2016 Atlanta Mini Retreat

Dr. Amy Baxter

As a double boarded pediatric emergency physician, Dr. Baxter invented a mechanism to block pain on contact and is now CEO of MMJ Labs, creating personal pain relief products.  After graduating from Yale University and Emory University School of Medicine, she completed a pediatrics residency, child abuse fellowship, and emergency pediatrics fellowship. Federally funded for her work in pain management, she has published multiple first author papers and lectures nationally and internationally on sedation, needle phobia, and pain management.  A founding board member of the Society for Pediatric Sedation, she has served on the MedScape and Standish Foundation board for pediatrics, as well as reviewing for multiple scholarly journals, conference, and grant boards. Dr. Baxter is known for creating and validating the BARF nausea scale for children with cancer, and holds patents on MDEA-Winning Buzzy® physiologic pain blocker and DistrACTION® cards.   Dr. Baxter gave up practicing in 2016 to focus on MMJ Labs, VibraCool  for aches and injuries, and Buzzy. Her all-woman company engages in best practices for flexible workplace, eco-friendly packaging and shipping practices, and ethical intern education. As CEO and founder of MMJ Labs, she hopes to advance the national dialogue on needle phobia and free patients from dependence on the healthcare system for pain control while reducing opioid use. National speaking venues include TEDMED, MakerFaire,  CONVERGE, AARP@50+, and TEDx Peachtree.  Among other awards, she has been recognized as an Inc. Magazine Top Woman in Tech to Watch, a MORE magazine Second Act inspiration, Top Ten Disruptors in Healthcare by MDDI, and an “Idea Person” by the Wall Street Journal.  Awards include Ga Bio CEO Innovation Award 2014, Chase Small Business and Kimberly Clark MomInspired grants.

Dr. Otis Brawley

Otis Webb Brawley, MD, MACP, FASCO, FACE Chief Medical and Scientific Officer Executive Vice President, Research American Cancer Society  Otis Webb Brawley, MD, is an acknowledged global leader in the field of cancer prevention and control. As the chief medical and scientific officer and executive vice president of the American Cancer Society, he is responsible for promoting the goals of cancer prevention, early detection, and quality treatment through cancer research and education. He champions efforts to decrease smoking, improve diet, and provide the critical support cancer patients need. He also guides efforts to enhance and focus the Nation’s research program, upgrade the Society’s advocacy capacity, and concentrate community cancer control efforts in areas where they will be most effective.   Dr. Brawley currently serves as professor of hematology, oncology, medicine and epidemiology at Emory University.  He is also a medical consultant to the Cable News Network (CNN).  From April of 2001 to November of 2007, he was director of the Georgia Cancer Center at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta and deputy director for cancer control at the Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University. He previously served as a member of the Society’s Prostate Cancer Committee, co-chaired the U.S. Surgeon General’s Task Force on Cancer Health Disparities, and filled a variety of positions at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), most recently serving as Assistant Director. Dr. Brawley has served on a number of advisory committees including the NIH Committee on Women’s Health; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advisory Committee on Breast Cancer in Young Women; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection and Control Advisory Committee; and the Food and Drug Administration Oncologic Drug Advisory Committee.  He chaired the NIH Consensus Panel on the Treatment of Sickle Cell Disease. He has been listed by Castle Connelly as one of America’s Top Doctors for Cancer.  Among numerous other awards, he was a Georgia Cancer Coalition Scholar and received the Key to St. Bernard Parish for work in the U.S. Public Health Service in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He is a fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, a Fellow of the American College of Epidemiology and one of less than 1300 physicians to be named a Master of the American College of Physicians in its more than 100-year history.  Dr. Brawley is also a member of the National Academy of Medicine. Dr. Brawley graduated from the University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine; trained in internal medicine at Case-Western Reserve University, and in medical oncology at the National Cancer Institute.

Sherri A. Berger, MSPH

Chief Operating Officer, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Sherri Berger, MSPH, became Chief Operating Officer of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one of 10 major operating divisions of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), in August 2011. As COO, she oversees management, facilities, and operations at the Atlanta- based public health agency. She provides substantial strategic direction for CDC’s 10,000 employees, 5,000 contractors, and $13 billion budget – while ensuring CDC has proper resources to fulfill its critical work to save lives and protect people from health threats. Specifically, Berger manages CDC’s budget; oversees facilities design, maintenance, security, management analysis, and safety and personnel security; leads acquisitions, contractual assistance and grants; manages information technology and security; and directs human resources strategy, training, and workplace development. Berger’s oversight and management as Chief Operating Officer has intensified CDC’s business services by:

• Transitioning the agency’s business services offices from a direct appropriation to the Working Capital Fund
• Consolidating the agency’s financial management functions into a single Office of Financial Resources to ensure fiscal accountability, oversight, and ensure compliance with external and internal controls
• Consolidating five offices responsible for a broad portfolio of crosscutting services, including safety and security, to effectively deliver a safe, secure functional, and healthy workplace for CDC staff
• Ensuring the agency’s information technology portfolio is current and state-of-the art with a customer-driven focus
• Serving as a champion for the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, using results to drive agency improvements to better serve CDC staff and the public they serve

Berger is a manager with extensive experience at both the program and senior leadership level. She began her federal career in 1996 as one of four graduate students selected nationwide to participate in the CDC/Association of Schools of Public Health Experimental Learning Program. Berger worked as an epidemiologist at the community level until moving to CDC headquarters in Atlanta to serve as a principal epidemiologic investigator. As a result of her management at the program level, she was   nominated to participate in the Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program, where she expanded her career into business management. Berger has held several leadership positions at CDC, including associate director for formulation, evaluation, and analysis in CDC’s Financial Management Office, deputy director of one of CDC’s national centers, and director of the agency’s Recovery Act Coordination Unit. Berger received her bachelor’s in political science from the University of Florida and a master’s of science in public health with a concentration in epidemiology from the University of South Florida. She enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with her son.

Katherine Lyon Daniel, PhD

Association Director for Communication, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Katherine Lyon Daniel, PhD, is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Associate Director for Communication. She leads the agency’s external and internal communication aimed at putting the best information available into the hands of people who need it to protect their health or the health of others. Dr. Daniel combines her experience in strategic communication and behavioral science to advance CDC’s mission of saving lives and protecting people. Integrated communication – When she stepped into her agency-wide role in 2011, Dr. Daniel had already identified a need for CDC’s information to be available more broadly and through more channels. With the aim of developing communication that would help everyone within CDC understand how their work fits into the overall mission by creating a clear, concise summary of the agency’s mission: CDC 24/7. Saving Lives. Protecting People. She led the integration of digital and traditional media so that agency information appears simultaneously on multiple platforms, and she folded the work of the agency’s broadcast and graphics units into the overall communication strategy. Accessible information – Under Dr. Daniel’s leadership, CDC has adopted a Clear Communication Index that guides authors in developing materials that meet an agency-wide accessibility and readability standard. Earlier, as deputy director of CDC’s National Center for Health Marketing, she helped accelerate the agency’s eHealth movement. She supported the migration of CDC’s flagship Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report to electronic distribution and the inclusion of interactive features. And she continues to push the agency’s adoption of health literacy, plain language, and clear communication. Strategic communication – Throughout her CDC career, Dr. Daniel has championed the need to think ahead about what may happen next and to plan communication interventions for those events. She supported research and a proactive focus to help the agency become more effective in helping people. For example, in her early CDC career she initiated the development of the agency’s parenting and pregnancy portals. These portals connect parents and others not only to the topic they first seek, but also to other topics that are part of their total health needs. Digital media – Use of digital media has increased substantially, reaching more than 11 million people through the agency’s YouTube channel, 13 blogs, 18 Facebook profiles, and 50 Twitter profiles. Dr. Daniel supports communicators throughout the agency with services that help them select and integrate the multiple channels most appropriate to their audiences and messages.   Gateways to health information – In addition to the parenting and pregnancy portals, Dr. Daniel originated CDC’s Gateway to Health Communication and Social Marketing Practice. This encyclopedia for health communication and public health professionals collects communication planning resources in a single location to help support more effective outreach to populations needing reliable health information. She was a key player in the development of CDC’s national conference on Health Communication, Media, and Marketing that convenes university scholars, public health researchers, and practitioners from the government and private sectors for cross-disciplinary dialogue. Campaigns for health behavior change – Dr. Daniel initiated the government’s first communication campaign to support early autism screening. The “Learn the Signs. Act Early” campaign that has improved early identification of developmental delay and disability by engaging parents, public health and healthcare partners, so that families get the services and support they need as early as possible. She also led CDC’s landmark communication campaign to increase awareness of folic acid consumption among women of child-bearing age. Dr. Daniel earned the B.A. in Psychology from the University of Virginia, and the Ph.D. in Social Ecology from the University of California at Irvine. Her dissertation research focused on communicating long- term health risks to the US Senate. She has conducted and published research on risk perception and understanding risk behavior. She has authored or co-authored more than a dozen scientific articles. In 2010-2011, she completed the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative at Harvard University. She has received numerous professional communication awards, including two HHS Secretary’s Awards for Distinguished Service, the International Academy of Arts and Sciences Questar Grand award, the MarCom Creative Gold award, and the Public Relations Society of America’s prestigious Silver Anvil award. As a mother, Dr. Daniel’s aim is to empower moms—or anyone who cares for others—to be the best advocates for their families’ health by putting the information they need at their fingertips. As a communication and behavioral science professional, she seeks to extend CDC’s ability to promote and improve health by putting the most reliable, helpful information possible in the best places for those who need it.

William H. Foege, MD, PHD

William H. Foege, MD, MPH is an epidemiologist who worked in the successful campaign to eradicate smallpox in the 1970s. He is credited with developing and proving the vaccination strategy of surveillance and containment that replaced mass vaccination and reduced the time needed to finally eradicate the disease. Dr. Foege became Chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Smallpox Eradication Program and was appointed director of CDC in 1977. In 1984, Foege and several colleagues formed the Task Force for Child Survival and Development, a working group for the World Health Organization, UNICEF, The World Bank, the United Nations Development Program, and the Rockefeller Foundation.  Its success in accelerating childhood immunization led to an expansion of its mandate in 1991 to include other health issues that diminish the quality of life for children. Dr. Foege joined The Carter Center in 1986 as its Executive Director, Fellow for Health Policy, and Executive Director of Global 2000. In 1992, he resigned as Executive Director of The Carter Center but continued in his role as a Fellow and as Executive Director of the Task Force for Child Survival and Development.  In 1997, he joined the faculty of Emory University, where he is Presidential Distinguished Professor of International Health at the Rollins School of Public Health. In 1999, Dr. Foege became a Senior Medical Advisor for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In that same year, Dr. Foege resigned as Executive Director of the Task Force for Child Survival and Development, and in 2001, he retired from both Emory University and the Gates Foundation. However, he remains active in both organizations as Emeritus Presidential Distinguished Professor of International Health and as a Gates Fellow. Dr. Foege has championed many issues, but child survival and development, injury prevention, population, preventive medicine, and public health leadership are of special interest, particularly in the developing world.  He is a strong proponent of disease eradication and control and has taken an active role in the eradication of guinea worm, polio and measles, and the elimination of river blindness.  By writing and lecturing extensively, Dr. Foege has broadened public awareness of these issues and brought them to the forefront of domestic and international health agendas. Dr. Foege is the recipient of many awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom.  He holds honorary degrees from numerous institutions and was named a Fellow of the London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in 1997. He is the author of more than 125 professional publications. He attended Pacific Lutheran University, received his medical degree from the University of Washington, and his Master of Public Health degree from Harvard University.

Latha Ganeshan

CEO and Founder, Zywie Latha is a successful entrepreneur with excellent leadership and management skills. She is an expert in creating mission critical and time sensitive enterprise applications, including world class medical software systems that process nuclear and echo cardiac images for accurate diagnosis. Prior to starting Zywie, she has worked with companies including world class medical software systems that process nuclear and echo cardiac images for accurate diagnosis. Prior to starting Zywie, she has worked with companies including, Equifax, ChoicePoint (LexisNexis), Scientific Atlanta (Cisco), and Digital Design Medical Systems. With a B.S. in Electronics and Telecommunications, a M.S. in Computer Science from Georgia State University, and an M.B.A. from Emory University, Latha is passionate about creating powerful companies with deep engineering expertise. She strives for excellence professionally and personally and at the same time motivates others to follow by setting an example. Latha loves everything that she undertakes and lives with her husband, three children, and her parents in Johns Creek, GA.

Mark Gilreath

Founder & CEO – EndoChoice Inc. Mark Gilreath founded EndoChoice Inc. (NYSE: GI) in 2008 and serves as its CEO. EndoChoice is a medical technology company focused on the R&D, manufacturing and commercialization of innovative products, serving specialists in gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy. The Company has been recognized 6 consecutive years by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest growing companies in America. Gilreath led the company from his basement in 2008 to an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange in June 2015. Prior to founding EndoChoice, Gilreath served on the Executive Committee at Given Imaging (NASDAQ: GIVN) as President of The Americas and Chief Marketing Officer. During his 8 years at Given Imaging, the company launched the PillCam Video Capsule and was transformed from a pre- revenue startup to a NASDAQ company approaching $200 million in revenue. Given Imaging was acquired in 2014 for approximately $1 billion by Covidien (now Medtronic). Before joining Given Imaging, Gilreath served in a variety of commercial leadership roles at Pentax Medical during 7 years of rapid growth. Gilreath began his career serving in the U.S. military in Naval Intelligence during Operation Desert Storm. While in Naval Intelligence with a Top Secret Security Clearance, Gilreath graduated Summa Cum Laude from the prestigious Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California. Gilreath currently serves on the board of directors of EndoChoice Inc., the Medical Device Manufacturers Association (MDMA, Executive Committee), the Marcus Autism Center, and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. In 2013, Gilreath was selected as Business Person of the Year in Metro Atlanta. In 2014, he was a finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He is an active member of YPO’s Southern 7 Chapter. Gilreath holds a B.Sc. in finance from Winthrop University and an MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta

Chief Medical Correspondent, CNN Dr. Sanjay Gupta is the multiple Emmy® award winning chief medical correspondent for CNN. Gupta’s passion for inspiring Americans to lead healthier, more active lives led him to launch “Fit Nation,” CNN’s multi-platform anti-obesity initiative. In addition to his work for CNN, Gupta is a member of the staff and faculty at the Emory University School of Medicine. He is also the associate chief of neurosurgery at Grady Memorial Hospital.  Gupta also contributes to the CBS newsmagazine 60 Minutes. In 2015, Gupta partnered with Sharecare, a leading a comprehensive digital health and wellness engagement platform, to launch an app that uses voice analysis to help people increase self-awareness, improve relationships and ultimately enjoy better health. He is the author of three New York Times best-selling books, Chasing Life (2007), Cheating Death (2009) and Monday Mornings (2012). In 2003, he received the Humanitarian Award from the National Press Photographers Association. In 2004, the Atlanta Press Club named him “Journalist of the Year” and in 2009, he won both the first Health Communications Achievement Award from the American Medical Association’s Medical Communications Conference and the Mickey Leland Humanitarian Award from the National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC). In 2011, Forbes magazine named him one of the “Ten Most Influential Celebrities.” Before joining CNN, Gupta completed neurosurgical fellowship at the Semmes Murphey Clinic and residency at the University of Michigan Medical Center. In 1997, he was selected as a White House Fellow, serving as a special advisor to First Lady Hillary Clinton. Gupta received his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan and a doctorate of medicine from the University of Michigan Medical School.

Donna W. Hyland

President and Chief Executive Officer – Children’s Healthcare Atlanta For more than 29 years, Donna W. Hyland has helped shape the delivery of healthcare to children in Georgia and beyond. First as Chief Financial Officer, then Chief Operating Officer and now as President and Chief Executive Officer, Hyland has overseen monumental growth and achievement at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. She was instrumental during the 1998 merger of Egleston Children’s Health Care System and Scottish Rite Children’s Medical Center, as well as the addition of Hughes Spalding in 2006 and Marcus Autism Center in 2008 that led to the formation of what is now one of the largest pediatric healthcare systems in the country. Today, Children’s is consistently ranked as a Top Pediatric Hospital by U.S.News & World Report and one of FORTUNE magazine’s 100 Best Companies to Work For. For all her dedication to pediatric healthcare, Hyland was named as Georgia Trend magazine’s Most Respected Business Leader in 2011 and 100 Most Influential Georgians for three years in a row; Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 100 Most Influential Atlantans; and one of Business to Business magazine’s Women of Excellence and 2011 Healthcare Leaders Awards. In 2014, she was inducted into Junior Achievement’s prestigious JA Atlanta Business Hall of Fame. Hyland’s dedication to the community extends outside of Children’s, where she serves on the boards of: Atlanta Committee for Progress, Inc.; Cousins Properties Incorporated; Georgia Health Information Network; Genuine Parts Company; Georgia Public Broadcasting; Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee; SunTrust Bank Georgia; and Stone Mountain Industrial Park, Inc. Hyland was appointed by Governor Nathan Deal to the Georgia Public Telecommunications Commission and appointed by First Lady Sandra Deal to serve on the Georgia Children’s Cabinet. Hyland and her husband Paul reside in Atlanta with their two children.

Dr. Lucienne Ide

Dr. Ide brings her diverse experiences in medicine, science, venture capital and technology to bear in leading Rimidi, a software company focused on improving the lives of individuals living with chronic diseases. Motivated by the belief that we can do so much better in managing health as individuals, an industry and society, Dr. Ide left clinical medicine to join the ranks of healthcare entrepreneurs who are trying to revolutionize an industry. After earning a BA in Physics from Middlebury College, Dr. Ide joined the National Security Agency followed by Raytheon Systems Corporation as a Signal Communications Analyst. She served as a subject matter expert on emerging wireless and satellite communications technologies for Monarch Venture Partners. With a desire to shift her scientific focus to human health, Lucie completed the Medical Scientist Training Program at Emory University, earning her M.D. and a Ph.D. in Pharmacology focused on genetically-modified stem cell therapy. Following internship at UPMC Magee Womens’ Hospital in Pittsburgh, Dr. Ide saw an opportunity to make an impact on our healthcare system that was undergoing massive change fueled by economic pressures, policy change, and technological innovations. She founded Rimidi Diabetes in 2012. Dr. Ide is a Trustee of Middlebury College and serves on the board of the American Diabetes Association for the Southeast region. She lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband and their four boys.

Warren Jones, Ph.D.

Warren Jones is Director of Research at the Marcus Autism Center, faculty in the Department of Pediatrics at the Emory University School of Medicine, and holds the CHOA Distinguished Chair in Autism.  He completed his Ph.D. in Neuroscience at Yale University.  He currently directs the Social Neuroscience Laboratory at the Marcus Autism Center.  Research in the laboratory focuses on mapping and quantifying the developmental course of social disability in autism spectrum disorders, from birth through young adulthood.  The goal of this research is to understand the origins and development of autism, and to inform better treatment practices, by developing tools for objective early diagnosis and prediction of outcome for individuals with autism spectrum disorders.

Michelle LaPlaca, Ph.D.

Michelle C. LaPlaca, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, a joint department between Georgia Tech and Emory University.  Dr. LaPlaca earned her undergraduate degree in Biomedical Engineering in 1991 from The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, where she was first introduced to neuroscience research at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. She then earned her M.S.E. (1992) and Ph.D. (1996) in Bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, in the area of neuronal injury biomechanics. Following post-doctoral training in the Neurosurgery Department at the University of Pennsylvania’s Head Injury Center from 1996-98, she joined the faculty at Georgia Tech.  Dr. LaPlaca’s research interests are in neurotrauma, injury biomechanics, and neuroengineering as they relate to traumatic brain injury (TBI).  Her research approaches span from preclinical laboratory studies in vitro and in vivo to developing cutting edge, innovative clinical tools for mild TBI assessment.  Studying TBI on multiple levels has led her to develop a bidirectional translation approach that is the framework for both improving clinical impact and gaining a better understanding of complex injury mechanisms. More specifically, the LaPlaca Translational Neurotrauma Laboratory studies mechanotransduction mechanisms, cellular tolerances to traumatic loading, and plasma membrane damage, including mechanoporation and inflammatory- & free radical-induced damage.  More recently, she is coupling these mechanistic-based studies with –omics discovery in order to identify new biomarker candidates.  In the course of her clinical studies, Dr. LaPlaca and colleagues at Emory University have developed and patented an abbreviated, objective clinical tool to assess neurological impairment associated with concussion and mild cognitive impairment.  Her laboratory is applying informatics approaches to identify injury risk factors and prognostic markers at both basic and clinical levels. Dr. LaPlaca has published over 60 peer-reviewed papers and her research has been funded by NIH, NSF, DoD, and the Coulter Foundation.  She received an NSF CAREER award (2000), the 2007 Atlanta Business Chronicle Healthcare Heroes Award for Healthcare Innovation, was a finalist in Atlanta Magazine’s Groundbreakers in 2013, and is an elected fellow in the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE). In addition, she serves as the Vice Chair on the Board of Directors of the Brain Injury Association of Georgia and has testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Veteran’s Affairs on traumatic brain injury (2010).  Dr. LaPlaca is on the editorial board of the Journal of Neurotrauma, and a member of the National Neurotrauma Society (Secretary-Treasurer, 2013-14; Vice President, 2014-2015), Women in NeuroTrauma Research (WiNTR), the Society of Neuroscience, and the Biomedical Engineering Society.   PubMED: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/myncbi/collections/public/18YDwfKevtxHRnRiMPQMXNzkN/?sort=date&direction=ascending Google Scholar: http://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Zod2gNUAAAAJ  

Hala Moddelmog

President and CEO, Metro Atlanta Chamber Board Expertise:  CEO experience and public board service  Hala Moddelmog has spent over 20 years in president and CEO roles and has served as a corporate director for two NYSE companies. At the Metro Atlanta Chamber, Moddelmog represents more than 15 Fortune 500 companies and many SMEs in the country’s ninth largest metro. Previously, as President of Arby’s Restaurant Group, then a division of Wendy’s/Arby’s Group, Inc., Moddelmog led the divestiture of the company to private ownership and dramatically improved the company’s financial performance, tripling net income following the sale to Roark Capital in 2011. Previously, Moddelmog served as President and CEO of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the world’s largest breast cancer organization.  Under Moddelmog, Komen achieved the organization’s first 4-Star Charity Navigator rating. Moddelmog was the first female president of an international QSR chain at Church’s Chicken, with 1,500+ units in 29 states and 15 countries, leading through significant change as the parent company, AFC Enterprises, Inc., went public (NASDAQ: AFCE) and Church’s was later divested to Crescent Capital. Moddelmog served on the Board of Directors and the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee of Amerigroup Corporation, a Fortune 500 managed care company. During her tenure, Amerigroup was sold to WellPoint Health Networks Inc. at a 43 percent premium. She also served on the Board of Directors, Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, and Compensation Committee of AMN Healthcare Services, Inc., a healthcare staffing company. Moddelmog serves on the Board of Directors of Georgia Public Broadcasting, the Board of Trustees of the Woodruff Arts Center, and the Board of Directors of The Alliance Theatre, and on the Advisory Board of Georgia Tech’s Scheller College of Business. Georgia Southern University awarded Moddelmog an Honorary Doctorate of Letters. She has a Master of Arts in journalism and mass communication from the University of Georgia and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Georgia Southern University. She has attended executive education programs on board leadership and director development at Harvard Business School and Kellogg School of Management. hmoddelmog@macoc.com | 770-335-1427

Judith Monroe, MD, FAAFP

President and CEO, CDC Foundation Judith Monroe joined the CDC Foundation as president and CEO in February 2016. The mission of the CDC Foundation is to help CDC do more, faster by forging effective partnerships between CDC and private sector organizations and individuals to build public health programs that make our world healthier and safer. Her professional focus has centered on the intersection of primary care and public health.   Prior to joining the CDC Foundation, Monroe worked for six years with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), serving as director of the Office for State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support (OSTLTS).   Monroe oversaw key activities and technical assistance supporting the nation’s health departments and the public health system. Under her leadership, OSTLTS launched the National Public Health Improvement Initiative (NPHII) and developed and expanded the Public Health Associate Program (PHAP), which began with 10 associates per year and grew to nearly 350 associates serving 44 states, one territory, and the District of Columbia at state, tribal, local, territorial, federal, and non- governmental public health organizations. Monroe represented CDC on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Secretary’s Tribal Advisory Committee and led OSTLTS in advancing the work of the CDC Tribal Advisory Committee and tribal affairs at CDC.   Before joining CDC, Monroe served as the state health commissioner for Indiana from 2005 to 2010. She was president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) from 2008 to 2009 and conceptualized and launched the first ASTHO President’s Challenge, which continues to be an annual challenge for state health officials to focus attention on a critical national health issue.   Monroe began her clinical career as a member of the National Health Service Corps at the Morgan County Medical Center in rural Tennessee, confronting the ill health that poverty-stricken and remote populations face. As a clinician educator, she joined the faculty in the Department of Family Medicine at Indiana University and led the department’s work in rural communities. She then joined St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis in a dual administrative role as director of the Family Medicine Residency Program and the Primary Care Center.   Monroe has served on many national advisory committees and boards, such as the CDC Surveillance   Leadership Board, Global Health Leadership Council, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Public Health Leadership Forum, deBeaumont Foundation-sponsored National Advisory Committee for the Practical Playbook, Medicaid-Public Health Expert Committee, and the Institute of Medicine’s Roundtable on Population Health.   Monroe received her M.D. from the University of Maryland and B.S. from Eastern Kentucky University. She completed her residency in family medicine at the University of Cincinnati, a rural faculty development fellowship through East Tennessee State University, and a fellowship in obstetrics through the University of Wisconsin. She also participated in the Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government, State Health Leadership Initiative.

Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice

President, Morehouse School of Medicine Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice provides a valuable combination of experience at the highest levels of patient care and medical research, as well as organizational management and public health policy in to her role as president and dean of Morehouse School of Medicine. These assets make her an invaluable strategist, influencer and community partner. Dr. Montgomery Rice is the sixth president of Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) and the first woman to lead the free-standing medical institution. In addition to president, she will also retain the deanship. Dr. Montgomery Rice is a renowned infertility specialist and researcher, and most recently served as dean and executive vice president of MSM, where she served since 2011. In this role, she led MSM’s widespread academic and clinical programs in health sciences and led its strategic planning initiatives for patient care, research and community engagement. Dr. Montgomery Rice is the founder and former director of the Center for Women’s Health Research at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn., where she also served as dean of the School of Medicine and senior vice president of health affairs. The Center for Women’s Health Research is one of the nation’s first research centers devoted to studying diseases that disproportionately impact women of color. Prior to joining Meharry Medical College, Dr. Montgomery Rice held numerous administrative and faculty appointments at the University of Kansas School of Medicine. Her dedication to health care research, preventative care and mentoring are manifested in every aspect of her work and life.  As such, she has been honored with membership in the following: National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and Office of Research on Women’s Health/National Institutes of Health (NIH) advisory councils (2013-); Society for Women’s Health Research board (2012-) and the executive committee (2013); March of Dimes board (2012-); Association of American Medical Colleges Council of Deans Administrative board (2012-); FDA Advisory Committee for Reproductive Health Drugs (2011-); American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, board examiner (2007-); Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society (2006-); President’s Commission on White House Fellowships Regional Panelist Selection Committee (2010); Every Life Matters, Every Dollar Counts Campaign chair, National AIDS Fund board of trustees (2009-2010); National Aids Fund board of trustees (2007-2011), Wal-Mart Healthcare Insights Panel chair (2007-2010); and Wal-Mart External Advisory Board (2006-2008). Dr. Montgomery Rice has been instrumental in generating multimillion dollar research grants and has received numerous accolades, including the National Coalition of 100 Black Women – Women of Impact (2014); YWCA – Women of Achievement (Atlanta-2014 and Nashville-2007); National Medical Association’s President’s Citation Award (2013); American Medical Women’s Association Elizabeth Blackwell Medal (2011); Working Mother Media Multicultural Women’s Legacy Award (2011); Maternal Infant Health Outreach Program Award (2009-2010); Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Maternal Infant Health Outreach Worker (MIHOW) Mentorship Award (2009) and The Links, Inc. Portia Searcy Award (2007). A Georgia native, Dr. Montgomery Rice holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a medical degree from Harvard Medical School. She completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Emory University School of Medicine and her fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Hutzel Hospital in Detroit, Mich. She also completed the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine program at Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Penn.

Anne Schuchat, MD (RADM, USPHS)

Principal Deputy Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention   Anne Schuchat, M.D. has been Principal Deputy Director for CDC since September 2015. Dr. Schuchat began her public health career in 1988 when she came to CDC as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer. She was director of CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases from 2006-2015. Other CDC leadership posts include: acting director of the National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID) and the Center for Global Health; chief of the Respiratory Diseases Branch and Chief Health Officer for CDC’s 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza response. Schuchat was the initial medical director of ABCs – the Active Bacterial Core surveillance of the Emerging Infections Program Network and spearheaded prevention of newborn infection from group B streptococcal disease in the 1990s. She also served as CDC’s interim deputy director for Science and Program in early 2009. She was promoted to Rear Admiral in the United States Public Health Service in 2006 and earned a second star in 2010. Schuchat was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 2008.   Globally, Dr. Schuchat has worked in West Africa on meningitis, pneumonia, and Ebola vaccine trials, in South Africa on surveillance and prevention projects, and in China on Beijing’s SARS emergency response. She has authored or co-authored more than 230 scientific articles, book chapters, and reviews. Her contributions have been recognized by receipt of the USPHS Meritorious Service Medal, the American Public Health Association’s Maternal and Child Health Young Investigator Award, the USPHS Physician Research Officer of the Year, and an Honorary Doctorate in Science from Swarthmore College. Dr. Schuchat graduated with highest honors from Swarthmore College and with honors from Dartmouth Medical School and completed her residency and Chief residency in Internal Medicine at NYU’s Manhattan VA Hospital.

Paul Root Wolpe, Ph.D.

Paul Root Wolpe, Ph.D. is the Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Bioethics, Raymond Schinazi Distinguished Research Professor of Jewish Bioethics, Professor of Medicine, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Neuroscience and Biological Behavior, and Sociology, and the Director of the Center for Ethics at Emory University. Dr. Wolpe also serves as the first Senior Bioethicist at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). He is Editor-in-Chief of American Journal of Bioethics Neuroscience, the leading journal in neuroethics, and he sits on the editorial boards of over a dozen professional journals in medicine and ethics. Dr. Wolpe is a past President of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities, a Fellow of the Hastings Center, and a Fellow of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, the country’s oldest medical society. Dr. Wolpe publishes widely in sociology, medicine, and bioethics, and has contributed to a variety of encyclopedias on bioethical issues. Trained as a social scientist – a rare background for a ethicist — Dr. Wolpe’s work focuses on the social, religious, ethical, and ideological impact of medicine and technology on the human condition, focusing particularly on genetics and neuroscience. Dr. Wolpe is considered one of the founders of the field of neuroethics, which examines the ethical implications of neuroscience. He is also the founder of BEINGS, “Biotechnology and the Ethical Imagination: A Global Summit,” which brought together thought leaders from the top biotechnology producing countries of the world, representing a wide array of disciplines and approaches, to try and produce a set of internationally accepted ethical principles and policy standards for human cellular biotechnologies, such as CRISPR. The Consensus Document is due to be completed in Spring of 2016. Dr. Wolpe writes about other emerging technologies and areas such as death and dying, clinical medicine, alternative medicine, and bioethics in extreme environments such as space. He is a sought after consultant on business ethics and the ethics of philanthropy (Dr. Wolpe was named one of Trust Across America’s Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior). He is the author of over 125 articles and book chapters, as well as the textbook Sexuality and Gender in Society, and the Jewish end-of-life guide Behoref Hayamim: In the Winter of Life. Dr. Wolpe sits on national and international non-profit organizational boards and working groups, and is a consultant to academic institutions and the biomedical industry. He has twice testified to President Obama’s Commission on the Study of Bioethical Issues in Washington, DC, on ethical issues in synthetic biology and in neuroscience. A dynamic and popular speaker internationally, Dr. Wolpe has been chosen by the website Faculty Row as a “SuperProfessor” and by The Teaching Company as a “Superstar Teacher of America,” and his courses are distributed internationally on audio and videotape. He won the 2011 World Technology Network Award in Ethics, has recorded a TED Talk, and was profiled in the November, 2011 Atlantic Magazine as a “Brave Thinker of 2011.” Dr. Wolpe is a frequent contributor and commentator in both the broadcast and print media, having been featured on 60 Minutes and with a personal profile in the Science Times of the New York Times.