As the spring semester begins, the (COPH) is welcoming new leadership and faculty and staff whose expertise will support teaching, research and service across the college and the state.
Penniecook to lead Florida Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice
Tricia Penniecook, MD, PhD (Photo courtesy of Penniecook)
has been named director of the , a statewide resource housed in the COPH that focuses on strengthening the competencies and capabilities of Florida鈥檚 current and future public health workforce.
Approved in 1999 as a State University System Type 2 Center, the center is located in the COPH Dean鈥檚 Office to reflect its collegewide significance. It was established to provide organizational structure for a growing portfolio of workforce development and training initiatives, including programs serving the Florida Department of Health. Over time, the center has expanded its reach beyond the local community, engaging partners across the state and nation to advance its mission of strengthening the public health workforce through education, collaboration and the translation of research into practice.
The center鈥檚 programs integrate regenerative leadership education with innovative, experiential learning approaches that emphasize strengths-based, adaptive and systems-thinking leadership. This 鈥渞egenerative鈥� leadership model focuses on developing individual and collaborative capacity to address complex public health challenges and create conditions for sustainable, positive change.
Penniecook currently serves as vice dean for faculty and global affairs at the COPH and brings more than 25 years of experience as an academic leader, physician, public health administrator and executive coach. She has held national leadership roles in accreditation through the Council for Education in Public Health and has served in senior academic and public health positions in the United States and internationally, including leadership roles within Costa Rica鈥檚 Ministry of Health and national health care system.
Wood named assistant director of curriculum and data reporting
Rebecca Wood, MS (Photo by Caitlin Keough)
Rebecca Wood has been named assistant director of curriculum and data reporting, succeeding Dave Hogeboom, who retired after years of service supporting academic quality and accreditation efforts.
Wood will continue to support the programs and outcomes team, which oversees curriculum processes across the college, including curriculum changes, the USF catalog, COPH guidebooks and course syllabus reviews. The team also develops academic reports and data dashboards, administers surveys of students, alumni and employers and manages the external data request process for reporting to external organizations, including annual accreditation and Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health reports.
In this role, Wood will help ensure the integrity, consistency and accessibility of academic data that support decision-making, assessment and continuous improvement.
New faculty and staff join the college
Several new faculty and staff members are also beginning roles across the college this semester:
Thomas Baase (Photo courtesy of Baase)
Thomas Baase, safety and health consultant with the OSHA Education Center, brings more than 15 years of experience in workforce safety and operations, in addition to earlier service in the U.S. Navy as a lead helicopter mechanic and quality assurance representative. His work has focused on helping employers reduce risk, strengthen safety culture and support effective operations across multiple industries.
Lauren Carns (Photo courtesy of Carns)
Lauren Carns, safety and health consultant with the OSHA Education Center and SafetyFlorida Consultation Program, works as part of OSHA鈥檚 21(d) program, providing consultation to help organizations achieve and maintain compliance with OSHA standards and adopt best practices. A graduate of the University of Arizona, she previously worked as a health inspector enforcing the FDA Food Code and EPA Safe Drinking Water Act, bringing regulatory and field experience to her new role.
Jan Dahrendorff, PhD (Photo by Abeja Castro)
Jan Dahrendorff, postdoctoral scholar in the , is continuing his work with the COPH in s lab, where he studies the genomics of psychiatric disorders. He recently earned his in public health with a concentration in from the COPH this past December. Prior to his doctoral studies at USF, Dahrendorff was a student-athlete on the swim team at Saint Leo University, where he earned his bachelor鈥檚 degree in psychology.
Merrill Emfinger, MPH (Photo courtesy of Emfinger)
Merrill Emfinger, safety and health consultant with the OSHA Education Center, earned his MPH from Florida A&M University and has worked with the New York State Department of Labor and in private industry as an environmental health and safety chemical laboratory technician. His background in occupational safety, industrial hygiene and regulatory compliance will support consultation and training services.
Briana Gibbons, MEd (Photo courtesy of Gibbons)
Briana Gibbons, statistical data analyst in the Dean鈥檚 Office, previously served as a 21st Century program coordinator with Pinellas County Schools, overseeing federally funded afterschool programs focused on academic support, enrichment activities and family engagement across multiple school sites. She holds a master鈥檚 degree in educational leadership with a concentration in curriculum and instruction and brings experience in data-driven program evaluation, reporting and student success initiatives that will support institutional research and assessment efforts at COPH.
Jamie Lee, EdD (Photo courtesy of Lee)
Dr. Jamie Lee, academic services administrator for the Department of Global, Environmental and Genomic Health Sciences, holds a doctorate in higher education, along with graduate and undergraduate degrees in counseling and psychology. Most recently, she served as a university registrar in Texas and brings extensive experience in academic operations, policy implementation and process improvement. She will support faculty, students and leadership through coordination of academic services and departmental operations.
Greggory Lester (Photo courtesy of Lester)
Greggory Lester, administrative specialist with the OSHA Training Institute Education Center, holds a bachelor鈥檚 degree in sociology and previously served as office manager and executive assistant to the chair of obstetrics and gynecology at the . His experience in administrative operations, event coordination, financial workflows and process improvement will support daily operations and program delivery within the center.
Heeduk Oh, PhD (Photo by Caitlin Keough)
Dr. Heeduk Oh joins the as a postdoctoral scholar, working with Drs. and . He earned his doctorate in plant genomics and genetics from North Carolina State University, where his research focused on improving crop production quality. At USF, he is transitioning into human epigenetics and genomics, studying biological mechanisms underlying the intergenerational transmission of risk and resilience to trauma-related psychiatric disorders.
Christopher Walker (Photo courtesy of Walker)
Christopher Walker, safety and health consultant with the COPH OSHA Education Center, brings 22 years of service in the U.S. Navy, where he managed explosive safety, weapons-handling safety and aviation safety programs. He earned his bachelor鈥檚 degree from Columbia Southern University and is passionate about applying his background in safety systems, education and leadership to support employers and workers through consultation and training.
The USF College of Public Health also welcomed the following new faculty and staff members:
- Shannon Barker, instructor I, Dean鈥檚 Office
- Cathia Jean, instructor I, Dean鈥檚 Office
- Kayleigh Murray, social and behavioral researcher, Center for Social Marketing
- Zachary Sanders, social and behavioral researcher, Center for Social Marketing
- Frank Vanore, safety and health consultant, OSHA Education Center