Dr. Bonnie Edmondson is an Associate Professor and Graduate Coordinator of the School Health Education Program at Southern Connecticut State University. She has over 35 years of experience as an educator, coach, and former professional athlete. Nationally, Dr. Edmondson has served on expert panels for the CDC and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is a peer reviewer for numerous professional publications and journals, and is a nationally renowned speaker on health and education policy and athletic coaching. At the state level, Bonnie lead the writing and implementation of numerous school health policies and programmatic guidance documents. In addition, she is a two-time national champion and former world ranked hammer thrower. She is active with USA Track and Field having served as head coach for the 2019 IAAF World Championship team, coach for the 2016 United States Olympic Team, and seven IAAF World Championship teams. Bonnie also serves as Chair of the prestigious USATF Women’s Commission and is a member of the Women’s Track and Field Executive Committee. Dr. Edmondson holds an EdD in Educational Leadership, an MS in School Health Education, and a BA in English.

Ewelina is an Associate Research Scientist at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC). Ewelina has earned her degrees in Psychology from Columbia University in New York City, the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and the University of Warsaw, Poland. Before joining CUIMC, she completed her post-doctoral training at CUNY School of Public Health & Health Policy. Ewelina’s research involves a hybrid of psychology, public health, music, social justice, and innovation. She is passionate about the role of multidisciplinary fields, media, arts, and music in effective health and mental health education and behavior change. Together with Dr. Olajide Williams, she has developed the Multisensory Multilevel Health Education Model – a theoretical framework focused on innovative, culturally sensitive, and evidence-based health education. In her academic work, she pursuits one question: “how do we inspire people to look after their health, mental health, and wellbeing?”. Ewelina is a recipient of several awards, including the Fulbright Scholarship and International Postgraduate Research Scholarship from the Australian Government. She also received the Innovative Leader in Magazine Media Award from Yale University for her work on Lifelab – a project that aims at bringing the science of psychology from academia to our daily lives. Through Columbia lab, Ewelina is a part of Hip Hop Public Health team that uses hip-hop music and innovative media tools to create programs that improve health literacy and foster positive behaviors among children and their families. Whether it is through her research, previous clinical work, or personal interests, Ewelina enjoys exploring new ideas and connections between them. She often immerses herself in the cultural landscape of NYC – jazz, ballet, museums, and random science lectures. And this exploration informs her research, too.

Melissa Valerio, Ph.D., MPH, is an Associate Professor of Health Promotion and Behavioral Science at the UT School of Public Health, San Antonio Regional Campus. Prior to returning to Texas, she spent five years as Assistant Professor of Health Behavior and Health Education at the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

She obtained her Master’s degree in Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of Michigan School of Public Health and her PhD in health behavior and health education from the University of Michigan. Dr. Valerio's interests include chronic disease management and prevention, the design and evaluation of effective health education messages and materials, and survey methods. She is particularly interested in health literacy and cultural competence issues related to health education and communication in minority underserved communities. Dr. Valerio has been involved in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of community-based coalitions and partnerships. Most recently I have served as PI on studies focused on the design and evaluation of innovative functional health literacy-related interventions and strategies to promote disease management (type 2 diabetes, asthma, and oral health) and prevention (type 2 diabetes). She serves as PI on an NINR funded R21 study to develop a measure of verbal functional health literacy. Dr. Valerio also serves as Co-I on several studies including an NIDDK funded R01 examining the use and influence of genetic explanations in the prevention of type 2 diabetes, and AHRQ funded R18 examining comparative effectiveness research practices in diabetes management, and on a P60 funded center initiative addressing health disparities in cardiovascular risk.