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Dignity Packs Project

MLK Community Service Awards

For over 20 years, Rollins, the Goizueta Business School, and more recently the Emory School of Medicine, have honored the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. through the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Service Awards Program. Rollins garnered two of the five awards presented.

The Emory COVID-19 Outbreak Response Team, led by Jodie Guest, began work last April to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak by providing pop-up testing sites. The group spent over 2,000 hours between May and December conducting over 6,000 COVID-19 tests. They particularly focused their efforts on serving marginalized communities, including poultry plant workers, Black residents in Baldwin County, and Mexican residents served through a partnership with the Mexican Consulate.

The Dignity Packs Project supplies people experiencing homelessness in Atlanta with basic hygiene supplies, period supplies, condoms, and PPE. The project is led by April Ballard, a PhD candidate in environmental health, Allison Hoover, an MPH student in global health, and Ana Rodriguez, an MPH student in environmental health. Kits are not pre-packaged. Instead a handful of each item are set up at a table where people can shop for the type and number of items they want. To date, the project has reached over 500 people.


 
   
 
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Michael Kramer (left) and Melissa (Moose) Alperin (right)

Michael Kramer (epidemiology) has been awarded the 2021 ASPPH Teaching Excellence Award. This award recognizes faculty who are outstanding in teaching and mentoring students toward distinction in public health research, teaching, and practice.

Melissa (Moose) Alperin (EMPH) has been awarded the 2021 ASPPH Practice Excellence Award. This award recognizes faulty who have devoted their careers to advancing and integrating scholarly public health practice within research, teaching, and service.

Carmen Marsit was named Rollins Distinguished Professor of Public Health Research.

Jim Lavery (global health) was elected a fellow of the Hastings Center. The Hastings Center and its scholars produce publications on ethical issues in health, science, and technology that inform policy, practice, and public understanding of bioethics.

Vijaya Kancherla (epidemiology) received the 2021 F. Clarke Fraser New Investigator Award from the Society for Birth Defects Research and Prevention

Usha Ramakrishnan (global health) was awarded the 2020-21 Marion V. Creekmore Award for Internationalization

 
   
 

View all Rollins events on the online calendar.

 
 
 
Winter 2021

Progress despite pandemic 

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Dean Curran

To say 2020 was a challenging year would be quite an understatement. Though the COVID-19 pandemic temporarily shuttered many labs, our researchers managed to bring in over $100 million in funding, earning us the No. 4 ranking in NIH funding for schools of public health. Many of our scientists pivoted, refocusing their previous research on COVID-19. Read a summary of COVID-19 projects currently underway.


Yang Liu named Gangarosa Distinguished Professor and Chair of Environmental Health

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Following a nationwide search, Yang Liu has been named Gangarosa Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health. Yang joined Rollins in 2009, and his research has included working with National Aeronautics and Space Administration to analyze satellite data on air pollution. He holds a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California at Davis and a PhD in Environmental Sciences and Engineering from Harvard University. Yang has published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and serves on the editorial boards of a number of academic journals. He was selected as a 2020 Georgia Research Alliance Distinguished Investigator. Yang succeeds Paige Tolbert, who retired in March 2020, after serving as chair for 15 years, and Thomas Clasen, who served as interim chair.

One of Yang’s first acts as chair was to establish the new Certificate in Climate and Health. The certificate is one of two new initiatives to boost Emory’s contributions in the field of climate and health specifically. Last year, Rollins launched a new Emory Climate and Health Research Incubator to foster new research that can improve society’s response to climate change.


Del Rio receives Hatcher Award

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Carlos del Rio has been named the 2021 recipient of the Charles R. Hatcher Jr. MD Award for Excellence in Public Health. Carlos is executive associate dean for Emory School of Medicine at Grady Health Systems, Distinguished Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases in the school of medicine, professor of global health and epidemiology and co-director of the Emory Center for AIDS Research (CFAR). He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and was elected Foreign Secretary in 2020

Carlos received his medical degree from the Universidad La Salle in Mexico City, and completed his internship and residency at Emory. Upon returning to Mexico City, he became head of infectious diseases at the Hospital Angeles del Pedregal and associate professor of medicine at the Universidad La Salle. From 1992 until 1996, he was executive director of the national AIDS Council of Mexico.

He returned to Emory School of Medicine in 1996, and he joined Rollins in 2009 as R. Hubert Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Hubert Department of Global Health. Carlos is a member of the NIDA Council, the NIH Office of AIDS Research Advisory Council, the National Research Council, the UNAIDS Scientific Technical Advisory Committee, and chair of the PEPFAR Scientific Advisory Board. He is associate editor for Clinical Infectious Diseases and senior editor for HIV for NEJM Journal Watch Infectious Diseases, as well as an editorial board member of Global Public Health, Journal of AIDS and Women, Children & HIV. He has co-authored 30 book chapters, and over 450 scientific papers.


The loss of two friends

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Jonathan Liff

Jonathan Liff passed away on October 10, 2020 following a prolonged illness. Jonathan was the former director of the Georgia Center for Cancer Statistics and a professor and in the Department of Epidemiology until his retirement in 2013. He was one of the first faculty members hired at Rollins by Ray Greenberg and was beloved by students, faculty, and staff alike. Jonathan was caring, kind, and encouraging, and was a friend and mentor to many.

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John Boring III

John Boring III passed away in his sleep on January 10, 2021. Prior to retiring in the fall of 2012, John earned the status of Professor Emeritus of Epidemiology after 46 years of teaching at Emory. He was the first chair of the Department of Epidemiology and recruited many of our current and former colleagues to join the department faculty. He served on the search committee that led to my appointment as Dean of RSPH. Among his many accomplishments, John was recognized five times as RSPH instructor of the year, received the Thomas F. Sellers Jr. M.D. Award in 1993 (honoring a Rollins faculty member deemed as a role model by colleagues), and received the Thomas Jefferson Award in 1995 (Emory's highest faculty honor). In 2020, the Department of Epidemiology named its annual infectious disease Grand Rounds lecture in his honor.


New grants

Cynthia Whitney, Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) Network, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, $30.5 million, continuation

Venkat Narayan, GCDTR Supplement for COVID-19 Testing among Vulnerable Populations, NIH National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, $3.8 million, September 21, 2020 – July 31, 2022

Linelle Blais, Building Sustainable Organizational Capacity to Provide HIV Services in the US, Gilead Sciences, $2.1 million, January 1, 2021 – December 31, 2021

Carlos del Rio, Center for AIDS Research, NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, $1.7 million, supplement

Aaron Siegler, Population-based Survey of SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Immune Response, NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, $1.2 million, supplement

Kelli Komro, Community Randomized Trial in the Cherokee Nation: CONNECT and CMCA for Preventing Drug Misuse among Older Adolescents, NIH National Institute on Drug Abuse, $1.2 million, continuation

Cynthia Whitney, Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) Network, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, $1 million, supplement

Sarita Shah, The Role of Casual Contact and Migration in XDR TB Transmission in South Africa, NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, $715,000, continuation

Matthew Freeman, Urban Water Systems, Enteric Pathogen Distribution & Gut Microbiome, , NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, $706,000, continuation

Jeffrey Koplan, The Emory Global Health Case Competitions: Developing Entrepreneurial Skills, Marcus Foundation, $660,000, September 1, 2020 – August 21, 2024

Rollins faculty have received many other grants for research and training between September 1, 2020 – February 1, 2021. View the complete list.


Appointments and Promotions

Faculty Promotions
  • Allison Chamberlain, Associate Professor, Epidemiology

  • Dana Barr, Professor, Environmental Health

  • Neel Gandhi, Professor, Epidemiology

  • Donghai Liang, Assistant Professor, Environmental Health

  • Yang Liu, Gangarosa Distinguished Professor and Chair, Environmental Health

  • Yuan Liu, Associate Professor, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics

  • Joanne McGriff, Assistant Dean Diversity Equity Inclusion, Dean’s Office

  • Usha Ramakrishnan, R. Hubert Distinguished Professor and Chair, Global Health

  • Travis Sanchez, Professor, Epidemiology

New Faculty

  • Liliana Aguayo-Markes, Assistant Professor, Global Health

  • Robert Krafty, Rollins Distinguished Professor and Chair, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics

  • Alexandra Morshed, Assistant Professor, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

Post Doctoral Fellows

  • Eric Hall, Epidemiology

  • Robert Hood, Epidemiology

  • Anna Newton-Levinson, Health Policy and Management

  • Sara Redd, Health Policy and Management

  • Abumohammednaser Titu, Epidemiology

  • Denisse Vega Ocasio, Environmental Health

Staff Promotions

    • Zena Belay, Programs Senior Associate Director, Epidemiology

    • Sehar Dadani, Project Coordinator, Epidemiology

    • Jamila Edwards, Pre-Award Manager, Research Administration

    • Jennifer Howell, Research Projects Associate Director, Global Health

    • Maleika Huff, Post-Award Manager, Research Administration

    • Robert Laverock, Post-Award Manager, Research Administration

    • James Leonard, IT Operations Director, Information Services

    • Tamaira Lyons, Pre-Award Manager, Research Administration

    • Jedidiah Snyder, Lead Public Health Program Associate, Environmental Health

    • Galina Terbova, Program Assistant Director, Global Health

    • Mariah Valentine-Graves, Programs Associate Director, Epidemiology

    • Gretchen Wilde, Project Coordinator, Global Health

    New Staff

    • Cristian Acero Martinez, Data Analyst, Epidemiology

    • Alexis Bailey, Public Health Program Associate, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Ramona Barnett, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Nathaniel Barrera-Nitz, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Sadaf Bhai, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Gareth Butler, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Joanna Caldwell, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • De’Coshia Chambers, Health Educator, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Aaliyah Dotson, Client Service Representative I, Informational Services

    • Jeanne Dow, Client Research Coordinator II, Epidemiology

    • Olivia Edwards, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Chinedu Egbuonu, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Umair Farooqi, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Rebecca Fils-Aime, Senior Public Health Program Associate, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Jessie Genoway, Communications Director, Global Health

    • Emily Giannars, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Kiara Govan, Research Interviewer, Epidemiology

    • James Gowdy, Client Services Representative II, Information Services

    • Lizheng Guo, Lead Research Specialist, Global Health

    • Diana Gutsaeva, Pre-Award III Research Administrator, Research Administration

    • Donald Harris, Fulfillment Services Representative I, Fulfillment Services

    • Mallory Hazell, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Alicia Jackson, Health Educator, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Afrin Jahan, Biostatistician, Global Health

    • Sonja Jones, Research Interviewer, Epidemiology

    • Terah Kalk, Public Health Program Associate, Health Policy and Management

    • Victoria Krauss, Public Health Program Associate, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Kristin LaHatte, Programs Senior Associate Director, Global Health Institute

    • Rickey Leachman, Health Educator, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Yiman Li, Data Analyst, Global Health

    • Hanqi Luo, Senior Biostatistician, Global Health

    • Victoria Mann, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Charlotte Marshall-Fricker, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Erin Mayweather, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Tamira Moon, Senior Public Health Program Associate, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Kayoko Mori, Epidemiologist, Environmental Health

    • Demetrius Mosely, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Aaron Muirhead, ublic Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Antonio Newman, Research Administrative Coordinator, Global Health

    • Shivangi Panchal, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Erica Pitts, Pre-Award II Research Administrator, Research Administration

    • Victoria Placona, Communications Specialist, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Tamiko Prescod, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Christiana Reene, Public Health Program Associate, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Laura Rowe, Programs Director, Global Health

    • Victoria Roy, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Varsha Sahoo, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Ayeesha Sayyad, Senior Research Interviewer, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Meron Siira, COVID-19 Contact Tracing Coordinator, Epidemiology

    • Helen Singer, Senior Research Interviewer, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

    • Donovan Stephens, Public Health Program Associate, Epidemiology

    • Mariama Tounkara, COVID-19 Contact Tracing Coordinator, Epidemiology

    • Lauren Williams, Senior Research Interviewer, Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences

 
       
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