NAHEC Board Biographies

• Christopher Seton Abele
• David A. Birch
• Madeleine Boyer
• Susan P. Byrnes, RN
• Bridget Coughlin, PhD
• Hal Donofrio
• J. Mark Dunham
• Judy M. Gantt
• Alexander P. Fraser
• Patricia Horvath
• Cheryl McInerney
• David Midland
• Theresa Reagan
• Diana Ruschhaupt
• Cynthia Ryan
• Becky Smith
• Sue Weinstein, M.D
• Rebecca Zakowski
• John Zaremba

Christopher Seton Abele is CEO of the Argosy Foundation, co-Founder, co-Chair and CEO of SteriLogic Waste Systems, Inc., a hospital services company headquartered in Syracuse, NY, and of CSA Commercial, a commercial real estate investing entity in Milwaukee, WI. Previously, Chris was publisher of the Boston Book Review and a Board member of the Harvard Readers Guild overseeing editorial content. Chris studied Philosophy and English Literature at Lawrence University and also studied at Bennington College, Boston University, Imperial College of London, and Harvard University. He serves on several civic and charitable Boards, including Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Art Museum, Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, Pabst Theater, Milwaukee Shakespeare, Bialystock and Bloom (a theater company), Wisconsin AIDS Fund, River Revitalization Committee, and Greater Milwaukee Committee. Nationally and internationally, his involvements include Physicians for Human Rights, Women for Women International, the International Coral Reef Forum, and the Foundation for Academic Standards and Tradition.

David A. Birch is professor and chair of the Department of Health Education and Recreation at Southern Illinois University. Before coming to SIU, he was a faculty member in the Department of Applied Health Science at Indiana University and a faculty member in the Department of Health Education at Penn State University. He is the immediate Past President of the American Association for Health Education (AAHE) and was awarded the American School Health Association’s Distinguished Service Award. At Indiana University, Dave received the Trustee’s Teaching Award and the Teaching Excellence Recognition Award. He has served on the Board of Directors of both AAHE and the American School Health Association, and as a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Health Education. He is currently a member of the editorial board of the American Journal of Health Studies and is an assistant editor of the American Journal of Health Behavior. Dr. Birch is the author of numerous professional articles and several books including Step by Step to Involving Parents in Health Education. He also worked for the Maine Department of Educational and Cultural Services and has ten years of public school teaching experience in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Dave received his BS at Slippery Rock University (PA), an MS at Towson University (MD) and a Ph.D. from Pennsylvania State University (PA).

Madeleine Boyer is Chief Marketing Officer for The Nemours Foundation's Center for Children's Health Media. The Media Center creates age-appropriate online, video and print media for parents, kids, and teens. Its flagship project is KidsHealth.org, the most visited website devoted to children’s health. Boyer earned a degree in marketing from the Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania.

Susan P. Byrnes, RN, is the Founder of the Susan P. Byrnes Health Education Center in York, PA. She worked for eight years as an Emergency Department nurse and became frustrated with treating disease. Knowing that many diseases could be prevented through healthy lifestyle choices, she became passionate about keeping people healthy though preventative health education. In 1995, Susie invited Dr. C. Everett Koop, US Surgeon General, to visit the new health education center when he said that “Susan and the staff of the Health Education Center found a way to put pizzazz into prevention” and agreed to serve on the Center’s Advisory Board. Now celebrating its 10th year of service, the Byrnes Health Education Center has educated and inspired over 500,000 people of all ages to make healthy choices. Susan is an active community leader, serving with Leave A Legacy, the National Planned Giving Council, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Tobacco Use Prevention and Cessation, and the Byrnes Health Education Center Board of Directors and various committees.

Bridget Coughlin, PhD, is the Curator of Human Health at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.  A native of Colorado, she received a Bachelors of Arts from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois and a Doctorate in Biochemistry at the University of Iowa, Howard Hughes Medical Institute.  With funding support from Martin Marietta & Department of Energy, Dr. Coughlin has worked on characterizing the ApoE gene, one of the first genes linked to Alzheimer's disease.  Her current research interests center on infectious diseases.  As a Burroughs-Wellcome Trust grant recipient at the Woods Hole Biological Laboratory in Massachusetts, she has performed research on the parasites Trypanosoma cruzi (the causative agent of Chagas disease), Trypanosoma brucei (African sleeping sickness), and Plasmodium falciparum (malaria). Prior to coming to the museum, Dr. Coughlin was the Managing Editor at the journal the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) in Washington, DC where she oversaw editorial and media operations.  She recently focused efforts on maximizing the publics' access to the scientific literature through an open access publishing model. At the Denver Museum of Nature and Science Dr. Coughlin is the curator for traveling exhibits, permanent exhibits, collections and outreach programs related to the health sciences.

Hal Donofrio is the CEO of Campaign For Our Children, Inc., a program that integrates mass media advertising, interactive media and public relations with school programs and counseling to influence attitudes about sex, love and values and which he founded in 1987. He is a graduate of the University of Maryland and a decorated U.S. Army veteran of the Korean War. Until recently, Hal was the Chairman of Richardson, Myers & Donofrio, Inc., a marketing communications organization that he founded in 1964. He is nationally recognized in the advertising industry and for his work in campaigns to prevent teen pregnancy.

J. Mark Dunham is President of the National Health Museum and responsible for providing senior leadership and strategic direction on all Museum programs and projects. Mark has been involved with the development of the Museum for seven years, and has worked on a wide array of Museum efforts including strategic planning, site acquisition, advocacy, and development. Mark’s background is in public affairs, legislative policy, and non-profit development. Prior to his work with the Museum, he served as Vice President of a Capital Hill public affairs firm that specializes in work on behalf of non-profit social service groups and institutions. In addition, he served as the legislative coordinator for a major Washington, DC law firm, Senior Legislative Aide to United States Senator J. Bennett Johnston (D-LA), and staff assistant to United States Senator Russell B. Long (D-LA). Mark is a graduate of Louisiana State University with a BA in Political Science.

Judy M. Gantt has served as Director and Museum Curator of Global Health Odyssey since its inception in 1996. With graduate and undergraduate degrees in education, Gantt joined the staff of CDC in 1980 as an Instructional Services Specialist. She served as Chief of the Extension Training Activity for CDC from 1985-1989 in which she managed programs and projects and then as Health Education and Information Specialist for the National Immunization Program. In her current position, she manages all projects and collection management activities, and oversees educational activities, including tour and curriculum development and a national speaker’s bureau. She is also spearheading the development of the CDC Public Health Museum.

Alexander P. Fraser is a partner in the Milwaukee office of Michael Best Friedrich LLP. He practices primarily in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, commercial lending and corporate finance and has represented financial and strategic buyers, venture capital firms, management groups, publicly-traded and closely-held businesses in mergers, acquisitions and financings of all types, including leveraged buyouts, mezzanine and other venture capital financings and going private transactions. Alec earned BS and MBA degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a JD from New York University. He is active with several civic and charitable organizations in Milwaukee, especially in the performing arts.

Patricia Horvath is Executive Director and CEO of HealthSpace Cleveland (OH) that opened its new $23 million state of the art facility and exhibit area in November 2003 and was elected to the NAHEC Board in 2001. She received her BS from Saint Louis University and a Master’s in Nursing from Case Western Reserve University. Patricia was an Assistant Professor for graduate level nursing at Yale University and then Manager, Global Health Promotion Program, British Petroleum.

Cheryl McInerney has been a NAHEC Board member since 2000 and is the Coordinator of the Saint Joseph Mercy Health Exploration Station, Canton, MI. She is a graduate of Central Michigan University and has an MS in Education from California State University. Cheryl chairs both the Conference and Curriculum Committees for NAHEC and is a member of the Executive Committee.

David Midland is the Executive Director of the National Association of Health Education Centers in Milwaukee, WI and is its first Executive Director. He brings over 30 years of leadership experience with non-profit organizations to NAHEC including two start-ups. David was the President of Artpark, New York State’s Park for the Performing and Visual Arts (Lewiston, NY) and was also its first Executive Director during its initial years of operation (1974-1981). He was also the first Executive Director of the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center (Tampa, FL), the General Manager of the Brooklyn Academy of Music (Brooklyn, NY) and the General Manager of the Paper Mill Playhouse (Millburn, NJ). David has a BA from the University of Chicago and a MFA from New York University’s School of the Arts. He has two Honorary Doctorate degrees and was given the Leonard L. Huttleson Special Services Award by the New York State Council of Parks and Recreation.

Theresa Reagan was elected to the NAHEC Board in 2000 and is the Executive Director of Children's Health Education Center, Milwaukee, WI, a member of the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin family. She has more than 15 years of experience in marketing, sales and non-profit administration and previously served as Executive Director of the Children's Health Alliance of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Theresa received her BA and MBA at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Diana Ruschhaupt is the Director of Programs for the Ruth Lilly Health Education Center. She has been at the Center for eight years. Prior to working at the Center, she was a health educator for four years at Barrington Middle School, Barrington, Illinois, teaching students in grades six through eight. Diana holds a BS in health and safety/families studies and human development and a MS in college and school health education form Indiana University, Bloomington. She holds a teaching license in health education and is a Certified Health Education Specialist. Diana serves on the board of directors for the Indiana Society for Public Health Education and for the Arthritis Foundation, Indiana Chapter. She is actively involved in AAPHERD/AAHE and ASHA.

Cynthia Ryan is Principal of The Schooner Foundation, a private family foundation based in Boston, MA, with an international focus on human rights and peace and security. She received a BA from the New School for Social Research and an MA from the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies. Cynthia is a trustee of National Braille Press and Women for Women International.  She also is a member of the Peace & Security Funders Group, the International Human Rights Funders Group, and Grantmakers Without Borders.  Cynthia currently lives in Washington DC.

Becky Smith is the Executive Director of the American Association for Health Education and Vice President of the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance in Reston, VA. She earned both Bachelors and Masters Degrees at the New York State University College at Brockport and her Ph.D. at the University of Illinois. Becky has served as Editor of the Journal of Health Education (1986-1997) and is presently Executive Editor of the American Journal of Health Education and the International Journal of Health Education. She has also served on more than 20 national advisory committees.

Sue Weinstein, M.D. serves as the Executive Director of Discover Health! Adventures in Learning. She was involved in the start-up and initial funding of the organization before becoming the first Executive Director. Sue received her undergraduate degree from Northwestern University and went on to earn an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of Finance and Administration at the University of Pennsylvania. After practicing health care consulting in Philadelphia, she received her M.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. She trained in Internal Medicine at Jewish Hospital. Utilizing both areas of study and practice, Dr. Weinstein worked as the Clinical Quality Improvement consultant for the Bethesda Hospitals. While serving as Adjunct Faculty for Xavier University’s Masters Program in health Administration, she increased her role in community health projects. She serves on the Outcomes Management Task Force and Community Health Status Committee of the Health Collaborative of Greater Cincinnati, the Hamilton County Coordinated School Health Committee, the Greater Cincinnati Alliance for Health Promotion and the Board of the Lincoln Heights Health Center.

Rebecca Zakowski is the Director (aka Visionary Potentiator of Pumped Up Kids!) of HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum. In South Bend, IN and joined the NAHEC Board in 2001. She earned a BS in English Education from Ashland University and is a registered nurse. Becky also has a Certificate in Executive Management from the University of Notre Dame. Prior to HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum, Becky was a health educator at the McMillen Center, Ft. Wayne, IN, and a coordinator with Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, Ann Arbor, MI, where she helped launch Saint Joseph Mercy Health Exploration Station.

John Zaremba is President Emeritus of the Robert Crown Center for Health Education in Hinsdale, IL, which is one of the oldest centers, opening in 1974. John is Past President of NAHEC and has been a Board member since 1997. He has a Bachelors degree from Western Illinois University and a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. John is the former Assistant Superintendent of Schools for General Operations for the Consolidated High School District 230 in Orland Park, IL and serves on numerous committees with the Chicago Public Schools.