporting a collaborative partnership between the US CDC and the Thai Ministry of Public Health aimed at strengthening Thailand's ability to detect and respond to emerging infections. Dr. Fischer currently serves as the Chair of the Global Health Security Agenda Consortium, a voluntary alliance of non-governmental institutions committed to strengthening global capacities to prevent, detect, and respond to biological events.

Francisco Garcia MD, MPH

Special Government Employee
Deputy County Administrator & Chief Medical Officer
Pima County
Tucson, Arizona

Dr. Francisco García is the Deputy County Administrator and Chief Medical Officer for Pima County, Arizona. In this capacity, he oversees the departments of Public Health, Detainee & Crisis Systems, Community & Workforce Development, Pima County Public Libraries, Environmental Quality, Justice Services, Pima Animal Care Center and the offices of Digital Inclusion, Emergency Management and the Medical Examiner. Pima County is a large government jurisdiction approximately the size of the state of New Hampshire that shares the longest border with Mexico of any US county and home to more than a million residents and two large tribal communities. Prior to entering government in 2013, Dr. García achieved the rank of tenured Distinguished Outreach Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Public Health. Currently he is a Professor Emeritus of Public Health at the University of Arizona. Dr. García was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2023 and is a former member of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. He received his M.D. from the University of Arizona, and his M.P.H. from the Johns Hopkins University.

Paul Halverson, DrPH, MHSA, FACHE

Dean and Professor
Oregon Health & Science University
Portland State University School of Public Health
Portland, Oregon

Dr. Paul K. Halverson is the dean and professor at the Oregon Health & Science University - Portland State University School of Public Health. Previously, he served a key leadership role as the founding dean and professor of Indiana University's Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health for 11 years. He earned a doctorate in public health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a master's in health services administration from Arizona State University.

Before joining the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health, he was the state health officer and director for the Arkansas Department of Health and held senior leadership roles at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including as the director of the World Health Organization's Collaborating Center for Public Health. He previously held faculty leadership roles at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Dr. Halverson currently serves as the Assistant Chair of the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) and chair of the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE), ensuring high standards in public health practice. As a past chair of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), he advanced public health policy on a national level. He also contributes to the betterment of public health as a board member for the Public Health Institute in California, addressing a wide array of health issues domestically and internationally, and Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, addressing food insecurity for underserved populations. Dr. Halverson's extensive experience in public health leadership, public health practice, education, and policy makes him a pivotal figure in fostering a healthier world for current and future generations.

Joneigh Khaldun, MD, MPH, FACEP

Staff Physician, Emergency Medicine,
Henry Ford Health
Former Chief Medical Executive
State of Michigan
Canton, Michigan

Joneigh Khaldun is a practicing emergency medicine physician, public health leader and businesswoman who currently serves as the Vice President and Chief Health Equity Officer for CVS Health. In this role she advances the company's data-driven strategy to improve access to services, address social determinants of health, and decrease health disparities.

Prior to joining CVS Health, Dr. Khaldun served as Chief Medical Executive for the State of Michigan where she led the state's COVID response and oversaw operations for the state's public health, Medicaid, and behavioral health services. She also previously served as Detroit Health Commissioner, Chief Medical Officer for the City of Baltimore, and Fellow in the Office of Health Reform in the Obama-Biden Office of Health Reform. In 2021, she was appointed by President Biden to the COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force. She has received numerous awards including 2021 US News Woman of the Year, and 2023 Most Influential Minorities in Healthcare by Fierce Healthcare. In 2023 she was elected to the National Academy of Medicine.

Dr. Khaldun obtained her BS from the University of Michigan, MD from the University of Pennsylvania, MPH in Health Policy from George Washington University, and completed her emergency medicine residency at SUNY Downstate/Kings County Hospital Center in Brooklyn, NY. She currently practices emergency medicine at Henry Ford Hospital, a level 1 trauma center in Detroit.

David Lakey, MD

Vice Chancellor of Health Affairs and Chief Medical Officer
The University of Texas System
Austin, Texas

Dr. David Lakey is the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and Chief Medical Officer at The University of Texas (U. T.) System, and Professor of Medicine at The University of Texas at Tyler Health Science Center. He serves as the executive sponsor for the Texas Health Improvement Network, and as the presiding officer of the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium. He also serves on the state's COVID Expert Vaccine Allocation Panel.

At the national level, Dr. Lakey served as president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) from 2011 to 2012, the ASTHO Alumni President from 2019 to 2021 and served on the March of Dimes national board from 2015-2023. Dr. Lakey currently serves on the national boards of Trust for America's Health (TFAH), and Chair on the Board of Scientific Counselors (BSC) for the Center for Preparedness and Response at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Lakey is a member of the Texas Medical Association (TMA) and America Medical Association (AMA). He has received numerous awards, including the 2015 TMA President's Award and the 2021 AMA's Foundation Award for Health Education.

John Lowe, PhD

Director, Global Center for Health Security
Professor and Interim Chair, Department of Environmental, Agricultural & Occupational Health
Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health Security Training and Education, University of Nebraska Medical Center
Omaha, Nebraska

Dr. John Lowe is the Director of the Global Center for Health Security, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health Security Training and Education, and Professor and Chair of Environmental, Agricultural and Occupational Health (College of Public Health) at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

As a virologist and environmental exposure scientist, Dr. Lowe has led interdisciplinary teams throughout the U.S., Africa, Asia, and Europe to advance training, research, and response for infectious diseases. His expertise focuses on assessment and management of risk for clinical, community and industrial environments. He is co-PI for the U.S. National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center and led establishment of an international network for emerging infectious disease centers. He has experience in a broad range of health security topics from surveillance, public health response and clinical response to health emergencies. Dr. Lowe led interdisciplinary teams managing COVID-19 at the National Quarantine Unit and Nebraska Biocontainment Unit to provide monitoring and care for repatriated U.S. citizens exposed to and infected with SARS Coronavirus 2. He also led early and continued efforts to characterize the transmission dynamics of SARS Coronavirus 2.

Phyllis Meadows, PhD, MSN, RN

Senior Fellow, Health Programming, The Kresge Foundation
Troy, Michigan

As a senior fellow with the Detroit Program, Dr. Phyllis Meadows engages in all levels of grantmaking activity. Since joining The Kresge Foundation in 2009, she has advised the Detroit and Health teams on the development of its overall strategic direction and provided leadership in the design and implementation of grantmaking initiatives and projects.

Dr. Meadows 30-year career spans the nursing, public health, academic, and philanthropic sectors. She is the former associate dean for practice at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health and clinical professor in health management and policy – where she designed and implemented community-based health strategies, evaluation, research and courses on leadership, policy, population health and health equity. Dr. Meadows' work in public health includes serving as deputy director and then director/public health officer for the city of Detroit. In addition to serving as adjunct faculty with Wayne State's and Oakland University's Schools of Nursing, her professional experience includes leadership roles across the health sector, working to deliver programs and services with an array of multi-disciplinary professionals in health, education, and human services. Dr. Meadows maintains an active advisory role on several national and statewide initiatives and boards that focus on improving the health of marginalized and low-income communities.

Umair Shah, MD, MPH

Secretary of Health, Washington State Department of Health
Olympia, Washington

Dr. Umair Shah is the Secretary of Health for the State of Washington. He is the first Asian American physician of South Asian descent to serve in this leadership role in the history of Washington, home to over 7.6 million people.

Dr. Shah began a distinguished twenty-year career as an emergency department physician at Houston's Michael DeBakey VA Medical Center. Following his passion, he started his formal public health journey in 2003 as Chief Medical Officer at Galveston County's Health District before joining HCPH to oversee its clinical health system and infectious disease portfolio. Under his leadership, the agency won numerous national awards including Local Health Department of the Year from the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), representing the nation's 3,000 local health departments.

For his work, he has received numerous awards including the distinguished Milton and Ruth Roemer Prize for creativity in public health; APHA's Public Service Award for Outstanding Service in Emergency Health; and the NACDS Foundation's Excellence in Patient Care Award. One of his more lighthearted recognitions was being named 'Ten Real Houstonians We'll Need the Most in the Zombie Apocalypse'.

Kathleen Tierney, PhD

Professor Emerita, Sociology, University of Colorado Boulder
Fellow, Institute of Behavioral Science
Faculty, Institute of Behavioral Science
University of Colorado Boulder
Boulder, Colorado

Dr. Kathleen Tierney is professor emerita of sociology and a fellow of the Institute of Behavioral Science and Natural Hazards Center at the University of Colorado Boulder. From 2003 to 2016, she was the director of the Natural Hazards Center. Dr. Tierney's research interests include the impacts of disasters on businesses, disaster vulnerability and resilience conceptualization and measurement, the political economy of disasters, and precursors to accidents and failures in technological systems. A mixed-methods researcher, she has extensive experience with survey research, and her qualitative research expertise includes quick-response field research following disasters; in-depth interviewing; qualitative evaluation research; focus group methods; and qualitative data analysis. She is the author of dozens of articles and book chapters and of The Social Roots of Risk (2014). The second edition of her book Disasters: A Sociological Approach, will be published in early 2025.

Dr. Tierney received the Fred Buttel Award for Distinguished Contributions from the Environment and Society section of the American Sociological Association and the Charles Fritz Award for lifetime contributions from the International Sociological Association's International Research Committee on Disasters. Reflecting her commitment to interdisciplinary research on hazards and disasters, Dr. Tierney has served as a board member and vice president of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute and was named a distinguished lecturer and an honorary EERI lifetime member—one of only two sociologists to receive that honor.

Ex Officio Members

Department of Health & Human Services

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

Director (Acting)
Office of Strategy, Policy, Planning, and Requirements
Adminstration for Strategic Preparedness and Response
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Washington, District of Columbia

Dr. Kristin DeBord is the Director for the Division of CBRN and Emerging Threats within the Administration for Preparedness and Response (ASPR). She is responsible development, implementation, evaluation, and alignment of federal policies and practices to ensure ASPR has the proper capabilities to prepare for, respond to, and recover from CBRN incidents and emerging threats. "Emerging threats" includes, but is not limited to, artificial intelligence, infectious diseases, dual-use research, and biotechnology.

Dr. DeBord has also served as a Senior Science Advisor to two Deputy Assistant Secretaries, including the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy ASPR, where she led a range of preparedness and response activities related to pandemic influenza and other highly infectious disease outbreaks, and the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the HHS Office of Security and Strategic Information, covering issues related to emerging biotechnologies, biosafety/biosecurity, and CBRN threats.

Darrell LaRoche

Deputy Director for Management Operations
Indian Health Service
Rockville, Maryland

Darrell LaRoche, an enrolled member of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is the deputy director for management operations for the Indian Health Service, an agency in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

In this position, Mr. LaRoche serves as the principal advisor to the IHS director for the management of IHS operations. He is responsible for providing management direction to IHS program offices, including implementing the IHS mission and agency goals; providing overall organization management to improve agency performance; developing strategic plans; and planning, directing, and evaluating operations of the headquarters functions, authorities, and responsibilities in support of the director.

Mr. LaRoche is a retired captain in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps with more than 30 years of experience in facilities engineering, safety, health care programs, and emergency services with IHS, the National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Department of the Interior Office of the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs.

Mr. LaRoche received a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque in 1991 and has completed graduate coursework in industrial hygiene at Tulane University in New Orleans. He is a graduate of the Interagency Institute of Federal Healthcare Executives and the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative in the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. As a commissioned officer in the USPHS, he received the Meritorious Service Medal, Outstanding Service Medal, Achievement Medals, PHS Citation, and numerous unit and service awards.

Hilary Marston, MD, MPH

Chief Medical Officer
Office of the Chief Medical Officer
Food and Drug Administration
Silver Spring, Maryland

Dr. Hilary Marston,Chief Medical Officer, FDA, serves as the primary clinical advisor to the Commissioner and oversees the Office of the Chief Medical Officer. She leads cross-cutting initiatives that support the FDA's centers in making effective, safe, and innovative medical products available for patients, as well as public health preparedness and response activities on behalf of the Commissioner.

Dr. Marston previously served as the Senior Advisor for Global COVID-19 Response on the White House COVID-19 Response Team. Her previous roles also include Director for Medical Biopreparedness and Response at the U.S. National Security Council and Medical Officer and Policy Advisor for Pandemic Preparedness at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health. Dr. Marston also served in positions with McKinsey & Company and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Liaison Representatives

National Association of County and City Health Officials

Michele Askenazi, MPH

Director of Health Protection and Response
Arapahoe County Public Health
Greenwood Village, Colorado

Michele Askenazi is the Director Health Protection and Response for Arapahoe County Public Health (ACPH) in Arapahoe County, Colorado, and has worked in public health for over 25 years.

Ms. Askenazi is an experienced public health leader, epidemiologist, and incident commander, and has served in a lead role for many response-related efforts including outbreaks, pandemics, water and food related contamination incidents, mass casualty incidents, and natural disasters such as floods and fires. Ms. Askenazi oversees the Environmental Health, Communicable Disease Epidemiology, and Emergency Preparedness and ResponsePrograms at ACPH, and she is a member of the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) Preparedness Policy Advisory Group (PPAG).

Before coming to ACPH, Ms. Askenazi served an Epidemiologist for the Michigan Department of Community Health, as an Epidemiologist for the Orange County Health Care Agency in Orange County, California, where she also served as a Research Analyst for their Bioterrorism Program, and most recently served as the Director of Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communicable Disease Surveillance for the Tri-County Health Department (TCHD) which served Adams, Arapahoe and Douglas Counties in Colorado.

Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists

Benjamin P. Chan, MD, MPH

State Epidemiologist
New Hampshire Department of Health & Human Services
Division of Public Health Services
Concord, New Hampshire

Dr. Chan is an infectious diseases physician and serves as the State Epidemiologist at the New Hampshire (NH) Department of Health and Humans services where he provides epidemiology and medical support to the NH Division of Public Health Services. He is Board Certified in the fields of Infectious Disease and Public Health & General Preventive Medicine. As NH's State Epidemiologist, he has been involved in responding to many different infectious disease and non-infectious disease issues. He provides medical and epidemiology subject matter expertise for the NH Division of Public Health Services.

Association of Public Health Laboratories

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.

Association of State and Territorial Health Officials

Alexia Harrist MD, PhD

State Epidemiologist and State Health Officer
Wyoming Department of Health
Cheyenne, Wyoming

Dr. Alexia (Ali) Harrist is the Wyoming State Epidemiologist and Wyoming State Health Officer at the Wyoming Department of Health. Previously, Dr. Harrist was an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, assigned to the Wyoming Department of Health. She has also worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, serving as a Medical Officer in the Division of Tuberculosis Elimination. Dr. Harrist is a board-certified pediatrician and a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health

Laura Magaña, PhD

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

Dr. Laura Magaña is President and CEO of the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH). She is also the founding President of the Global Network for Academic Public Health (GNAPH), an alliance of seven regional associations representing schools and programs of public health worldwide. Under her leadership, ASPPH has continued to advance academic public health by mobilizing the collective power of its members to drive excellence and innovation in education, research, and practice. During her tenure, ASPPH has strengthened academic public health, launched the academic public health leadership institute, and enhanced the voice of academic public health through advocacy. Dr. Magaña expanded the association's global reach and is leading five strategic initiatives to address critical issues in public health as part of ASPPH's Vision 2030: Dismantling Racism in Academic Public Health, Climate Change and Health, Framing the Future 2030, Gun Violence Prevention and the ASPPH Workforce Development Center.

Prior to joining ASPPH, Dr. Magaña dedicated more than 35 years to successfully leading the transformation and advancements of public and private universities in Mexico, educational organizations in the United States, United Nations programs, and nongovernmental organizations in Central America and Europe. She was most recently the dean of the School of Public Health at the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico. Dr. Magaña's diverse portfolio features 90 academic publications - many of which relate to learning environments, the use of technology in education, and public health education.

National Emergency Management Association

Emily Burke, EdD, MPH, CPH

Senior Director, Workforce Development and Applied Practice
Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health
Washington, District of Columbia

Dr. Emily Burke is the Senior Director of Workforce Development and Applied Practice and leads the development, implementation, management, and evaluation of research, practice, and workforce development efforts at the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. Dr. Burke oversees strategy and operations of the ASPPH Center for Public Health Workforce Development. In this capacity, she addresses the ASPPH organizational strategic framework goals to be the leading voice and authority on academic public health and to champion the development of a diverse and competent public health workforce. Dr. Burke's research interests include academic public health, public health workforce and infrastructure, academic and practice linkages in public health, and continuing education and training in public health.

Dr. Burke received her EdD from Arizona State University and her MPH from Drexel University. She is board certified in public health by the National Board of Public Health Examiners.

A.J. Schall, Jr., B.S.

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.