PHHP recognizes outstanding graduates

The College of Public Health and Health Professions honored its 2013 Outstanding Alumni at a ceremony November 9, held in conjunction with the college’s alumni reunion.

In the category of alumni less than 10 years since graduation, the honorees included Shaun Ajinkya, master’s in public health (epidemiology) ’11; Michael Larson, doctorate in clinical psychology ’08; and Michael Moorhouse, doctorate in rehabilitation science ’08.

Outstanding alumni more than 10 years since graduation included Frank Gainer, master’s in occupational therapy ’84; Robin Morris, doctorate in clinical psychology ’82; Matthew Severance, master’s in health administration/master’s in business administration ’91; Lori Shutter, bachelor’s in physical therapy ’81; and Kadyn Williams, doctorate in audiology ’00.

ShaunAjinkyaPhotoShaun Ajinkya, M.P.H., is an M.D. candidate at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine, and is anticipated to graduate in 2016. During his time in the UF M.P.H. program, he helped manage a project regarding oral HPV in college-aged women for Robert Cook, M.D., M.P.H., a UF associate professor of epidemiology and medicine, and participated in several health education outreach events. After graduation, Ajinkya worked for Linda Cottler, Ph.D., M.P.H., chair of the UF department of epidemiology and the PHHP associate dean for research and planning, as a statistical data analyst. He assisted in the analysis and publication of research on drug use in Afghanistan, substance abuse in medical professionals, and community perceptions of medical research.

Gainer_FrankFrank Gainer, M.H.S., OTR/L, FAOTA, CAE, is the director of conferences at the American Occupational Therapy Association in Bethesda, Md. He has been an occupational therapy practitioner for 37 years, including 14 years of clinical service in the U.S. Army. He was the director of rehabilitation services for a large health care system in Washington, D.C., prior to joining AOTA in 2001. He retired from the U.S. Army Reserves as a lieutenant colonel in 2003 after serving for 24 years. Gainer is currently an adjunct instructor at Howard University and the chairperson of the District of Columbia Board of Occupational Therapy. He is a longtime surveyor for CARF, the Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission, and a member of the Center for Association Leadership’s Certified Association Executive Item-Writing Committee.

Larson_PictureMichael Larson, Ph.D., joined the faculty at Brigham Young University in the department of psychology and Neuroscience Center after receiving his UF doctoral degree. His research aims to understand the behavioral and neural representations of cognitive control; determine the developmental course and subsequent deterioration of cognitive control processes associated with psychopathology or neurologic insult, such as traumatic brain injury; identify the specific relationships between affective and social processes, such as empathy or satisfaction with life, and cognitive control functions; and determine the usefulness of traditional psychometric tests and biological measures such as fMRI and event-related potentials in identifying psychopathology and neurologic insult. He has published more than 45 research articles, two book chapters and many conference presentations on these topics.

Moorhouse PicMichael Moorhouse, Ph.D., CRC, is the director of the bachelor of health science program and a clinical assistant professor at the UF College of Public Health and Health Professions. Prior to his current role, Moorhouse spent five years with the PHHP department of behavioral science and community health as a postdoctoral associate and a research assistant scientist. He has received research funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense, the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, the Florida Trauma Institute for Returning Military Personnel, and the Veterans Health Administration. His research focuses on two primary areas: risky substance use behaviors, and developing and validating health science measures for research and clinical use.

Morris_RobinRobin Morris, Ph.D., is the associate provost for strategic initiatives and innovation and Regents Professor of Psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences at Georgia State University. He also holds joint appointments in the department of educational psychology and special education and the Neurosciences Institute. He has focused his scholarly and clinical work on the biological and environmental factors that influence academic, attentional and social development in children and adolescents. He is also known for his methodological, test construction and psychometric expertise and experience. He has published widely in these areas, and has had federal grant funding for over 30 years from the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Defense, and the Institute of Educational Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education.

Photo - Matt SeveranceMatthew Severance, FACHE, is the CEO of Roper Hospital in Charleston, S.C., and senior vice president, operations of Roper St. Francis Healthcare. His association with Roper began following graduate school, when he started as an administrative resident and later worked in various administrative roles. In 2001, he was named chief operating officer and executive vice president for Lawrence Hospital Center in Bronxville, N.Y., just outside New York City, where he remained until returning to Roper Hospital as CEO in 2004. He is a fellow of the American College of Health Care Executives and a board member of Trident United Way, Carolinas E-Health Alliance, Charleston Regional Development Alliance, South Carolina Hospital Association, and the Medical University of South Carolina Hospital Administration Program.

SONY DSCLori Shutter, P.T., M.D., FCCM, FNCS, is a neuro-intensivist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, where she was appointed as a professor of critical care medicine, neurology and neurosurgery. She directs the neurocritical care fellowship program and is the director of the department of neurology’s division of neurocritical care. Prior to this position she was with the department of neurosurgery at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, where she established one of the first accredited neurocritical care fellowship training programs. She has over 80 research papers and book chapters to her credit. She participated in the development of the Brain Trauma Foundation’s Guidelines for Management of Severe Traumatic Brain Injury, the Neurocritical Care Society’s Guidelines on Medical Management of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage and Management of Status Epilepticus.

Williams_KadynKadyn Williams, Au.D., is one of the founders and owners of Audiological Consultants of Atlanta, a private audiologic practice in Atlanta, Ga. Founded in 1983 as the first private audiology and speech pathology practice in the state of Georgia, Audiological Consultants of Atlanta now has six locations and employs 12 audiologists. She is active on a national level, having served as a member of the American Academy of Audiology, and as the organization’s chair from 2005 through 2009. Since 2008 she has served on the American Academy of Audiology’s Practice Policy Advisory Council and as its chair since 2012. In recognition of her service to the profession of audiology, the American Academy of Audiology awarded Williams its Presidential Award in 2007 and the State Leaders’ Advocate of the Year Award in 2009.