Speakers

Mike Allen

Co-Founder
Axios

Mike Allen is a co-founder of Axios, a news and information platform focusing on business, tech, politics and other topics shaping the future. At Axios, Mike is responsible for the platform’s editorial coverage and writes the flagship daily newsletters, Axios AM, Axios PM and Axios Finish Line. He is a co-author of the book Smart Brevity: The Power of Saying More with Less, along with fellow co-founders Jim VandeHei and Roy Schwartz.

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Mike is also one of the co-founders of Politico, where he created the Playbook franchise and helped build the company for its first decade. He is an alumnus of TIME, The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Richmond Times-Dispatch and the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star, and has been named several times to Vanity Fair's “New Establishment” list.

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TaWanna Berry, MA

Associate Director
Westat

Jennifer Bitticks, BA

Program Manager
Social Marketing & Content Strategy
RTI International

Mark Coatney

Business Product Lead
Hacks/Hackers

Antony Cousins

Executive Director
AI Strategy
Cision

Marc Etkind

Associate Administrator for Communications
NASA

With more than two decades of experience in development, production, content strategy, and management for science-based programming organizations, Marc Etkind directs internal and external communications for NASA and serves as a senior advisor to agency leaders.

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He is responsible for managing an agency-wide staff of more than 200 that implements all aspects of NASA's external and internal communications. Before joining NASA in January of 2021, Etkind served as general manager for the Science Channel, part of Discovery Inc., from 2015-2020. In that capacity, he was responsible for all aspects of development, production, brand strategy, and day-to-day operations for the network.

While at the Science Channel, he brought the robot competition “BattleBots” back to the network, launched STEM-focused “MythBusters Jr,” initiated live coverage of the Great American Eclipse and NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 Mission to the International Space Station, and commissioned award-winning specials, including “Cassini’s Grand Finale” and “History of Pluto.”

Prior to his tenure at the Science Channel, Etkind held executive management positions at Discovery Inc., Destination America and History Channel, as well as serving as founder and CEO of Pinball Productions. Etkind’s production credits include “NOVA,” “Scientific American Frontiers with Alan Alda,” “Discover Magazine,” “This Week in History,” “How It’s Made,” and “How the Universe Works.”

Photo Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

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Lisa Fazio, PhD

Associate Professor of Psychology and Human Development
Peabody College of Education and Human Development
Vanderbilt University

Anjali Forber-Pratt, PhD

Director
National Institite on Disability, Independent Living & Rehabilitation Research
Administration for Community Living

Michael Fraser, PhD, MS, FCPP

CEO
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)

Jenna Frkovich, MPH

Program Manager
Social Marketing & Content Strategy
RTI International

Shannon Griffin-Blake, PhD

Chief Disability Officer
Office of Health Equity
CDC

Sidney Holt, PhD

Associate Project Director
RTI International

Sidney Holt is a Health Communication Scientist within RTI’s Communication Practice Area with over 10 years of experience designing, implementing, and evaluating health communication campaigns. Her work is aimed at promoting health and well-being and reducing health inequities.

Matthew Kreuter, PhD, MPH

Kahn Family Professor and
Associate Professor for Public Health
The Brown School
Washington University in St. Louis

Shari Lambert, BA

Program Manager
Creative SolutionsL Graphic Design, Learning Design, Video & Animation
RTI International

Kollin Leisinger

Creative Social Media Manager
Office of Public Affairs and Equity
Washington State Department of Health

Molly Lynch, MPH

Project Director
RTI International

Molly Lynch leads the Audience Engagement Research Program within RTI’s Communication Practice Area and has over 15 years of experience developing, implementing, and evaluating public health programs.

Karoly Mirnics, PhD, MD

Special Olympics International Board of Directors
Director
Munroe-Meyer Intitute
UNMC

Connie Moon Sehat

Principal Investigator and Researcher-at-Large
Hacks/Hackers

Cristi Moore

Chief Communications Officer
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control

Niles Murphy

National Director
Cision

Jessica Otero Machuca, MPH, CHES

Associate Clinical Research Coordinator
Mayo Clinic

Jon Poehlman, PhD

Director
Center for Communication Strategy & Design
RTI International

Karen Remley, MD, MBA, MPH

FAAP Director
National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
CDC

Joe Rhoton

Senior Strategy Director
PR Newswire

Ian Ruder

Editor in Chief
New Mobility Magazine

Edward Simmer, MD, MPH, DFAPA

Director
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control

Gillian Steel Fisher, PhD, MSc

Director
Global Polling
Harvard Opinion Research Program
T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Harvard University

Linda Squiers, PhD

Sr. Health Communication Scientist
RTI International

Linda Squiers is a Senior Health Communication Scientist within RTI’s Communication Practice Area with over 30 years of experience in health communication and research experience. Her work has focused on developing and testing health communication messages and interventions.

Brooke Wadsworth

Partnerships Coordinator
Hacks/Hackers

Kathleen Walker

Sr. Content Strategist
CommunicateHealth

Kathleen Walker is a Senior Content Strategist at CommunicateHealth. Kathleen creates plain language health content and specializes at translating complex health information into simple and engaging content. Kathleen is passionate about creating more accessible online experiences and promoting health literacy.

Nedra Kline Weinreich

President and Founder
Weinreich Communications

As the president and founder of Weinreich Communications, Nedra has more than 25 years of experience in helping NGOs, public agencies and other socially minded organizations create positive change on health and social issues.

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She helps organizations make a difference for the people they serve through state-of-the-art social marketing techniques, digital media approaches and the power of stories. Her clients have included the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, UNHCR, the World Food Program, Microsoft, and many others. She is the author of the widely used book Hands-On Social Marketing: A Step-by-Step Guide to Designing Change for Good. Nedra has taught courses on social marketing at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Public Health and Georgetown University, and she has trained thousands of professionals through her Social Marketing University training series and other workshops. She is on the Editorial Board for Social Marketing Quarterly and served as a member of the Board of Directors of the International Social Marketing Association. She is also the founder of the Transmedia for Good Network. Nedra earned her Master’s degree in Health and Social Behavior from the Harvard School of Public Health and her Bachelor’s degree in Conservation and Resource Studies from the University of California at Berkeley.

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