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President
Gemma Skuraton DrPH, MPH, CHES, CDE, LAT, ATC, USAW, CPT, FMS, RYT-200
Dr. Gemma Skuraton (pronouns: she/her) serves as the Director of Student Wellness & Health Promotion for Georgia Southern University and is the co-owner of Twice Consulting Services LLC. Gemma completed a Diversity Equity and Inclusion Fellowship, Doctorate and a Masters degree in Public Health with an emphasis in Community Health Behavior and Education as well as an undergraduate degree in Kinesiology, majoring in Exercise Science and Athletic Training from Georgia Southern University. Gemma is a community based participatory researcher primarily centered around designing, implementing and evaluating health & wellness co-curricula. Gemma’s work has put her on several recognition lists including the 20 under 40 Young Professionals Award for Statesboro Georgia, 40 under 40 Georgia Southern University Alumni Award, Kathryn Grube Unsung Hero award for assisting students above and beyond the call of duty and the Randolph S. Gunter Distinguished Staff Award. This recognition in excellence is given to staff that are admired and respected by the students for their outstanding dedication to advocating for diversity issues both in and out of the classroom. Programs under Gemma’s leadership were awarded the 2023 National Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education (NASPA) Gold Award for the Athletics, Recreation, Counseling, Health, Wellness, and related category as well as the 2023 overall Grand Silver Award. Other intervention recognition includes, Best Clinical Mental Health Program in Southeast Georgia in 2019, two-time Best Diversity and Inclusion Program of the Year and two-time Best Social Justice Program of the Year at Georgia Southern University. Gemma serves as the President of Georgia Society for Public Health Education (GASOPHE) and currently serves as the Vice President of the the Board of Directors for Mary’s Place: Prevention, Advoacy & Sexual Assault Center of the Coastal Empire.
National Delegate
Joanne Chopak-Foss, PhD,FASHA
Dr. Chopak-Foss is Associate Professor and director of the MPH program in the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health at Georgia Southern University. Dr. Chopak-Foss received her Ph.D. and M.S. from Pennsylvania State University in Health Education and B.S. degree in Physical Education from the University of Delaware. Dr. Chopak-Foss has been in academia for over 29 years. During her academic career, she has been a leader in curriculum development for both undergraduate and graduate education in public health and has developed over 10 different classes for the University. Dr. Chopak-Foss’s research interests have focused on the spectrum of Maternal and Child Health Issues including: improving health literacy among adolescents, improving breastfeeding duration and exclusivity in low-income women, education on safe sleep for newborns, antecedents for adolescent pregnancy and early pubertal timing, eating disorders among athletes and, health and sexual health curriculum development for K-12. Dr. Chopak-Foss is a Fellow in the American School Health Association and a member of APHA and SOPHE. She is a member of the Georgia Chapter of the Society for Public Health Education (GASOPHE) and has the honor of representing the chapter as the National Delegate to the House of Delegates for National SOPHE; Vice-Chair for the Maternal and Child Health section of the Georgia chapter of APHA and a member of the MCH section of APHA.
Education & Training
Jacquelyn Mesenbrink DrPH, MPH, CHES
Jacquelyn Mesenbrink completed her DrPH and MPH at Georgia Southern University and received a B.S. in Biology from Iowa State University. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Health Sciences in the Health and Kinesiology Department at Georgia Southern University. Jacquelyn has presented at various conferences throughout the country including the American Public Health Association, Georgia Public Health Association, and Georgia State University Conference. She has held a multitude of leadership positions including Employee Resource Group, Sexual Assault Response Team, GASOPHE Education and Training, Dean’s Advisory Committee, Graduate Student Organization, Georgia Public Health Association Career Development Board, Coastal Georgia Indicators Coalition, and Georgia Southern University Strategic Planning Board for Teaching and Research. Jacquelyn has been awarded the Graduate Student Leadership and Service Award, APHA Sexual Violence Photovoice Award, Iowa State University Employee of the Year, and Best Graduate Poster Presentation at APHA Conference. In her previous work as a Visiting Instructor for the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, she taught a wide range of courses including health policy, health education, and community health. She also invests in serving her campus and local community as the Sexual Assault Response Team Co-Lead and advises the Sexual Assault Student Educators. As a public health leader, Jacquelyn strives to advocate for health equity, create a wellness culture, and actively engage others in changing behaviors through best-practice prevention initiatives.
Immediate Past President
Amanda Jackson, MPH, CHES
Amanda Jackson is a grant manager for injury prevention and traffic safety. She has worked at various local, state, and federal agencies. She has been in this field for over six years. Amanda received her Master of Public Health in Health Behavior from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and her Bachelor of Science in Health Promotion from the University of Georgia. Amanda has been involved with GASOPHE since January of 2016 and previously served as Membership Chair.
Partnership Co-Chair
D’Jillisser Kelly, MPH,CP
D’Jillisser Kelly, MPH, CP, a creative and insightful public health professional. D’Jillisser completed her Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Management at Clayton State University and obtained her Master of Public Health concentration in health promotion from Liberty University. As she strives to integrate wellness through her scope of work, she serves as the Senior Project Coordinator at Learn To Grow, Inc. and presently leads the H.E.A.R.T. (Health Education & Research on Tobacco) Coalition.
D’Jillisser makes an influential presence as a certified preventionist throughout Atlanta Metropolitan, fulfilling her purpose as a servant leader and promoting health literacy to further educate and to bridge the disparity gaps while addressing health equity as it relates to substance use and misuse, food insecurity ,mental & behavioral health.
Partnership Co-Chair
Jasmine Gaillard, MPH
Jasmine Gaillard is an Evaluation Fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Jasmine works within the Division of Scientific Education and Professsional Devlopment’s (DSEPD) Epidemiology Workforce Branch (EWB) leading the evaluation of CDC’s Epidemiology Elective Program. She also aids in the selection process and evaluation of the Epidemic Intelligence Service.
Jasmine attended Spelman College for undergrad and obtained a degree in Health Science in 2019. After Spelman, she attended the University of Georgia (UGA) to pursue her Master of Public Health degree in Health Promotion and Behavior. She is passionate about health equity, nutrition, and workforce development.
Communications & Outreach Chair
Aarin Palomares, MPH
Aarin Palomares serves as a Senior Program Officer and Deputy Director of the Global Handwashing Partnership at FHI 360, an international nongovernmental organization that implements programs in over 60 countries. In her current role, she leads overall strategy development and manages various programs for her team. Aarin also chairs the CORE WASH and Health Interest Group and Hand Hygiene for All Advocacy Forum. She currently serves as a technical expert for WHO/UNICEF’s new normative guidelines for hand hygiene, which will be launched in 2024.
Aarin has a background in health policy, community development, and implementation research. Prior to joining FHI 360, she worked on research and advocacy initiatives with the Sparkman Center for Global Health and the United Nations Foundation. She holds an MPH in Health Care Organization and Policy and BS in Public Health from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Advocacy Chair
Keri M. Hill, Ph.D., MPH, CHES
Keri Hill serves as Vice President of Programs & Training for the Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power and Potential (GCAPP). Dr. McDonald Hill has a deep commitment to improving adolescent health and reducing health disparities as demonstrated by more than 20 years of experience researching, developing, implementing and evaluating adolescent health initiatives. Dr. Hill also serves as Adjunct Professor at Agnes Scott College in the Department of Public Health.
Prior to her work at GCAPP, Dr. Hill was Vice President/Director of Programs at the Center for Black Women’s Wellness (CBWW). She was also an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Promotion and Physical Education at Kennesaw State University. Dr. Hill also worked as Health and Healthcare Science Technology teacher for Atlanta’s Midtown High School. Dr. Hill has been a member of the Georgia Society for Public Health Education (GASOPHE) board for three years and currently serves as the Advocacy Chair.
Health Educator
Stephanie Robinson, MPH, CHES, CPST-IC
Stephanie Robinson, MPH, CHES, CPST-IC is an experienced Health Educator at the Houston County Health Department in Warner Robins, GA. With over five years of experience, she takes pride in providing the best health education possible in child passenger safety, CPR, diabetes prevention and other health topics. As a Public Health professional her goals are to become a Public Health leader and join the outstanding professionals in academia. Stephanie is a certified CPR instructor, health education specialist as well as a child passenger safety technician instructor candidate. She holds a Master’s in Public Health from Walden University.
Education & Training Co-Chair
Amanda Redinger, MS, CHES
Amanda Redinger, MS, CHES is a limited term instructor in the Department of Health Promotion and Physical Education at Kennesaw State University and serves as the Public Health Education program’s internship coordinator. Amanda received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a minor in Public Health from the University of North Florida and her Master’s of Science in Health Behavior from the University of Florida. She is a certified health education specialist whose interests focus on HIV/AIDS and maternal and fetal health. Amanda’s teaching focus is in the areas of epidemiology and health coaching. Her work has been accepted at conferences including SOPHE and GPHA.
Treasurer
Taylor Mayberry, MPH
Taylor Mayberry is a research associate for a consulting firm. She has worked in injury and violence prevention, project management, and grant management. She completed her MPH in Health Policy and Management from Emory University in 2021, making her a recent public health professional. Taylor received her Bachelor of Business Administration in Business Management from Howard University in 2017. Taylor has been involved with GASOPHE since January 2023.