Newsmakers: April 2014

Natalie McGill

Berman receives public health law fellowship

APHA member Micah Berman, JD, in March was selected as one of 10 people for the Future of Public Health Law Education: Faculty Fellowship Program. Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the program challenges fellows to create public health law curricula. Berman is the assistant professor public health and law at Ohio State University. Berman plans to use his fellowship to create a course focusing on updating local public health laws to fall in line with public health accreditation.

Ryan named associate dean for professional programs

APHA member Kevin Ryan, JD, MA, in February was named associate dean for professional programs for the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Ryan was a part of the school’s first Department of Health Policy and Management faculty when the college of public health was created in 2002.

Chervin named to national suicide prevention group

Doryn Chervin, DrPH, MEd, in January was appointed to the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention. Chervin previously directed SciMetrika’s Social and Behavioral Sciences Division and was SciMetrika’s executive vice president and principal scientist.

Dzau appointed as next IoM president

Victor Dzau, MD, in February was named the next president of the Institute of Medicine. Dzau, who will begin his six-year term in July, is currently president and CEO of the Duke University Health System, chancellor for health affairs and the James B. Duke professor of medicine at Duke.

Huestis named to forensic science commission

Marilyn Huestis, PhD, in January was named an ex-officio member of the National Commission on Forensic Science. Huestis is chief of the chemistry and drug metabolism section in the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s Intramural Research Program. The commission is responsible for creating forensic science policy recommendations for the U.S. attorney general.

McTeer Toney named EPA regional administrator

Heather McTeer Toney, JD, in January was named regional administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Region Four office in Atlanta. Toney’s responsibilities include promoting state and local environmental protection efforts across eight states and six tribal nations.

Porter receives National Academy of Sciences medal

John Porter, JD, in January was announced as the 2014 winner of the National Academy of Sciences’ Public Welfare Medal. The medal, which Porter will receive April 27 in Washington, D.C., is awarded to a person who uses science to benefit the public. Porter, chair of Research!America, was recognized for his commitment to medical research, which includes his advocacy for an increase in federal research funding for the National Institutes of Health as a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Slutsky named director for research program

Jean Slutsky, PA, MSPH, in January was named director of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute’s Communication and Dissemination Program. Slutsky will examine research on the best way to communicate research results among health workers.

Valantine named NIH diversity officer

Hannah Valantine, MD, in January was named chief officer for scientific workforce diversity at the National Institutes of Health. Valantine’s responsibilities include developing strategies to recruit and retain minority researchers to diversify the biomedical research workforce. She previously served as a professor of cardiovascular medicine at Stanford University Medical Center and as senior associate dean for diversity and leadership at the Stanford University School of Medicine.