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November 11, 2004

People of the Times

C. Kent Kwoh, professor of medicine at the School of Medicine and professor of epidemiology at the Graduate School of Public Health, was recently elected to serve on the board of directors of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR).

In addition, Kwoh has been named an associate editor of Arthritis Care and Research, one of ACR’s major journals.

The ACR is the professional organization of rheumatologists and associated health professionals who share a dedication to healing, preventing disability and curing the more than 100 types of arthritis and related disabling and sometimes fatal disorders of the joints, muscles and bones. Members include practicing physicians, research scientists, nurses, physical and occupational therapists, psychologists and social workers.

Kwoh is a leading clinical and academic researcher in rheumatology and clinical research director in the Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology at Pitt. His clinical interests include rheumatoid arthritis and general rheumatology, and his research interests include prevention of osteoarthritis, epidemiology in rheumatic diseases, ethnic disparities in rheumatic diseases and rehabilitation/orthopaedic outcomes.

Kwoh chaired a task force of the ACR that in February 2002 updated guidelines for the management of rheumatoid arthritis. Due to major advancements in the management and treatment of this disease, the ACR updated its guidelines after only five years.

He also is heading the University of Pittsburgh Arthritis Institute’s $8.9 million osteoarthritis initiative (OAI) grant from the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Arthritis and Muscoloskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS).

Pittsburgh is one of four clinical centers nationally to participate in the OAI, a public-private partnership that brings together new resources to help find biological and structural markers for the progression of this degenerative joint disease, which is a major cause of disability in older people.

Board certified in internal medicine and rheumatology, Kwoh received his medical degree from the University of Illinois. He completed his residency at the University of Illinois Hospitals and his fellowships in rheumatology at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and did clinical research in the Robert Wood Johnson clinical scholars program at Yale.

 

Robert M. Goodman, professor and chair of the Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences at the Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH), has been named a 2004 Distinguished Fellow by the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE).

This designation is considered the highest honor that SOPHE bestows upon its members. He received the honor at SOPHE’s 55th annual meeting Nov. 5-7.

Goodman has written extensively on issues concerning community health development, community capacity, community coalitions, evaluation methods, organizational development and the institutionalization of health programs.

He has been the principal investigator and evaluator on projects for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Substance Abuse Prevention, the Children’s Defense Fund and several state health departments.

Currently, Goodman is developing a system of comprehensive processes that are integral to community-based initiatives for diabetes prevention and control for CDC’s diabetes translation branch.

Recently, Goodman served as the principal investigator of a three-year study funded through the CDC Prevention Research Centers that utilized qualitative case studies as a first phase in developing valid measurements for community capacity and related social protective factors.

In addition, he was the principal investigator of a multi-site qualitative evaluation of the Centers for Excellence in Women’s Health of the National Institutes of Health, and a member of the Institute of Medicine’s study committee on educating public health professionals for the 21st century.

Prior to coming to Pittsburgh in 2003, Goodman was the Usdin Family Professor in community health sciences at the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. He also directed the Center for Community Research at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and was a faculty member at the University of North Carolina and University of South Carolina schools of public health.

In 1992, the health education and health promotion section of the American Public Health Association awarded Goodman its Early Career Award, and in 1994 the Association of State and Territorial Directors of Health Education and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention jointly honored him with the Health Promotion and Education Advocacy Award for advocacy at the state and national levels.

Goodman received his doctorate in health behavior and health education from the University of North Carolina in 1987 and his master’s in public health as well as his master’s in East Asian history from the University of Hawaii. He received his undergraduate degree from Brooklyn College of the City University of New York.

SOPHE is an independent, international professional association made up of a diverse membership of health education professionals and students. The society promotes healthy behaviors, healthy communities and healthy environments through its membership, its network of local chapters and its numerous partnerships with other organizations. With its primary focus on public health education, SOPHE provides leadership through a code of ethics, standards for professional preparation, research and practice; professional development and public outreach.

 

Eva Dean has been promoted from admissions counselor to assistant director of admissions at Pitt’s Titusville campus. The UPT Office of Admissions is part of the Department of Enrollment Management.

Dean’s primary responsibilities include supervising the student ambassadors, recruiting students through high school visits, college fairs and prospective student interviews and directing the development of admissions publications and marketing.

In addition, Dean interacts regularly with other colleges and universities, high school guidance departments, as well as parents and prospective students.

Currently, she is working on a degree in human services at Pitt-Titusville.

 

Pitt-Bradford has named six new members to its advisory board.

New members are Daniel J. Abrashoff, Thomas P. Causer, Cary Frigo, Andrea Gonzalez, William M. Hill Jr. and Sen. Mary Jo White. Causer, Frigo and White were named ex officio members. Richard S. Johnson, who has served on the board as an honorary member since 1999, was named an elected member.

Also, 12 members of the board were re-appointed to terms that will end in August 2007. All of the appointments were made by Pitt Chancellor Mark Nordenberg.

* Abrashoff is the general manager of Glendorn, Pennsylvania’s only Relais and Chateaux. Abrashoff previously served in a general management position at small luxury hotels in Virginia and Texas. He has been a member of the board of directors of the Allegheny National Forest Vacation Bureau and has been a den leader for Boy Scouts of America #440, both for two years. He earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing/business from Penn State University and is a post-graduate student at New York University.

* Causer is chairman of the McKean County board of commissioners. He is a retired vice president and general manager of Petrowax PA Inc. in Farmers Valley and currently is president of Aurora Enterprises & Investments Inc. He also is a director with the Port Allegany Area Economic Development Corp.

* Frigo is currently chairman of the Bradford Township board of supervisors and was first elected to the township board in 1987. As a supervisor, he has held many township posts, including vice chairman for six years. He also has served as the township’s road master, sanitation department supervisor and police commissioner. He is employed by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and was employed for 27 years with Dresser Manufacturing Division in Bradford.

* Gonzalez works as the office manager for her husband, Luis C. Gonzalez. Previously, she had worked for 18 years in the field of mental health counseling with community-related health organizations and in private practice. She holds a master’s degree in counseling from Gannon University and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Mercyhurst College.

* Hill is an attorney with the firm of Hill and Schoenborn in Warren. From 1957 to 2000, he was in sole practice. In 2003, he resumed a limited practice. He is a trustee of the Warren YMCA, has been a member of the board of the Warren Senior Center for six years, is a trustee for Bollinger Enterprises and the DeFrees Family Foundation and for six years was chairman of the Jamestown (N.Y.) Audubon Nature Center. He has a bachelor’s degree from Dickinson College and his J.D. from Dickinson’s School of Law.

* Johnson is retired from the petroleum industry, having worked in plant management and refining technology. He is a member of the board of directors of the Bradford Creative and Performing Arts Center and also is a member of the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs and the Jaycees. He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology and a master’s degree in business administration from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

* White has represented the 21st Senatorial District, which includes all of Clarion, Forest and Venango counties, and parts of Butler, Erie and Warren counties, since 1996. She serves on several senatorial committees, including appropriations, consumer protection and professional licensure, public health and welfare, and judiciary.

She also serves on the board of the Center for Rural Pennsylvania and the Center for Rural Health Practice. For 19 years she worked at Quaker State Corp. in various capacities, most recently serving as vice president for environmental/government affairs.

White earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Quincy (Ill.) University and a J.D. from Pitt’s School of Law.

 

A number of Pitt administrators and faculty were named Oct. 31 in the New Pittsburgh Courier’s 2004 50 Men of Influence supplement. Among the Pitt honorees were: Jack L. Daniel, vice provost for undergraduate studies, dean of students and professor of communication; Larry E. Davis, dean and Donald M. Henderson Professor in Pitt’s School of Social Work and director of the Center on Race and Social Problems; Henri Ford, professor of surgery in Pitt’s School of Medicine and surgeon-in-chief in the Division of Pediatric Surgery at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh; Robert Hill, vice chancellor for Public Affairs; Clyde Jones III, vice chancellor for health sciences development, and Stephen B. Thomas, Philip Hallen Professor of Community Health and Social Justice in Pitt’s Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH) and School of Social Work and director of the Center for Minority Health (CMH) within GSPH. These men were recognized for their contributions to the black community.

According to the Courier, they are “individuals of influence who don’t necessarily blow their own horns, but who quietly, and effectively, make their presence felt through people, policy or power.”

 

YWCA Greater Pittsburgh presented its 2004 Racial Justice Awards Nov. 4 to Kathleen Blee, Pitt professor of sociology, and Jack L. Daniel, vice provost for undergraduate studies, dean of students and professor of communication.

The organization also honored Pitt’s Center for Minority Health (CMH), which is housed in the Graduate School of Public Health.

Blee was honored for her scholarship on organized racism, studying how people are radicalized through their participation in hate groups, such as the Ku Klux Klan.

Daniel was honored for boosting minority enrollment and retention and for working to increase student scholarship money.

CMH was cited for its prevention agenda to eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities in the United States.

Filed under: Feature,Volume 37 Issue 6

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