Advocacy

Denise Smith, MPH (St. Albans, VT) – Board Treasurer

Denise is a value-driven, systems level collective impact leader with 20+ years of experience at the intersection of planetary and human health and wellbeing. She has spent a large degree of her service in executive roles with environmental, healthcare, and community and economic development organizations. Denise recognizes the importance authentic leadership plays in the meaningful transformation of systems and believes that communities possess the self-organizing abilities to redefine their futures. She currently serves as the Executive Director of the Vermont Council on Rural Development, an organization committed to lifting up community voice in decision making. She attended the University of Vermont (UVM) as an undergraduate and served in the Peace Corps in Mali, West Africa. In 2018 she received her Master of Science in Leadership for Sustainability from Rubenstein School at UVM. She is currently the Chair of the St. Albans City Planning Commission, Chair of the Citizens Advisory Committee for Lake Champlain, and Treasurer of the Vermont Public Health Association. She is an avid yoga practitioner, and enjoys all of Vermont’s outdoor activities. She lives in an old house that she and her husband are remodeling room by room in St. Albans with their three children and two dogs.

Maureen Leahy, M.Ed (South Burlington, VT) – Board Member

Maureen Leahy is the Director of Neurology and Psychiatry in the University of Vermont Medical Group and provides management leadership for multiple clinical sites. Maureen earned a Master’s of Adult Education and also a Certification of Advanced Management Studies from St. Michael’s College. In addition to her extensive background and expertise in health care management, she also serves as a board member for The Turning Point Center of Chittenden County. Maureen taught emergency medical response at the University of Vermont and was Fire Lieutenant of the South Burlington Fire Department.

Penrose Jackson (So. Burlington, VT) – Board Member

A native of mid-state in New York, Penrose Jackson came to Vermont to attend the University of Vermont. She attended UVM and graduated in 1970, having majored in history. She attended John Marshall Law School in Chicago, before returning to Vermont to settle permanently.

After working at the University of Vermont for several years, Ms. Jackson accepted a job in the City of Burlington’s Planning Office, which evolved into her role as the first Executive Director of the Church Street Marketplace. In that role, she was responsible for overseeing the funding, construction, and operation of the pedestrian mall for 13 years. Following the Marketplace, she served as executive director of the National Gardening Association, Intervale Foundation, Vermont Public Health Association, and Vermont Health Foundation (VHF). The VHF job evolved to a position as director of The University of Vermont Medical Center’s department of Community Health Improvement, which she held for 15 years until the end of 2018. Ms. Jackson now serves Interim Executive Director of the Vermont Public Health Institute. She is also a Review Editor for Frontiers in Public Health, “Public Health Policy,” publications.

Ms. Jackson’s experience on non-profit boards in the community is extensive, including service as chair of the Greater Burlington YMCA, Women Helping Battered Women, the Ethan Allen Homestead, First Night Burlington, the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission, among others. Ms. Jackson currently serves on the boards of the Vermont Foodbank and the Vermont Historical Society. She has received national (the Association for Community Health’s “Spirit of the Community” leadership award) and local (the Lake Champlain Regional Commerce’s “Community Excellence” award) recognition for her commitment to community. In 2023 she received the University of Vermont’s highest volunteer recognition, the Distinguished Service Award.

In 2011 she received a Certificate in Community Benefit from Saint Louis University. Ms. Jackson lives and gardens in Hinesburg, Vermont, with her husband, Schuyler, and dog, Zim.

Rudy Fedrizzi (White River Junction, VT) – Board Member

Rudolph (Rudy) Fedrizzi, MD is the Public Health Services District Director for the White River Junction Office of Local Health (OLH) in the VT Department of Health.

From July 2018 until he accepted the OLH District Director position in April 2019, he was a practice facilitator for the UNH Institute for Policy and Practice’s NH Citizens Health Initiative and its Northern New England Practice Transformation Network. He also served as a private healthcare consultant on projects involving food insecurity in children and improving the control and prevention of hypertension and diabetes.

Dr. Fedrizzi previously practiced Obstetrics and Gynecology for 16 years, most recently as a partner in Every Woman’s Care, PLLC in Ithaca, NY (2005-2009). His past administrative and clinical experience includes Chief of OB-GYN Services and training as a flight surgeon at Luke Air Force Base Hospital in Glendale, AZ (1993-1997 – Rank of Major) and Medical Director of the Northern New Mexico Women’s Health and Birth Center in Taos, New Mexico (1997-2003). He holds a medical license in VT.

Dr. Fedrizzi relocated to New Hampshire in the fall of 2009 and in early 2010 assumed the non-clinical role of Director of Clinical Integration in the Center for Population Health at Cheshire Medical Center/Dartmouth-Hitchcock, a community hospital and multi-specialty physician practice located in Keene, NH. He held this position until June of 2018. In that role he took the lead in organizing integration efforts that purposefully and proactively link clinical services with community health partners and resources. He served as a core member of the Healthy Monadnock Initiative project team that ensured continuing progress on the goal of the Initiative to make the Monadnock Region of southwestern NH the healthiest community in the nation. He also served as a member of Cheshire Medical Center’s Accountable Care Organization Leadership Team and chaired the organization’s Research Committee helping to facilitate collaborative research efforts involving the medical campus and academic partners. He actively refined and promoted a Clinical Integration model and regularly shared case examples of Integration projects with local, regional, and national audiences through articles, conferences, and webinars.

Currently, he is Chair of the Leadership Council of the Dartmouth Center for Advancing Rural Health Equity, Chair of the Upper Valley Medical Reserve Corps Advisory Board, Immediate past-President of the Public Health Council of the Upper Valley Board, Treasurer of the Southern NH AHEC Board, and a member of the Twin Pines Housing Trust Board. He is a member of the American Public Health Association and a Board member of its Vermont Affiliate.

He is a summa cum laude graduate of St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. He received his Medical Degree from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, MO and completed his Residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology from Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN.
He has three children, Julianna (31), Peter (28) and Ellie (19). He is an avid reader, whimsical birdhouse builder, and reasonably consistent runner.

Molly Lawrence, MPH (Burlington, VT) – Board President

Molly (she/her) is an engaged public health professional currently leading collaborative, equity-centered Community Benefit and Community Health Improvement initiatives across the University of Vermont Health Network. Molly’s professional experience spans the non-profit and healthcare sector, including: academic and civic research, policy development, and designing and implementing programs that address the social and environmental drivers of health. Formative public service experiences include serving as Initiative on Cities Fellow with the Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics, and as an AmeriCorps VISTA at Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services. Professional interests include: facilitating authentic community dialogue, environmental justice and climate resiliency, integrative health, and food sovereignty.

Molly earned her Master’s in Public Health from Boston University School of Public Health with a concentration in Social and Behavioral Health Sciences and area of emphasis in Health Disparities. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Public Health and Social Behavior and a Minor in Psychology from Lesley University. She is a graduate of the Institute for Integrated Leadership Semester Intensive program at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health.

Joyce Gallimore, CPHQ, MPH (So. Burlington, VT) – Board Member

Joyce Gallimore retired from full time work and pursues her personal and career goals and values through volunteer work, continued learning opportunities and consulting opportunities. Her expertise includes health care quality improvement projects, promoting healthy behavioral choices, consumer education related to illness prevention, sustainable communities, and health care delivery.She worked for Bistate Primary Care Association as the Director of the Community Health Accountable Care Organization consisting of a network of 14 federally qualified community health centers in Vermont. For 10 years prior to her work at Bistate, Joyce was the Regional Director of Quality Improvement and Utilization Management for MVP Health Plan. She moved to Vermont in 1997 to serve as the VP of Operations for the newly formed Vermont Health Plan, a statewide network for coordinated care. Prior to this, she oversaw the licensing and surveillance of all ambulatory facilities for the New York Department of Health. Joyce earned a Master’s in Public Health from the Gillings Global School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. She expresses her love of outdoor activities with bicycling, cross-country skiing and walking, and enjoys writing poetry and essays. Joyce is a Past Secretary of VtPHA and past President of the VtPHA (2020 – 2021).

Katina Cummings (St. Johnsbury, VT) – Board Member

Katina holds a wealth of experience in organizational management and leadership, policy and project planning in the public health, mental health and social service arenas. Since 2019, she has served as the Health Workforce Program Manager at the Northern Vermont Area Health Education Center (AHEC), where she leads the continuing education program for health professionals, and the organization’s work in advancing equity-oriented health care. She also provides support to UVM medical and other health professions students in their rural community health improvement projects. Katina is active on the State’s Community Health Worker Steering Committee and participated for several years on the VT Farm Health and Safety Coalition. For 3 years, she developed community-based initiatives in KY as the Refugee Health Promotion and Education Coordinator to improve the health and wellbeing of newly arriving and resettling people across the state. A trained and experienced educator in diverse service settings, Katina has provided technical assistance and training for interprofessional service teams in trauma-informed and culturally and linguistically appropriate health care service delivery. Her professional interests include enhancing cross-disciplinary initiatives to eliminate health disparities for minority and underserved populations. She holds a B.S. degree in Political Science and History and a Master’s Degree in Planning from M.I.T. In 2015, she volunteered with Mercy World Wide and Doctors of the World at the Moria Refugee Camp in Lesvos, Greece.

Kenneth Allen, Ed.D., MBA . (Burlington, VT) – Board Member

Kenneth is a senior lecturer in the Department of Biomedical and Health Sciences at the University of Vermont. Prior to moving to Vermont, Kenneth worked for Kaiser Permanente in Northern California as a clinical education coordinator, project manager, and director of imaging services. His work has often focused on regulatory compliance and advocacy, addressing inequities in the delivery of healthcare, and quality improvement in the delivery of diagnostic services. Kenneth received his doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Vermont in 2016. His research interests include college matriculation patterns of students who are typically underrepresented in the healthcare workforce and the safe and effective use of radiation in diagnostic imaging. His teaching focus is in the areas of healthcare finance, program planning, and sustainability. Kenneth is a past president of the VtPHA (2020 – 2023).

Burton Wilcke PhD (So. Burlington, VT) –Affiliate Rep. to APHA Governing Council

Burton is an Emeritus Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical and Health Sciences in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Vermont. Currently he is engaged in Global Health consulting work focusing on leadership training for laboratory directors in developing countries. He has over twenty-five years of public health practice experience at the state and local level in California, Michigan and Vermont. In 2002 he became the Chair of the Department of Medical Laboratory and Radiation Sciences (now Biomedical and Health Sciences) at the University of Vermont (UVM). Prior to joining the faculty at UVM he was the Director of Health Surveillance for the Vermont Department of Health. His experience covers a range of areas spanning infectious diseases, microbiology, public health practice, the health workforce and global health. He has previously served on committees and boards of national health and public health organizations such as the American Public Health Association, the American Society for Microbiology, the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) serving as its President, and the Institute of Medicine. He has also served on the Editorial Board of the Emerging Infectious Diseases and Public Health Reports. He is a Past President of the Vermont Public Health Association.

Sally Kerschner RN, MSN (Ferrisburgh, VT) – Board Secretary

Sally has been involved with the Vermont Public Health Association for over twenty years. She retired from the Vermont Department of Health in 2021 where she worked since 1983 in a variety of supervisory and management positions in programs addressing community health and Maternal and Child Health. Her professional interests include population health planning, systems development, public health policy, and maternal and child health issues such as environmental, periconceptual health, injury prevention, and rural health. Sally is a Past President of the VtPHA (2017-2020.)

Dan Olson (South Burlington, VT) – Executive Director

Dan joined the Vermont Public Health Association as Executive Director in March of 2023. Over Dan’s 20-plus year career, he has held various roles in for-profit and nonprofit organizations, all with a focus on improving the health of human and natural communities. Dan served as the Executive Director of the Colorado and New Mexico-based environmental advocacy organization San Juan Citizens Alliance. He also held multiple product management roles at Ecova (now ENGIE Impact), including Director of Product Management, leading the organization’s carbon accounting, waste, water, and strategy and engagement services. In addition to these roles, Dan was the founder of a consulting business that served the sustainable operation needs of small and medium-sized businesses in the Intermountain West, pioneered the use of environmentally-beneficial loan funds at Harvard University, and has served as a volunteer and board member of numerous nonprofits. In his free time, Dan and his family enjoy exploring the many and varied wonders of the Northeast and beyond.

EMAIL DAN: [email protected]