December 20, Washington, DC – The Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) proudly announces the establishment of a special committee to lead the festivities and historical celebration of its 75th year of progress.
The committee, co-chaired by SOPHE History Committee Chair Dr. Julia Alber and SOPHE Past President Dr. John Allegrante, will organize and lead the year-long celebration of SOPHE’s diamond anniversary, “SOPHE at 75: Celebrating the Past, Shaping the Future.” Events will kick off at SOPHE’s Annual Conference in March 2024 in St. Louis and conclude at SOPHE’s 2025 Annual Conference in Long Beach, Calif.
“It is especially noteworthy to launch these festivities in St. Louis, Mo., which is heralded as SOPHE’s official birthplace and site of the first SOPHE board meeting,” says Dr. Leonard Jack, Jr., SOPHE President-Elect. “We’re excited to have recruited a diverse group of new and seasoned SOPHE members to help make the year-long commemoration a way to honor the Society’s past accomplishments as well as shape its future legacy.”
Members of the committee are as follows:
Members
Julia Alber – SOPHE Historian, 75th Committee Co-chair, California Polytechnic State University
John Allegrante – SOPHE Past President, 75th Committee Co-chair, Columbia University
M. Elaine Auld – SOPHE Chief Executive Officer, Emerita
David Brown – SOPHE Treasurer, National Library of Medicine
Deborah Fortune – SOPHE Past President, North Carolina Central University
Leonard Jack, Jr. – SOPHE President Elect, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Nandi Marshall – former SOPHE Board member and APHA Board Chair, Georgia Southern University
Holly Moses – Eta Sigma Gamma Past President, University of Florida
David Sleet – SOPHE Distinguished Fellow
Student Members
Owen Jessup – Graduate Student, San Diego State University
Lauren Sandoval – Undergraduate Student, California Polytechnic University
Ex officio Members
Bill Datema – SOPHE Chief Executive Officer
Tom Lawson – SOPHE Director, Communications and Publications
Honorary Members
Lawrence Green – SOPHE Past President, University of California, San Francisco
All SOPHE members are invited to share any ideas to include in the year-long celebration by contacting Julia Alber, jmalber@calpoly.edu.
