Newsmakers: May/June 2010

Tobacco advisory committee taps Connolly

APHA member Gregory Niles Connolly, DMD, MPH, acting director in the Division of Public Health Practice at Harvard School of Public Health, in March was appointed to the Food and Drug Administration’s Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee. The committee provides advice, information and recommendations to FDA on a range of tobacco-related issues.

Hager appointed HHS regional director

APHA member Christie Hager, JD, MPH, in April was named a regional director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Hager — who will represent the agency in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont — is currently an adjunct lecturer on health policy at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Johnson to advise EPA

James H. Johnson Jr., PhD, MS, in February was appointed chair of the National Advisory Council for Environmental Policy and Technology, an independent committee that advises the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on a broad range of environmental policy, technology and management issues. Johnson is a professor emeritus and former dean of the College of Engineering, Architecture and Computer Sciences at Howard University in Washington, D.C.

Environmental group works to advance asthma control

The National Environmental Education Foundation’s Health and Environment Program in March received a two-year contract from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s National Asthma Control Initiative Strategic Partnership Engagement Program. The organization will use the grant to expand its Pediatric Asthma Initiative.

Vandenborne named associate dean at University of Florida

Krista Vandenborne, PhD, PT, in April was named associate dean for research and planning at the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions. Vandenborne has served as a professor and chair of the college’s Department of Physical Therapy since 2002.

Mfume takes helm of National Medical Association

Kweisi Mfume, MS, in March was named executive leader of the National Medical Association. Most recently, Mfume served as president and CEO of the NAACP. He is a former five-term member of the U.S House of Representatives.

Novick to oversee health promotion at EHE International

Jeffrey Novick, MS, RD, in March was named vice president of health promotion at New York City-based EHE International, a company that focuses on preventive medicine. Novick previously served as director of nutrition at the Pritikin Center in Aventura, Fla., and as vice president of the board of directors for the National Health Association.

Patterson to lead Physicians for Social Responsibility

Jeff Patterson, DO, a professor emeritus in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, in March was named president of Physicians for Social Responsibility. The nonprofit group works to rid the world of nuclear weapons and reduce the effects of global climate change.