Speakers

Casey Shillam, PhD, RN
Dean & Professor
School of Nursing
University of Portland

Dr. Casey Shillam is a Professor at the University of Portland, School of Nursing. Dr. Shillam completed her PhD and MSN degrees at the Oregon Health and Science University in 2008 and 2004, respectively. She joined the faculty of University of Portland in 2008 after working as a home health nurse at Signature Home Health. Dr. Shillam has taught in both the undergraduate and graduate programs across many courses. Her research interests include the development of peer-mentoring programs and the referral patterns of older primary care patients to specialty pain management centers. Dr. Shillam served as a member of the former Essentials Task Force.

Speakers

Thomas A. LaVeist, PhD
Dean
Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine

Thomas A. LaVeist was appointed dean of the Tulane University, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in July 2018. Previous to that he served as chairman of the Department of Health Policy and Management at the George Washington University (GWU), Milken Institute School of Public Health. He joined GWU after 25 years on the faculty of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health where he was the William & Nancy Richardson Professor in Health Policy and Founding Director of the Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, his doctorate degree from the University of Michigan and completed postdoctoral studies in gerontology and Health Management & Policy at the Michigan School of Public Health. Dr. LaVeist’s research focuses on health equity, having conducted major studies of cultural competency in healthcare, social determinants of health, and health policy analysis. In addition to his extensive record of publication in scientific journals, he has written for NEWSWEEK MAGAZINE, BALTIMORE SUN, and other mass media outlets. He has authored or edited six books, and is executive producer, and narrator for THE SKIN YOU’RE IN, a documentary series about racial inequalities in health that is currently in production. His research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, Center for Disease Control, Department of Defense, Commonwealth Fund, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Sage Foundation and the Agency for Healthcare Research.

Daniel Dawes, JD
Director, Morehouse School of Medicine
Satcher Health Leadership Institute

Daniel E. Dawes is a widely respected healthcare and public health leader, health policy expert, educator, and researcher who serves as executive director of the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse School of Medicine and a professor of health law, policy, and management. He is the author of two groundbreaking books, 150 Years of ObamaCare and The Political Determinants of Health, both published by Johns Hopkins University Press. Among his many achievements, he was an instrumental figure in developing and negotiating the Mental Health Parity Act, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act, and the Affordable Care Act’s health equity-focused provisions, among other landmark federal policies, as well as the principal investigator for the nation’s first health equity tracker, co-founder of the Health Equity Leadership and Exchange Network (HELEN), and co-principal investigator of the HHS National COVID-19 Resiliency Network. Professor Dawes is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and an elected fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine. He serves as an advisor to The White House COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force and an appointed member of the CDC’s Advisory Committee to the Director.

Moderator:

Malika Fair, MD, MPH
Senior Director, Equity and Social Accountability
Association of American Medical Colleges

Malika Fair is the Senior Director of Equity and Social Accountability at the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). Dr. Fair develops programs and initiatives with multidisciplinary partners and local communities to advance equity, racial justice, population health, and accountability through a continuous equity improvement lens. Within the AAMC Strategic Plan, Dr. Fair leads one of the 10 action plans for the AAMC: Equipping Academic Medicine to be More Inclusive and Equitable. Within this action plan, Dr. Fair oversees the plan to address and eliminate racism within academic medicine. Her work assists the academic medicine community in becoming anti-racist leaders who acknowledge and understand systemic racial inequities and cultivate evidence-based policies and practices that promote racial justice and equity in our communities, education and research institutions, and health care systems. Dr. Fair is also an Associate Clinical Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine of The George Washington University. She is the Vice Chair of the Advisory Board of the Griffith Leadership Center within the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Department of Health Management and Policy and serves on the Fiscal Control Board of Directors for United Medical Center in Washington, DC. In 2019, Dr. Fair was selected to serve on the Mayor’s Commission on Healthcare Systems Transformation for the District of Columbia and to be included in the 40 Under 40 Leaders in Minority Health by the National Minority Quality Forum. Dr. Fair completed her residency training and chief residency at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, NC. She received her medical and Master of Public Health degrees from the University of Michigan and Bachelor of Science from Stanford University.

Speakers

Christine W. Thorpe, EdD, EdM, CHES
Dean, Nathan Weiss Graduate College
Kent University

Dr. Christine Thorpe is the dean of the Nathan Weiss Graduate College at Kean University. She is a certified wellness coach and health education specialist with over 20 years of experience in higher education and the health and human services field. Her interests and research publications focus on women’s health, health disparities, historical traumas, holistic nutrition, patient navigation, motivational interviewing, and health literacy. Dr. Thorpe is the author of Living Beyond the Façade: Inside the Health and Wealth Practices of Americans of African Descent and is sought after to speak on the topics of health and wealth in diverse families. Dr. Thorpe holds a BS in psychology from Syracuse University, an EdM in international educational development and an EdD in health education from Teachers College Columbia University. She is also a Rutgers Minority Serving Institution Aspiring Leader, board member of the YWCA of Northern New Jersey, as well as a member of the Junior League of Montclair-Newark, the Society for the Analysis of African American Public Health Issues and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Ibtihal Al-Makhzoomy, PhD, MSN, RN, CNE
Assistant Professor, School of Nursing
Kean University

Dr. Ibtihal K. Al-Makhzoomy is an Assistant Professor at Kean University, Nathan Weiss Graduate College, School of Nursing. She is a Certified Nurse Educator and an Adult and Gerontology nurse with over 20 years of higher education experience, teaching graduate and undergraduate students of various cultures, countries, and contexts. She is the Coordinator of the PhD Program in Nursing Educational Leadership, and teaches across the RN-BSN, MSN, and PhD programs. She directs the HRSA Nurse Faculty Loan Program, and serves on various committees. Dr. Al-Makhzoomy earned her BSN from the Jordan University of Science and Technology and her MSN and PhD from the University of Iowa, College of Nursing. She is also a member of various national and international professional nursing organizations.

Dr. Al-Makhzoomy has a strong passion for research in access and equity issues related to chronic illness care, health care utilization outcomes, and health disparities among disadvantaged populations. She is the principal investigator of the project The Effectiveness of Patient Navigation using Motivational Interviewing and m-Health Technology on Patient Activation & Engagement for Self-management Practices in Hypertension and Cardiovascular Disease Risk: A Pilot study. Dr. Al-Makhzoomy has led the Nathan Weiss Graduate College Center for Health Equity Education Research and Practice's collaborative efforts to meet the needs of the diverse communities within New Jersey through community-campus partnerships. Her prior experience in this area is through two studies focusing on Arab women who have diabetes, providing significant implications for practice, education, research, and policy.

Mahchid Namazi, MS, PhD, CCC-SLP
Executive Director, School of Communication Disorders and Deafness
Kean University

Dr. Mahchid Namazi is a tenured faculty member and director of the School of Communication Disorders & Deafness at Kean University. She is an ASHA certified multilingual speech language pathologist with over 25 years of experience in various clinical settings as a clinician and clinical supervisor. Dr. Namazi has dedicated 17 years to higher education. She conducts research and other scholarly activity in multilingual and multicultural aspects of speech, language, and communication development and disorder, as well as interprofessional practice and Autism. Dr. Namazi has obtained the following grants and scholarships: Hersch Foundation Grant, NJACE Scholarship, Kean University Students Partnering with Faculty, Kean University Faculty Foundation Research Award, National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada scholarship, and Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists research award.

Dr. Namazi earned her Doctor of Philosophy in 2010 from McGill University, established in 1821 and recognized around the world for the excellence of its teaching and research programs. Prior to joining Kean University, she worked at McGill University as an adjunct faculty and a clinical educator. She has published multiple peer reviewed articles, presented her work in Europe, Canada, and the United States, and written research reports which include Caseload Guidelines in Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology and Recruitment & retention plan to improve access to OT, PT, & SLP services for preschool children in BC.

Mariann Moran, OTD, OTR, CHT
Assistant Professor, Department of Occupational Therapy, Nathan Weiss Graduate College
Kean University

Mariann Moran, OTD, OTR, CHT, has been an occupational therapist, specializing in hand therapy, for over 40 years. She has worked in a variety of settings including acute care, homecare, school-based therapy, and ran her six-location hand therapy practice for almost 25 years. She has been involved in academia for more than 20 years, first as an adjunct professor and then full-time assistant professor. Dr. Moran has been an advocate for the profession of occupational therapy on the state licensure committee, advisory councils for several insurance companies and representing the profession with other community groups. She has held leadership positions with several state and national professional organizations, including president of the New Jersey Occupational Therapy Association and an elected member to the Representative Assembly of American Occupational Therapy Association. Dr. Moran has developed a special interest in research especially related to interprofessional collaboration. She has presented both nationally and internationally. She has articles published in peer review journals and in specialized hand therapy books.

Prisca Anuforo, DNP
Executive Director, School of Nursing
Kean University

Dr. Prisca Anuforo is an Executive Director in the School of Nursing at the Nathan Weiss Graduate College at Kean University. Her experience in the field of transcultural nursing administration and education brings the skills of diversity, equity and justice to the administration. Dr. Anuforo’s contributions to science is centered on her interest in transcultural nursing, nursing education & practice, and interprofessional education, and practice. Her early research focused on culture care and understanding the meanings, beliefs, and practices of female circumcision/genital mutilation. This study identified the underground practice of female circumcision in the United States, a country where the practiced is outlawed. In 2004, the study was one of the 50 most requested articles. In the area of curriculum development, Dr. Anuforo co-authored a holistic model for nursing education called the Integrated Student Growth Model (ISGM). This work was honored by AACN as was awarded the best Poster Presentation in academic excellence. Dr. Anuforo has authored and co-authored various DNP research and intends to continue the research to validate the ISGM model.

Dr. Anuforo earned her DNP from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Organizational Leadership. In her previous role, she worked with underserved populations to provide technology education via the Perkins grant. She is experienced in administering the faculty loan grant sponsored by HRSA which the School of Nursing received a few years ago. Dr. Anuforo is a proud member of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, American Nurses Association, National League for Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau, Lambda Iota Chapter, Union, New Jersey, Nigerian Nurses Association of North America, New Jersey Chapter and Transcultural Nursing Society. She received honors in March of Dimes as a finalist for Leader of the Year Award in 2019, Carnegie Foundation African Diaspora Fellowship and Essex County College Leadership Award to name a few.

Oluchi Elekwachi, PharmD, MPH, CGH
Commander, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps

At the FDA Center for Biologic Research and Evaluation (CBER), Dr. Elekwachi is the primary labeling, advertising, and promotional product review of travel-related, herpes zoster, and human papilloma virus vaccines. She is the CBER Team Leader for the Proprietary Name Review Team. Dr. Elekwachi is the FDA Lead on the HHS Inter-Agency Adult Immunization Task Force. As a researcher, she is the Principal Investigator on two federally funded grants from the FDA Offices of Minority Health and Health Equity as well as the Office of Women’s Health, where she studies the role of health communications on health disparities and gender-sensitive messaging.

Dr. Elekwachi is a pharmacist in the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) where she serves as the liaison to the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. Dr. Elekwachi is also an Opioid Overdose and Naloxone Administration instructor with the Maryland Department of Health where she administers training and guidance to healthcare personnel on the nation-wide opioid epidemic.

Speakers

	Lynda Benton Senior Director Strategic Initiatives, Global Community Impact Johnson & Johnson
	Jeff Day, DNP, AGPCNP-BC Clinical Assistant Professor New York University Rory Meyers College of Nursing
	Geraldine Rebach, MS, BSN Practice Partner Former HIV and Palliative Care Nurse (Retired)
	Cheryl Woods Giscombe, PhD, RN, Melissa and Harry LeVine Family Professor of Quality of Life, Health Promotion and Wellness University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Speakers

Linda M. MacIntyre, PhD, RN, PHN
Chief Nurse
American Red Cross

As Chief Nurse of the American Red Cross, Linda MacIntyre provides internal leadership for health professional volunteers and provides oversight for Academic Service-Learning. Linda works with senior leaders to provide vision, direction and support for nursing and health in meeting the mission of the Red Cross. Externally, Linda represents the organization and collaborates with major federal and civilian health and nursing organizations, government agencies, universities, hospitals, and other key stakeholders.

Linda worked as a social worker in England. Her nursing experience includes 5 years as a hemodialysis staff nurse, serving as Director of Community Health and Youth for the Red Cross Greater Kansas City Chapter and teaching community health nursing as full-time faculty at University of California, San Francisco. Linda volunteered for several years and served as the National Chair of Nursing for the Red Cross.

Linda has a degree in theology from Westminster College in Oxford, England, a nursing degree from Texas Christian University and a PhD in nursing from University of California, San Francisco.