2009-10

PRESIDENT
Paul Melinkovich
Denver, CO

PRESIDENT-ELECT
Tamara Lucas Copeland
Washington, DC

SECRETARY
TJ Cosgrove
Seattle, WA

TREASURER
Gerald Van De Velde
St. Leonard, MD

DIRECTORS

Allan Alson
Evanston, IL

Cynthia Barnes-Boyd
Chicago, IL

Kelly Dunkin
Denver, CO

Elisabeth Erickson
Westchester, PA

Maureen Hanrahan
Denver, CO

Kate Keller
Cincinnati, OH

Peter Wallace
Iowa City, IA

Board Bios
 

Paul Melinkovich, MD (President) is the CEO and Medical Director of Denver Community Health Services, a network of 8 Community Health Centers and 12 School-based Health Centers located in the Denver Colorado. Denver Community Health Services is a community-oriented primary care program serving the low-income residents of Denver.

A Board Certified Pediatrician, he has served as the president of the Colorado Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Chair of the Committee on Community Health of the AAP. He has been on the NASBHC Board of Directors since 2001 and served as the Chair of the Public Policy and Advocacy Panel. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Wyoming and his Medical Degree from the University of Washington. He completed his Residency in Pediatrics and a Community Pediatric Fellowship at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and has been practicing community pediatrics and child advocacy since that time. He was a founding member of the Colorado Children's Campaign, the child advocacy organization for Colorado and served as their 2nd Board President. He is a Professor of Pediatrics and Preventive Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. His areas of interest include school and community health; immunization delivery; and quality and process improvement in ambulatory care.

Tamara Lucas Copeland (President –Elect)  Tamara was named President of the Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers in September, 2006. In this position, she leads a staff committed to promoting and supporting effective and responsible philanthropy across Northern Virginia, suburban Maryland and the District of Columbia. Over 100 family, corporate and independent foundations along with corporate giving programs belong to Washington Grantmakers. 

Before this position, she served as the President of Voices for America’s Children for almost 10 years. Many believe that her vision and leadership were instrumental in transforming what was the National Association of Child Advocates, an association focused solely on supporting state and locally based child advocacy organizations into Voices for America’s Children, a national advocacy organization with member groups in almost every state in the country.

Prior to joining Voices, Tamara was Director of the National Health & Education Consortium. She also worked on Capitol Hill for Congressman Bobby Scott as his chief advisor on health, human services and education issues. Before that she was the Director of the Southern Regional Project on Infant Mortality, an initiative of the Southern Governors' Association and the Southern Legislative Conference. She also understands state government, having been Director of the Office of Prevention of the Virginia Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services and Deputy Director of the Virginia Division for Children.

She received her B.A. in Sociology from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia and her M.S.W. from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.

TJ Cosgrove (Secretary) is the Program Manager for Public Health - Seattle & King County's school-based health program. TJ has assisted in the development and coordination of a system of 14 school-based health centers within Seattle. He has been instrumental in obtaining capital and operational support from foundations and local health systems for Seattle SBHCs. TJ works with the City of Seattle, King County, Washington State, and national efforts to enhance programs and secure funding for SBHCs and other school health programs.

A licensed, clinical social worker, TJ has been active in the advancement of mental health programming within SBHCs. He has been a project director for privately and publicly supported efforts to improve and expand mental health services within SBHCs through: enhanced interdisciplinary practice, psychiatric consultation, and provider use of evidence-based skills. TJ has also taken a leadership role in the development of NASBHC’s Mental Health Planning & Evaluation Template, a tool designed to systematically assess and improve the quality of mental health services in school-based settings. He currently sits on advisory committees for NASBHC’s CDC-funded School-Based Mental Health Capacity Building Project and for Washington State’s SAMSHA-funded Mental Health Transformation Project.

TJ is a MSW recipient from the University of Washington and holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Holy Cross College. TJ and his wife, Darcy, live in Seattle with their two children.

Gerald R. Van De Velde (Treasurer) has over 30 years financial and administrative management experience and holds a degree in Business Management from Oakland University. He is currently the Chief Financial Officer for the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association (NPRA). As the CFO, his responsibilities include all financial and accounting activities including the  annual budget and capital expenditure plans along with developing long-range objectives.  In addition, he oversees the management of investments, both short and long-term, and also serves as Trustee for the Association’s Pension and other employee benefit plans.  In addition to his financial responsibilities, he has oversight of information technology, human resources and operations.

Prior to joining NPRA in 2007, Gerry served in a similar capacity for five years at a trade association representing the insurance industry.  For nearly 20 years, Gerry was in the advertising industry; the last ten as Chief Administrative Officer and a partner in a Mid-Atlantic advertising agency that was later sold to an international firm.  He began his career in the late 1970’s at Coopers and Lybrand where he earned his certification.

Gerry has served as an officer or member on national and regional boards to include the Association of American Advertising Agencies and the DC Ad Club.  Currently he is the treasurer of Ann’s Circle, Annmarie Garden, a Smithsonian affiliate, located in Southern Maryland.

DIRECTORS

Allan Alson joined the Consortium for Educational Change (CEC) in August 2008 as its Associate Director for Leadership Development. His responsibilities include working with urban school systems in Illinois to create high school charter schools, managing an extensive principal coaching program, improving leadership appraisal systems and ad hoc consultative services for school districts on issues such as high school reform, minority student achievement, leadership development and Board goal setting. 

Dr. Alson most recently served as a Senior Fellow for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In that capacity he was responsible for the Chicago Public Schools’ High School Transformation Project including the high school Instructional Leadership Council. The instructional strategy of High School Transformation has been implemented in forty-three Chicago high schools providing a highly aligned system of curriculum, instruction and assessment. During Alson’s tenure a new professional development plan for principals was unveiled. It places a focus on school-based instructional leadership teams and their capacity to access, analyze and use data to boost student achievement.

Alson was superintendent of Evanston Township High School from 1992 until June 2006. He began his teaching career in the Philadelphia Public Schools and served as a teacher and administrator in several communities in Massachusetts. While there he was the Assistant Director of the Boston Public Schools/Boston University Desegregation Collaborative. During his time in Evanston he was involved in creating a wide array of community partnerships, including an award winning school-based health center. An interagency collaborative to structure services for children and families in need and a School and Community Task Force on Safety and Civility were created through Dr. Alson’s leadership.

In February 1999 Dr. Alson helped create the Minority Student Achievement Network, a consortium of twenty-five urban-suburban school districts across the United States devoted to discovering, developing, and implementing the means to improve the academic achievement of students of color. Districts in the Network collaboratively conduct and publish research, analyze policies, and examine practices that affect the academic performance of students of color.

Dr. Alson has consulted and made frequent presentations in Illinois and around the country on topics related to equity and the academic achievement of students of color, principal leadership training and high school reform. In addition, he has published articles on student achievement, school reform, and school-community collaborations. He has been honored by the state of Illinois, social service agencies as well as local African American organizations for his work on behalf of minority student achievement.    

Dr. Cynthia (Cee) Boyd RN, Ph.D., FAAN began her professional career in 1973 as a registered nurse. She completed her Ph.D. in 1990 at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has held a variety of advance practice and administrative roles including Clinical Specialist, Assistant Director of Nursing and Executive Director of a community health center network where she secured funding for the first federally supported school health center in Illinois. Currently, she holds a dual position in the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs as Director of the UIC Great Cities Neighborhoods Initiative (UICNI) and Director of the Healthy City Collaborative. Her responsibilities include developing and sustaining University/community partnerships. Through the UICNI, she directs federally qualified school health centers, community school mental health, community education programs and community centered research initiatives. In addition to her primary role, Dr. Boyd is Associate Dean for Community Initiatives for the UIC College of Nursing where she serves on the Nursing Practice Plan Board of Directors. 

Dr. Boyd serves as co-PI and evaluator for several federally sponsored partnerships including REACH US and the Center for Excellence for Eliminating Health Disparities, the Englewood Healthy Start program, and the Chicago Partnership for Health Promotions. She serves on numerous boards including the Board of Directors for Community and Campus Partnerships for Health, the Center for Faith Based and Community Health Transformation, the UIC Environmental Justice Committee (CHAIR) and the March of Dimes Community Grants Committee (CHAIR).     

Dr. Boyd is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, the Institute of Medicine of Chicago and a Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellow Alumni. She is a seasoned Girl Scout Leader and founder of the Girls Read for Life and College Bound Clubs. Most important to her is her role as mother of two school aged children, who she describes with confidence as future world leaders.  

Kelly Dunkin is the vice president of philanthropy for the Colorado Health Foundation.  In this role, she leads the staff of the Foundation’s three philanthropy teams; Healthy Living, Health Coverage and Health Care in their work investing in nonprofits throughout the state.  Prior to being named vice president of philanthropy, Kelly led the Foundation’s Health Coverage team for over two years. As senior program officer, she developed funding strategies and secured approval for more than $15.8 million in grants and policy initiatives to simplify the enrollment process for public health insurance programs and increase coverage for an estimated 60,000 Coloradans.  Kelly has a diverse background in the philanthropy, nonprofit and education fields. Prior to joining the Foundation as grant program director in 2004, she was executive director of the Chowdry Family Foundation, a Lakewood, Colorado-based family foundation.  She has also worked as an elementary school teacher in the Cherry Creek School District. Kelly spent two years in the Peace Corps, during which she trained teachers in Belize. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Miami University in Ohio and a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Colorado Denver. 

Elisabeth Erickson has over 15+ years of financial experience and holds a Bachelors of Science in Accounting and Masters of Business Administration from University of Connecticut. She is currently working as a consultant at Countryside Consulting, Inc. Her clients are all not-for-profit, including Brandywine Health Foundation in Coatesville, Pennsylvania. Her responsibilities include preparing annual budgets, preparing for audit review, reviewing annual Federal Form 990, preparing monthly financial statements, updating financial systems (Quickbooks) weekly, and providing analytical analysis, as needed. Prior to relocating to Pennsylvania, Elisabeth worked for United Technologies Corporation. She held several financial positions of increased responsibilities, from corporate auditor to senior financial analyst. She began her career at Coopers and Lybrand, LLP in Hartford, Connecticut, where she earned her certification. Recently, Elisabeth has served on the Audit Committee for Montgomery School, Chester Springs, Pennsylvania. She is a member of Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants and American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Maureen Hanrahan is a health care consultant with broad based experience in health care, managed care and health policy.  She is currently a senior consultant with ArpegioHealth. Maureen’s professional background in nursing, health education and organizational leadership has fed her passion for population based preventive medicine, especially for vulnerable populations. This expertise is applied in her Board level leadership roles for the National Assembly on School-Based Health Care and Total Community Options.

She served in various leadership roles within Kaiser Permanente at the regional and national level through her 24 year tenure.  Most recently she was National Director, Charitable Care and Coverage in the Department of Community Benefit at Kaiser Permanente National Offices.  In this role, she was responsible for strategic planning, implementation, management, and evaluation of products and services for the most vulnerable Medicaid, uninsured, and poor, aged and disabled populations in Kaiser Permanente communities.  As a senior leader on Kaiser Permanente’s Community Benefit team, she participated in planning and supporting a community benefit portfolio of over $1 billion annually.

Maureen has developed and implemented population-based services to address breast cancer, influenza and pneumonia immunization, smoking cessation, health risk appraisal and worksite-based services. She has demonstrated the ability to apply innovative solutions to health care challenges through her work with educational theatre, school-based health care, prevention- focused benefit design and care for the elderly centered in the settings that create maximum independence.

Kate Keller, MPA is the Senior Program Officer for School-Aged Children’s Healthcare at The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati.  During her eleven-year tenure at the Foundation, she implemented the School-Based Health Center Initiative, a $15 million effort to establish SBHCs in Greater Cincinnati. Kate developed Requests for Proposals for SBHC Planning and Development, SBHC Start-Up, and SBHC Sustaining Grants.  The initial SBHC Initiative opened 18 SBHCs throughout Greater Cincinnati. Kate is currently implementing a new Initiative that will open at least six more SBHCs by 2011.

Kate is an active supporter and advocate for SBHCs, presenting locally and nationally on SBHCs. She hosts regular meetings for Foundation-funded SBHCs to provide technical assistance and networking opportunities.  She facilitated the development of two state SBHC associations that are affiliated with NASBHC.  Kate has been an active member of NASBHC since 1998.  Kate presented at past annual meetings, and participated in issue-focused NASBHC meetings, such as Medicaid reimbursement and operational management.  She is also a member of the NASBHC Membership Committee.

In addition to SBHC activities, Kate is involved in several community collaborations on school and children’s health.  She participates in efforts to improve health education, access to dental services, and access to mental health services; the United Way’s Success by Six movement, and school redesign for the Cincinnati Public Schools.

Kate holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Eastern Michigan University and a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Cincinnati.

Peter D. Wallace, MD, MS, CPE, FAAP, FACPE, has been Vice President, Medical Staff Affairs at Mercy Hospital since January 1995. He graduated from Grinnell College (Iowa) in 1965 and from University of Iowa College Of Medicine in 1969, and a Master’s degree in Administrative Medicine from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in 1997. After pediatric training at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and two years in the United States Navy in Charleston, South Carolina, he established a solo pediatric practice in Iowa City. This practice grew to include seven pediatricians at the time he left to join the Hospital. 

He is a member of the National Assembly on School-Based Health Care, the American Medical Association, the Johnson County Medical Society, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Physician Executives. He is a Fellow in the latter two organizations.

Dr. Wallace served as a director of the Iowa Hospital Association for eight years. He served nine years as member of the Iowa City Community School District Board of Directors, and has also served on the Johnson County Empowerment Board, the Johnson County Safe Kids Coalition, and the Iowa City Library Board of Directors. He has served the Academy of Pediatrics on numerous national committees, and eight years on the Council for Government Affairs.

Peter Wallace has been president of the Iowa City Rotary Club, the Johnson County Medical Society, the Iowa Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Mercy Iowa City Medical Staff. 

In 1985, Dr. Wallace received a Distinguished Alumni Award from Grinnell College and in 1994, the Iowa Medical Society’s initial award for Outstanding Community Service. He was awarded the Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine Distinguished Alumnus for Service award in 2003, Rotary International’s Four Avenues of Service Citation in 2005 and the Iowa City Community School District Friend of Education award in 2007. The latter was in part for his efforts in initiating the District’s Healthy Kids Community Care school-based clinics.