PHHP Outstanding Alumni 2014

The College of Public Health and Health Professions is pleased to announce the PHHP Outstanding Alumni for 2014. They will be honored at a ceremony during the college’s alumni reunion on October 18.

In the category of alumni less than 10 years since graduation, honorees include Melissa Hall, doctorate of audiology ’10, Dyanne Herrera, master’s in public health with a concentration in epidemiology ’09, and Rick Robinson, doctorate in rehabilitation science ’11.

Outstanding alumni more than 10 years since graduation include Hugh Catts, doctorate in speech-language pathology ’79, Gwen Creel, bachelor’s in physical therapy ’81 and master’s in physical therapy ’97, Jack Fletcher, doctorate in clinical psychology ’78, Heather Stagliano, bachelor’s in occupational therapy ’95 and master’s in occupational therapy ’08, and Kim Streit, master’s in business administration/master’s in health administration ’85.

1. catts-hughHugh Catts, Ph.D., is a professor and director of the School of Communication Science and Disorders at Florida State University. He spent much of his career as a professor and researcher at the University of Kansas. Catts has taught courses in language science and literacy development and disabilities, and his research interests include the early identification and prevention of reading disabilities. He is a past board member of the International Dyslexia Association and past board member and president of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading. He has received the Samuel T. Orton Award from the International Dyslexia Association and the Honors of the Association from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association for his career contributions in each of these disciplines.

Creel, GwenGwen Creel, P.T., M.H.S., joined the PHHP faculty in 1997 after practicing physical therapy for 15 years in a variety of settings including inpatient neuro rehab, acute care, hospital-based outpatient and home health. A recipient of the Barbara C. White Lecture Award from the UF Doctor of Physical Therapy program, Creel taught several courses in the UF physical therapy curriculum, eventually focusing on clinical education, service learning and interprofessional education. She is active in the Florida Physical Therapy Association, and has served on multiple task forces and the district council for many years. In 2013 she received the Fred M. Rutan Outstanding Service Award for her contributions to the profession in the state of Florida. She has also served as a delegate to the American Physical Therapy Association’s House of Delegates. She retired from UF in April 2014.

FLETCHER_0120Jack Fletcher, Ph.D., ABPP, is the Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished Professor of Psychology and chair of the department of psychology at the University of Houston. He has conducted research on children with learning and attention disorders, and brain injury for the past 30 years. He directs a Learning Disability Research Center grant and has led projects involving neurobiological factors and learning in spina bifida and math disabilities, all funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. He served on the NICHD National Advisory Council, the Rand Reading Study Group, the National Research Council Committee on Scientific Principles in Education Research, and the President’s Commission on Excellence in Special Education. In 2003 Fletcher received the Samuel T. Orton Award from the International Dyslexia Association and was a co-recipient of the 2006 Albert J. Harris Award from the International Reading Association.

MelissaHallHeadshotMelissa Hall, Au.D., CCC-A/SLP, is a clinical assistant professor in the college’s department of speech, language, and hearing sciences, where she conducts assessments and evaluations of hearing in infants, children and adults, and participates in the newborn hearing screening program. She is a member of the UF Health cochlear implant program, providing cochlear implant evaluations, programming and rehabilitation, while working closely with the UF department of otolaryngology. She is an instructor for the Doctor of Audiology degree program and supervises students in clinical rotations. She co-chaired the inaugural Conference on Pediatric Hearing Loss held in Gainesville in August 2014. Hall was appointed to the board of the Florida Chapter of AG Bell and is a member of the American Academy of Audiology, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Academy of Rehabilitative Audiology.

HerreraDDyanne Herrera, M.P.H., serves as the chief of the Office of Assessment and Evaluation in the Bureau of Women’s and Children’s Health at the Arizona Department of Health Services. She oversees the data unit and epidemiologist and is involved in coordinating all policies, strategies and activities surrounding assessment, evaluation and research of maternal and child health programs. Before joining the Arizona Department of Health Services, she was a council of state and territorial epidemiologist (CSTE) assigned to the MCH-Epidemiology Team of the CDC’s Division of Reproductive Health and the Office of Border Health of the Texas Department of State Health Services covering the U.S-Mexico border region in El Paso. During her fellowship Herrera received the Hillary B. Foulkes Memorial Award in recognition of her outstanding achievement and commitment to excellence as a CDC/CSTE applied epidemiology fellow.

Rick-Robinson-480x600Rick Robinson, Ph.D., is the president of Robinson Work Rehabilitation Services in Jacksonville, Fla, which offers career planning for persons with vocational impairments. In addition to his private practice, he has been retained in several thousand forensically-oriented matters involving vocational and disability litigation. He is nationally certified in rehabilitation counseling, vocational evaluation and life care planning. He is board certified by the National Board for Certified Counselors and has been conferred diplomate status by the American Board of Vocational Experts. He is the president-elect for the International Association of Rehabilitation Professionals, the nation’s leading multidisciplinary professional association for rehabilitation practitioners. The author of more than a dozen peer reviewed articles and book chapters, Robinson is the lead instructor for UF’s post graduate certificate program in forensic vocational rehabilitation.

Heather StaglianoHeather Stagliano, DHSc, OTR/L, is the director of accreditation at the American Occupational Therapy Association in Bethesda, Md. She has nearly 19 years of experience in occupational therapy practice and most recently served at the Department of Veterans Affairs in Palo Alto, Calif. Prior work in accreditation includes serving as a member of the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy and on the Roster of Evaluators since 2010. In addition to her clinical practice, she served as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Florida from 2007 to 2010.

Streit, KimKim Streit, M.B.A., M.H.A., serves as the vice president of health care research and information for the Florida Hospital Association, a state association that represents 239 hospitals and health systems. In this role, she spearheads the association’s work on quality and patient safety, managed care issues, data analysis and reporting, community benefits and physician issues. She is also project lead on the Partnership for Patients Hospital Engagement Network initiative, a national collaborative focused on reducing patient harm by 40 percent and re-admissions by 20 percent. She serves on the State Consumer Health Information and Policy Advisory Council of the Agency for Health Care Administration, the board of directors for Florida Medical Quality Assurance and is a senior fellow for the Health Research and Education Trust and a fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives.