Race, Racism and COVID-19 in Wisconsin
Occurred on Thursday, Oct. 27, 5:30-7 p.m.
Introductory remarks — Robert N. Golden, MD, Dean, School of Medicine and Public Health
Introduction of speakers — Jonathan L. Temte, MD, PhD, Associate Dean for Public Health and Community Engagement
Presenter — Ryan Westergaard, MD, PhD, MPH, Associate Professor, Department of Medicine; Chief Medical Officer and State Epidemiologist for Communicable Diseases, Wisconsin Department of Health Services
Q&A moderator — Sheri Johnson, PhD, Professor, Department of Population Health Sciences; Director, UW Population Health Institute; Principal Investigator, County Health Rankings & Roadmaps
Presenter Biographies
Sheri Johnson, PhD
Sheri Johnson is currently Director of the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, Principal Investigator of the County Health Rankings and Roadmaps, and Professor (CHS) of Population Health Sciences. Dr. Johnson is a member of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine’s Roundtable on Population Health Improvement, and a member of the Milwaukee County Mental Health Board. She has dedicated her career to partnering with children, families, community organizations and systems to advance health and well-being. Awed by the resilience of individuals and communities, she is motivated to remove unfair obstacles and conditions that create and perpetuate health inequities. Dr. Johnson completed undergraduate studies at Brown University; earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in clinical psychology at Boston University and served as a Clinical Fellow in Psychology at Harvard Medical School. She was previously Director of Behavioral Health at Milwaukee Health Services, Inc., a federally qualified health center and served as the Administrator and State Health Officer for the Wisconsin Division of Public Health. Immediately prior to joining the University of Wisconsin, she was Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the Medical College of Wisconsin Center for Advancement of Underserved Children.
Ryan Westergaard, MD, PhD, MPH
Dr. Ryan Westergaard is a faculty member of the Division of Infectious Disease within the Department of Medicine. He is a member of numerous professional societies, including Physicians for Human Rights, the Infectious Disease Society of America, the American College of Physicians, the International AIDS Society, and the Academic Consortium on Criminal Justice Health. He is also the Chief Medical Officer and State Epidemiologist for Communicable Diseases for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. In this role, Dr. Westergaard provides expert medical and public health guidance to ensure that health policies, practices, and programming in the state of Wisconsin align with sound public health principles and priorities. Dr. Westergaard aims to build bridges between the scientific and educational missions of the University and the public health mission of state, local and tribal health departments, seeking to leverage UW resources for the benefit of the health of all Wisconsin residents.
Past Symposia
April 21, 2022: A Conversation on Disability Rights
Oct. 6, 2021: Hot Topics in Public Health: Immigrant Health: An Insider’s View
April 28, 2021: Hot Topics in Public Health: Climate Change as a Public Health Emergency
October 26, 2020: Hot Topics in Public Health: Prevention of Gun Violence as a Public Health Strategy
January 27, 2021: Hot Topics in Public Health: The Coronavirus Pandemic at One Year
- Video
- “A Year of COVID-19: How the UW School of Medicine and Public Health Responded to the Challenge” (article)
January 29, 2020: Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in Real Time