For Immediate Release:
March 23, 2015

Media Contact:
Kathy Fackelmann; 202-994-8354, kfackelmann@gwu.edu

 

Geiger Gibson Program Recognizes Eight Emerging Leaders at the National Association of Community Health Centers Policy and Issues Forum

WASHINGTON, DC and NEW YORK (March 23, 2015) – Each year, the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy in the Milken Institute School of Public Health (Milken Institute SPH) at the George Washington University honors young professionals currently working in the field of community health. Community health centers and primary care associations nominate bright, dedicated, young professionals nationally, who exemplify the mission and vision of Drs. H. Jack Geiger and Count Gibson, pioneers of the community health movement.  This year is an especially important year because it marks the 50th Anniversary of the health center movement in America.

From a pool of nineteen very strong candidates, eight winners were selected by a committee of senior health center leaders to receive the 2015 Emerging Leader designation. Award recipients were recognized at the annual meeting of the National Association of Community Health Centers on March 21, 2015 in Washington, DC.

“The Emerging Leaders Award is one of the Geiger Gibson Program’s most important annual activities and one that recognizes a few talented and dedicated young men and women serving on the front lines,” said Sara Rosenbaum, JD, the Harold and Jane Hirsh Professor of Health Law and Policy and founder of the Geiger Gibson Program at the Milken Institute SPH. “This year’s winners represent the next generation of leaders in the community health center movement.”

Feygele Jacobs, president and CEO of the RCHN Community Health Foundation, whose ongoing gift supports the activities of the Geiger Gibson Program, added, “The policy and program advocates, clinicians, health educators, and clinic administrators recognized this year as Emerging Leaders represent the future of community health centers. We are delighted to recognize their achievements as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the health center movement, and look forward to working with them now and in the future.”

The following eight individuals were selected as 2015 Emerging Leaders:

 

2015 Emerging Leaders Award Recipients

NABILA AZAM
Brockton Neighborhood Health Center
Brockton, MA

JOHN BROWNE
Community Health Association of Spokane
Spokane, WA

MICHAEL MALLOY
Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers
Boston, MA

SCOT McCRAY
CAMCare Health Corporation
Camden, NJ

 KENETT MELGAR
Blue Ridge Community Health Services, Inc.
Hendersonville, NC

 HENRY OCH
Lowell Community Health Center
Lowell, MA

 LISA OLSON
Wisconsin Primary Health Care Association
Madison, WI

KWEE SAY
Asian Health Services
Oakland, CA

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About the Emerging Leader Award:
The Emerging Leader award was established in 2007 to highlight and share with the health center community the accomplishments of a new generation of health center leaders. One or more Emerging Leaders are selected annually by the Program, with the assistance of an advisory group comprised of health center leaders. The key qualities of leadership highlighted by this award are commitment, motivation, professional achievement, and leadership qualities that together further the health center mission.

About the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy:
The Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy is a special initiative of Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University.  Housed in the Department of Health Policy and Management, and named after Drs. H. Jack Geiger and Count Gibson, pioneers in community health practice and tireless advocates for civil and human rights, the program aims to develop the next generation of community health leaders by offering education, research and training in community health practice and leadership. The program’s research and educational activities seek to advance the education and policy development in the fields of health centers, primary health care for medically underserved populations, and health disparities reduction. The Geiger Gibson Program also offers a Fellows program; a health policy elective for medical residents; scholarship opportunities; an annual Distinguished Visitorship and more. For more information on the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy, visit http://publichealth.gwu.edu/projects/geiger-gibson-program.

About the RCHN Community Health Foundation:
The RCHN Community Health Foundation, founded in October 2005, is a not-for-profit foundation whose mission is to support community health centers through strategic investment, outreach, education, and cutting-edge health policy research.  The only foundation in the country dedicated to community health centers, the Foundation builds on health centers’ 40-year commitment to the provision of accessible, high quality, community-based healthcare services for underserved and medically vulnerable populations.  The Foundation’s gift to the Geiger Gibson program supports health center research and scholarship.  For more information, visit https://www.rchnfoundation.org/.

Milken Institute School of Public Health:
Established in July 1997 as the School of Public Health and Health Services, Milken Institute School of Public Health is the only school of public health in the nation’s capital. Today, nearly 1,400 students from almost every U.S. state and more than 43 countries pursue undergraduate, graduate and doctoral-level degrees in public health. The school also offers an online Master of Public Health, MPH@GW, and an online Executive Master of Health Administration, MHA@GW, which allow students to pursue their degree from anywhere in the world.