Alexandria, VA – The Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) congratulates seven individuals who were elected to the SOPHE 2026-2027 Board of Trustees after voting by members.
The new board members will be inducted and begin their terms of office on April 23, 2026 during the 2026 SOPHE Annual Conference all-member business meeting. Along with other volunteer leaders, the Board of Trustees comprises SOPHE’s governing body.
“We are excited to announce such a wonderful slate of new board members,” SOPHE President Dr. Heidi Hancher-Rauch said. “I look forward to working with each of them as we continue our important work.”
“SOPHE staff are excited about this exceptional group of leaders,” said SOPHE CEO Dr. William Datema. “We look forward to working with them and current leaders to advance the new SOPHE Strategic Plan and build on SOPHE’s 76-year legacy of service.”
The full list of new board members and positions:
President-Elect
Antonio Gardner, PhD, MS, MCHES®, Associate Professor/Director of Education & Evaluation for Rural Programs at The University of Alabama
Treasurer
Kennedy Dawson, MPH, Program Director at the National Health Corps Florida – AmeriCorps
Trustee, At-Large
Janae Bady, PhD, MPH, CHES®, Lecturer at Central Michigan University
Shelby Flores-Thorpe, PhD, MEd, CHES®, NCI Postdoctoral Fellow at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health in Austin, TX
Tiffany Neal, MPH, MCHES®, Community Health Coordinator at American Heart Association
Gayle Walter, PhD, MPH, MCHES®, Director, Public Health Program & Associate Professor, Allen College, Iowa
Trustee, Student
Ethan Greenblatt, MCHES®, CPH, Health Education Supervisor, St. Louis County Department of Public Health
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About SOPHE
The Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) is a nonprofit association that supports leaders in public health, health education and promotion to advance healthy and equitable communities across the globe. SOPHE members work in health care settings, communities, organizations, schools, universities, worksites, and in local, state and federal government agencies. For more information visit www.sophe.org
