In keeping with this issue on healthy aging, the School of Public Health salutes its longest-serving faculty and staff:
- Pamela Sufka, senior research assistant (1979), Department of Epidemiology
- Kimberly Beringer, director of computing (1984), Epidemiology Data Center;
- Steven Belle, PhD, MSc, professor of epidemiology and of biostatistics and health data science (1985)
- M. Ilyas Kamboh, PhD, professor of human genetics (1985)
Additional School of Public Health employment milestones to note include
- Laurie Ney Silfies, systems programmer, Epidemiology Data Center, 40 years
- Tamara Haller, research database manager, Department of Epidemiology, 30 years
- Michelle E. Utz-Kiley, research assistant, Department of Epidemiology, 20 years
- Stefanie P. Junker, project manager, Department of Health Policy and Management, 20 years
- Peggy Kernan, information technology manager, 20 years
- Jessica Sikora, executive assistant, Office of the Dean, 20 years
Jennifer H. Palaski, MBA, associate dean for finance and administration, completed the inaugural Emerging Leaders @ Pitt program in May. Over the course of eight months, participants in the program met monthly, attended sessions with guest speakers, visited campus sites such as the Big Idea Center and collaborated on team projects. This pilot program aims to provide recommendations for developing and retaining future emerging leaders, while fostering relationship-building across the University.
Marcie Johnson-Spratt, MEd, director of special projects, Office of the Dean, has been elected as the University of Pittsburgh Staff Council's inaugural vice president for membership. Caitlin McCullough, web content manager, is council parliamentarian. Staff Council serves a as a center for input and dissemination of information and provides a means of communication between staff and other members of the Pitt community. Membership is comprised of representatives of the University staff and officers that are elected by the Council membership.
Jean B. Nachega, MD, PhD, MPH, associate professor of infectious diseases and microbiology, has been formally inducted into the Academie Congolaise des Sciences (ACCOS), the Congolese Academy of Sciences. A native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nachega is also a member-elect of the Academy of Science of South Africa and of the African Academy of Sciences.
Congratulations to Master of Public Health Students McKenna Brunick, Department of Human Genetics, and Maahi Soni, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, who have been selected as This is Public Health ambassadors for 2025-26 by the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. The national program recognizes 71 graduate students from 47 institutions who will share their perspectives and promote the value of public health education.
Sonja Swanson, PhD, associate professor of epidemiology, presented a talk, "Methods Matter," as part of the 2025 Ascending Star Award series of research talks. Given by the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor, Health Sciences, the awards recognize highly productive and creative midcareer faculty in Pitt's six schools of the health sciences.
The Office of Student Affairs has received recognition as a Green Office, Sapling level, from Pitt's Office of Sustainability. Student Affairs is the first office in the school to earn the designation. Earlier this year, the Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology achieved Green Lab Sapling status for its lab spaces, highlighting how sustainability efforts are gaining traction across the school and the University. The Green Office program has four levels—Seed, Sprout, Sapling and Sustainable Oak—awarded based on an office or lab's efforts in areas such as energy use, transportation, waste, food, purchasing and engagement.
Stephen R. Wisniewski, PhD, professor of epidemiology, codirector of the Epidemiology Data Center and associate vice chancellor for clinical trials coordination, health sciences, was part of a team of Pitt researchers who received an award for outstanding research at the 2025 Military Health System Research Symposium. The team was honored for their work in the research category. "Blood and Blood Products: Novel Strategies for Treatment of Blood Failure."
A Pitt Public Health lab team led by Suresh Kuchipudi, PhD, MVSc, MBA, professor and chair of infectious diseases and microbiology, has developed a novel antiviral peptide that can target H5N1 avian influenza viruses. This antiviral peptide, Ac-RWVIFKIVKYWKGL-NH2, binds strongly to hemagglutinin proteins in multiple clades of H5N1 influenza viruses. Following chemical modification, this peptide has been optimized for intranasal or aerosol-based delivery and could be a broad-spectrum treatment strategy against the potential pandemic threat of H5N1 influenza viruses for humans and animals. A U.S. patent application is pending.
C. Elizabeth Shaaban, PhD, MS, MPH, assistant professor of epidemiology, has also been appointed as a tenure track assistant professor of health promotion and development in Pitt's School of Nursing. Her research seeks to understand how social, behavioral and biological factors come together to shape brain health and the risk for Alzheimer's disease related dementias. Shaaban is maintaining her epidemiology faculty status, along with her commitment to the school's Population Neuroscience of Aging and Alzheimer's Disease training program.
Tiffany Gary-Webb, PhD, MHS, professor of epidemiology, has been named the inaugural recipient of the Dr. Felicia Hill-Briggs Health Equity Trailblazer in Diabetes Award from the American Diabetes Association. The award honors the life and legacy of Hill-Briggs, a renowned behavioral scientist and lifelong advocate for equitable diabetes care. Gary-Webb's career has been dedicated to improving outcomes for individuals in resource-limited communities living with chronic diseases like diabetes.
Christine McClure, EdD, MPPM, MBA (SPIA '06G, EDUC '18G), senior research scientist in the Department of Health Policy and Management, was honored with a 2025 Distinguished Alumni Award from her alma mater Point Park University. McClure's research focuses on the role of community organizations in improving health for all, using qualitative methods to understand lived experiences, explore community needs and affect social change.