Bloomberg American Health Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Announces Seventh Cohort of Bloomberg Fellows

The Bloomberg American Health Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health announces the 2023 Bloomberg Fellows, each selected from organizations working to improve one of five critical public health challenges facing the country: addiction and overdose, adolescent health, environmental challenges, food systems for health, and violence.

Fifty individuals were awarded full Master of Public Health scholarships, and 10 received scholarships to pursue Doctor of Public Health degrees.

The Bloomberg American Health Initiative was established in 2016 with a $300 million gift from Bloomberg Philanthropies in honor of the centennial of the Bloomberg School of Public Health. The Initiative addresses imminent challenges to health in this country through education, research, and practice.

The 2023 cohort represents fellows and organizations spanning the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and 25 states: Alaska, California, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. 

The Bloomberg Fellows come from a wide range of collaborating organizations, including:

• Tumbling Shoals Farm, a certified-organic vegetable farm in Wilkes County, NC, whose commitment to organic practices and dedication to providing nourishment to their community have made them a cornerstone of sustainable agriculture in the region.
• Honestly: Sexual Health Collective for Youth, an organization that collaborates with partners to improve sexual health education for adolescents in Oklahoma and prevent teen pregnancy.
• Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, an organization within the Environmental Public Health Program, serving the 43 federally recognized tribes of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho to address health disparities and enhance the quality of life for American Indians and Alaska Natives.

“At a time when our country urgently needs strong public health leadership, we are thrilled to welcome this impressive class of Bloomberg Fellows from a diverse array of organizations,” says Bloomberg School Dean Ellen J. MacKenzie, PhD, ScM. “Through their experience at the Bloomberg School, these fellows will find new ways to drive social change and make positive, lasting impacts in their communities.”  

Since its founding, the Bloomberg American Health Initiative has worked to save lives and improve health outcomes nationwide, tackling five issues that deeply challenge the nation’s health, with an emphasis on advancing equity, changing policy, and relying on evidence-based science. 

“Saving and extending lives requires strong public health leadership—and the need for it has never been greater,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies, and WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries. “This group of fellows from over 20 states will develop the critical skills necessary to improve the health of their communities. I look forward to seeing the lifesaving work they will go on to lead across the country.”

The fellowship program provides full scholarships for full- or part-time study through the Bloomberg American Health Initiative. The fellows’ current employers support them in this work and collaborate with the Initiative, playing a key role in the program. After completing the program, fellows are then required to work for at least one additional year with their employers, applying the skills and tools acquired during their fellowship. Information about requirements and the application are available online. The next application deadline is December 1, 2023.

The 2023 Bloomberg Fellows and their collaborating organizations are:

MPH Fellows

Addiction and Overdose

• Bridget Duffy – Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital – Columbus, OH
• Lauren Kemmeter – Mono County Public Health – Mono County, CA
• Monica Desjardins – Research Triangle Institute International – Triangle Park, NC
• Clement Chen – Rutgers University, New Jersey Medical School, Department of Psychiatry; Northern NJ Medication-Assisted Treatment Center of Excellence – Newark, NJ
• Isabella Izquierdo – Lewis-Burke Associates – Washington, D.C.
• Ashley Wurth – Injury and Violence Prevention, North Carolina Division of Public Health – Boone, NC
• Michelle “Misch” Whitaker – Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program – Boston, MA
• Marisa Shields – Frederick County Health Department – Frederick, MD
• Adrienne Sanders – Carroll County Health Department – Carroll County, MD
• Jeanette Trella – Center for Public Health Readiness and Response at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia – Philadelphia, PA
• Julio Contreras – National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors – Washington, D.C.
• Zimani Betts – Hamilton County Public Health – Cincinnati, OH
• Fatumata Kaba – Boston Public Health Commission – Boston, MA
• Samantha Santamaria – University of California, Los Angeles Integrated Substance Abuse Programs – Los Angeles, CA
• Shamia Roberts – Tennessee Department of Health – Nashville, TN
• Ciara Gregovich – U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Rocky Mountain Division – Denver, CO

Adolescent Health

• Christa Seymour – Olmsted County Public Health – Rochester, MN
• Anna Duncan – CoLab for Community & Behavioral Health Policy – Seattle, WA
• Tomas Rivera – University of Maryland School of Dentistry – Baltimore, MD
• Sunia Young – National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine – Washington, D.C.
• Miranda Bond – Parkland Health – Dallas, TX
• Robert “Bobby” Pourier Jr. – Johns Hopkins School of Nursing; Young Medicine Movement – Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, MT
• Ana Belén Zelaya – Healthy Futures of Texas – San Antonio, TX
• Lillian Bocquin – Honestly: Sexual Health Collective for Youth – Oklahoma City, OK
• Ariel Yardeni – National Institutes of Health, All of Us Research Program – Washington, D.C.
• Allanceson Smith – San Francisco Department of Public Health, Behavioral Health Services – San Francisco, CA

Environmental Challenges

• Katelyn Wolf – Baltimore County Department of Health – Baltimore, MD
• Melino Gianotti – Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (NPAIHB), Environmental Public Health Program (EPH) – Portland, OR
• Miguel Angel Vazquez – Riverside University Health System-Public Health – Riverside, CA
• Roshona Thomas – Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Division of Environmental Health Services – Philadelphia, PA
• Emily Creegan – Maryland Department of Health, Laboratories Administration – Baltimore, MD
• Shanada Monestime – GO2 for Lung Cancer – Washington, D.C. 
• Christopher Lemon – Johns Hopkins Medicine Department of Emergency Medicine – Baltimore, MD

Food Systems for Health

• Julia McCarthy – New York Health Foundation – New York, NY
• Kelsey Crawford – Tumbling Shoals Farm – North Wilkesboro, NC
• Jay Cutler – Michigan Fitness Foundation – Lansing, MI
• Elizabeth Lewis – The Center for Popular Research, Education and Policy, Wind River Food Sovereignty Project – Fort Washakie, WY
• Ariana Yett – Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. – Newport Beach, CA

Violence

• Alejandra Casarrubias – Casa de Salud – Albuquerque, NM
• William Wisner-Carlson – Baltimore Community Intelligence Center, Baltimore City Police Department – Baltimore, MD
• Pamela End of Horn – U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Indian Health Service (IHS) – Longmont, CO
• Megan Amaturo – International Association of Chiefs of Police – Alexandria, VA
• Beth Krafchik – New York City Health + Hospitals/ Correctional Health Services – New York, NY
• Olivia Harris – Speak About It, Inc. – Philadelphia, PA
• Rena Kates – Baltimore Police Department Training Academy, Education and Training Section – Baltimore, MD
• Maria Coss – Puerto Rico Department of Health’s Commission on Suicide Prevention – San Juan, Puerto Rico
• Ashley Hannigan – Injury Surveillance Program, Alaska Division of Public Health – Anchorage, AK
• Karolin Betances – Center for Justice Innovation – New York, NY
• Hazel Brown – Alliance for Gun Responsibility – Seattle, WA
• Sandy Chavarria – Georgia Center for Child Advocacy – Atlanta, GA

DrPH Fellows

Addiction and Overdose

• Camille Kramer – Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Advocacy and Research on Reproductive Wellness of Incarcerated People – Baltimore, MD
• Philomena Kebec – Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians – Ashland, WI
• Brian Kaplun – U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Washington, D.C.

Adolescent Health

• Victoria Adewumi – City of Manchester Health Department – Manchester, NH

Environmental Challenges

• Rebecca Reindel – American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) – Washington, D.C.
• Keana Kaleikini – Collective Medicine – Farmington, NM

Food Systems for Health

• Lauran Larson – Oklahoma State Department of Health – Oklahoma City, OK
• Angela Suarez – La Clinica del Pueblo – Washington, D.C.
• Sarah Reinhardt – U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service – Washington, D.C.

Violence

• Sarah Newman – Booz Allen Hamilton – Washington, D.C.

More about the Bloomberg American Health Initiative is available at americanhealth.jhu.edu.

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