Professor of the Practice of Public Health
Director, Center for Public Health Leadership
Telephone: 617-432-2212
Mobile: 617-480-9217
John E. McDonough, D.Ph., MPA is a professor of public health practice at the Harvard School of Public Health and director of the new Center for Public Health Leadership. Most recently, he was the Joan H. Tisch Distinguished Fellow in Public Health at Hunter College in New York City. Between 2008 and 2010, he served as a Senior Advisor on National Health Reform to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
Fawn Phelps is Assistant Director of the Center for Public Health Leadership, managing the Center’s leadership development programming. She has more than 14 years of experience in legislative and regulatory advocacy focused on the well-being of low-income and disadvantaged populations. She joined HSPH after six years at Health Care For All where she staffed the pioneering coalition that backed Massachusetts’ landmark health reform and served as the organization’s Policy Director during Massachusetts health reform implementation.
Director of Practice
Deputy Director, Public Health Leadership Program
Telephone: 617-432-3592
Michael McCormack is the Director of Practice, and Deputy Director for the Public Health Leadership Program at the Harvard School of Public Health. Serving as both an instructor and a member of the CPHL and OEP staffs, he has developed a number of highly rated experiential programs for students and staff, as well as a class that connects students with Public Health challenges and the community. Additionally, Michael is the Director of the Massachusetts Institute for Community Health Leadership, which he created in 2005. The purpose of the Institute is to build bench strength for future leaders in nonprofit community based organizations. The program strengthens participants’ understanding of and ability to be effective collaborative leaders.
Prior to his work with the BCBSMA Foundation, Michael served as senior training and organization development consultant for BCBSMA. He has also worked for Quaker Oats, Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, and The Methodist Medical Center of Illinois. Michael received his M.S. in Organization Development from American University School of Public Affairs.
Sofiya is a second-year Health Policy & Management Master’s student at HSPH. Originally from Ukraine, Sofiya grew up in Massachusetts and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Spanish at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Prior to attending HSPH, she worked as a research assistant in the Cancer Control Program at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, DC. Sofiya is currently spending the summer as the Patient Centered Medical Home coordinator at Codman Square Health Center in Dorchester, MA, with a focus on primary care delivery transformation and NCQA application submission. Her interests are in healthcare delivery redesign, change management, and quality improvement.
Dutchess County Commissioner of Health
County Executive William R. Steinhaus appointed Dr. Michael C. Caldwell Commissioner of the Dutchess County Department of Health on August 8, 1994. He was reappointed in 2000 and again in 2006. He oversees the health of nearly 300,000 people over an 800 square mile area with 150 employees and a budget over $35 million. One of the youngest physicians ever to be appointed Health Commissioner in the United States, he served as the youngest President of his national professional association, the National Association of County & City Health Officials (NACCHO) as well as the youngest President of the New York State Association of County Health Officials (NYSACHO).
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,
William Gallagher Associates
Mr. Edmundson co-founded William Gallagher Associates in 1983 with Mr. Gallagher. He became CEO in 1997 and has since grown the firm to be the largest independent brokerage in New England. Mr. Edmundson is a Trustee of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, a Trustee of the Trustees of Reservations and Overseer of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He is also a Director of the Progressive Business Leaders Network. He is the former chairman of the Hingham Board of Selectmen. He is a Director of the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers in Washington, DC. He serves as the Chairman of Affordable Care Today, a coalition of business, consumer, provider, and labor organizations working to increase health care access in Massachusetts.
Executive Director,
Boston Public Health Commission
Barbara Ferrer PhD., MPH, M.Ed., is the Executive Director of the Boston Public Health Commission. Dr. Ferrer was appointed to lead the Commission in 2007 based on her years of public health experience and her commitment to serving the needs of all Bostonians, particularly vulnerable populations. She had previously spent five years as the Commission’s Deputy Director where she played a key role working on topics ranging from AIDS, to developing strategies to reduce Boston’s infant mortality rate. She also helped launch the city’s groundbreaking work to end racial and ethnic health disparities.
Senior Faculty, MGH
Instructor, Department of Social Medicine
Dr. Roderick K. King is currently the president of Next Generation Consulting Group, an organization that focuses on promoting positive social change through strategic planning, leadership and organizational development, evaluation, and social entrepreneurship to build healthy communities. In addition, Dr King is Senior Faculty at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Disparities Solutions Center and an Instructor in the Department of Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School (HMS). He most recently served as the Director for the Health Resources and Services Administration, Boston Regional Division and as a Commander in the US Public Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Massachusetts House of Representatives
Chairman, Joint Committee on Public Health
Chairman Jeffrey Sánchez serves as Massachusetts State Representative for the 15th Suffolk/Norfolk District. He was appointed House Chairman of the Joint Committee on Public Health by Speaker Robert DeLeo in February 2009. His work is concentrated on improving quality in health through systematic reforms in the public health and health care systems. He is committed to seeking the nexus of health care in the traditional setting and the promotion of public health in the community setting, and in our daily lives.
