March 2018 … Prescribing outdoor time for children, broadening access to youth sports programs, treating and preventing brain injury, and making communities more walkable are among the ways a select group of Philadelphia-area health leaders say they’re working to make our communities healthier and safer.
Their stories will appear in Leading Healthy Change In Our Communities 2018, the seventh book in a series written and illustrated by elementary and middle school students who participate in the Healthy NewsWorks student media program.
This year’s volume will include interviews with ten new honorees, who were selected from community nominations:
- Kevin Bethel, Stoneleigh Foundation Fellow and Senior Policy Advisor, Juvenile Justice Research and Reform Lab, Drexel University
- Luther Clark, M.D., Deputy Chief Patient Officer and Global Director of Scientific, Medical and Patient Perspective, Office of the Chief Patient Officer, Merck
- Beth Devine, Executive Director, Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative
- Taunya English, Editorial Director, “The Pulse,” WHYY-FM
- Marisa Jones, Healthy Communities Senior Manager, Safe Routes to School National Partnership
- Alex Ortega, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Health Management and Policy, Dornsife School of Public Health at Drexel University
- Christopher Renjilian, M.D., Pediatrician, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and founding physician leader of NaturePHL
- Jarrett Stein, Executive Director and Cofounder, Rebel Ventures; Director of Health Partnerships and Social Enterprise, Netter Center for Community Partnerships, University of Pennsylvania.
- Patrick Walsh, Pantry Manager, Martha’s Choice Marketplace, Catholic Social Services
- Thomas Watanabe, M.D., Clinical Director, Drucker Brain Injury Center and Stroke Rehabilitation Program, Moss Rehab
The student journalists also interviewed six leaders from past books to catch up on what they’ve been doing since they were originally recognized in the Leading Healthy Change series:
- Tyra Bryant-Stephens, M.D. (2013), Medical Director, Community Asthma Prevention Program, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
- Amy Goldberg, M.D., and Scott Charles (2014), Leaders, Cradle to Grave Program, Temple University Hospital
- Karen Hudson, Ph.D. (2016), Program Leader, Homeless Health Initiative, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
- Mohammed Al-Jumaili (2013), Community Volunteer and Student, Rosemont College
- Roland Lamb (2015), Deputy Commissioner, Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services
Our thanks to all of these individuals for their contributions to our communities and for sharing their stories with our student journalists.
Come to the book signing
Healthy NewsWorks will celebrate publication of the book with a book-signing event from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 31, at the Merion Tribute House, 625 Hazelhurst Ave, Merion Station, PA 19066. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Paul A. Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, and a 2017 Healthy NewsWorks Health Leader.
