FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Stacey L. Evans, (404) 924-8297
ATLANTA (Sept. 4, 2020) – The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) announced the newly elected FY 2021 Board of Directors, whose term begins Oct. 1 and will continue through Sept. 30, 2021. NACDD’s Representative Members (U.S. State and Territorial Health Departments’ Chronic Disease Directors) voted for a President-Elect and two At-Large Directors this year.
Current President-Elect Susan M. Kansagra, MD, MBA, will step into her new role as Board President on Oct. 1. Dr. Kansagra serves as the Section Chief of Chronic Disease and Injury for the North Carolina Division of Public Health. She oversees public health initiatives related to chronic disease, tobacco control, cancer prevention and control, and injury and violence prevention. In addition, Dr. Kansagra has been leading the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services’ response to the opioid epidemic.
Mónica Morales, the Chronic Disease Director for the California Department of Public Health, has completed her term as Board President and will serve as Past President.
“The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors has benefitted greatly from Mónica Morales’s leadership and insight as Board President. During the most turbulent time in this past century, Mónica has been steadfast in her resolve to ensure the Association’s sustainability and commitment toward excellence. We will continue to meet our Members’ needs in these rapidly changing and critical times for chronic disease prevention and health promotion work,” said John W. Robitscher, MPH, NACDD CEO.
The Association’s new President-Elect is Kristi Pier, who serves as the Director of the Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Control at the Maryland Department of Health. Pier has worked in public health for more than 20 years, extensively in diabetes prevention since 2007.
Linda Scarpetta, MPH, Director of the Division of Chronic Disease and Injury Control at the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, was elected Secretary. Mary Manning, the Director of the Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Division for the Minnesota Department of Health, will remain in her previous Board role as Treasurer.
The new At-Large Directors are:
- Laurie Schneider, MPH, the Deputy Chief, Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention Branch, at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
- Lea Susan Ojamaa, MPH, the Deputy Director Bureau of Community Health and Prevention at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
The complete FY 2021 Board is as follows:
Officers
- President – Dr. Susan Kansagra, N.C.
- President-Elect – Kristi Pier, Md.
- Past President – Mónica Morales, Calif.
- Treasurer – Mary Manning, Minn.
- Secretary – Linda Scarpetta, Mich.
At-Large Directors
- Appathurai Balamurugan, Ark.
- Cassandra Dove-Brown, Miss.
- Ryan Lester, Kan.
- Teresa Aseret-Manygoats, Ariz.
- Jill Myers Geadelmann, Iowa
- Tari O’Connor, Alaska
- Lea Susan Ojamaa, Mass.
- Shamarial Roberson, Fla.
- Laurie Schneider, Colo.
- Sonja Schriever, Idaho
Associate At-Large Director
- David Hoffman, N.Y.
NACDD also acknowledges the following outgoing Board Members for their service with distinction and dedication:
- Judith Gabriele, N.M.
- Karen Girard, Ore.
- Dr. Gabriel Kaplan, Colo.
About the NACDD Board of Directors
NACDD is a Member-driven and Member-led organization. Board service is a two-year term, with Board Members able to serve up to four consecutive years. NACDD Membership evaluates Board Members based on several qualifications, including industry expertise, leadership, commitment to the Association, fiscal responsibility, ability to provide strategic vision and guidance to NACDD, and willingness to work within anti-racist and anti-oppressive frameworks and actively engage in ongoing learning about these frameworks.
The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors
Promoting Health. Preventing Disease.
The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) and its more than 7,000 Members seek to strengthen state-based leadership and expertise for chronic disease prevention and control in states and nationally. Established in 1988, in partnership with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the NACDD is the only membership association of its kind to serve and represent every chronic disease division in all states and U.S. territories.
For more information, visit chronicdisease.org.