Awards Ceremony

A longtime leader and presence in the field, Dr. William Datema has served in education and public health for over 40 years, including service from local to international levels. He has held several national leadership positions in the United States including branch chief roles at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in school health and community health, Director of Partnerships for Children’s Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and Executive Director of Eta Sigma Gamma national health education honorary society and the Society of State Leaders of Health and Physical Education.

In his decorated career, Datema has volunteered in many prominent roles including as the President-Elect of the National Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), President of the Foundation for the Advancement of Health Education, and Chair-Elect of the Missouri State University Alumni Association. He is also a board member of the CATCH Global Foundation and Action for Healthy Kids. He previously served on the global boards of ASCD and the International Union for Health Promotion and Education; the national boards of the American Association for Health Education (AAHE), American School Health Association (ASHA), National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, and National PTA; and as chair of the national board and a founding board member of Action for Healthy Kids. He is the United States representative for the UNESCO Chair for Global Health and Education.

He holds a Doctor of Public Health in health policy and management from the University of Georgia, and a Master of Science and Bachelor of Science in Education from Missouri State University. Dr. Datema has presented in 48 U.S. states and 12 other nations, and he has authored and contributed to numerous publications. He is a fellow of ASHA and AAHE, a Master Certified Health Education Specialist (MCHES), and a member of Delta Omega national public health honorary society and Eta Sigma Gamma.

M. Elaine Auld, MPH, MCHES, is the chief executive officer, emerita, for the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE). As SOPHE’s chief executive officer from 1995 to 2021 she oversaw the organization’s portfolio in professional preparation, professional development, research, publications, and advocacy. Over her more than 40-year career, Ms. Auld has published some 50 journal articles and book chapters on the profession’s role in community and school health education, health equity, national and international workforce development, and public policy. With regard to the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child model, Ms. Auld was principal investigator on several Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cooperative agreements that provided training and materials development for professionals, promoted the model as part of the National Task Force on the Future of School Health Education, and helped establish SOPHE’s School Health Teacher Education Standards used in credentialing.

Dr. Escoffery is a Professor in the department of Behavioral, Health, and Social Sciences at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory. She has studied cancer prevention and control and the uptake of evidence-based interventions for over 15 years. She is the PI of the Emory Cancer Prevention and Control Research Network which is exploring multilevel interventions to increase HPV vaccination among rural residents in GA. She is active in SOPHE at the state and national level.

Jordan Fuhrmeister, MPH, CHES is an Associate Project Director at the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE). She brings her background in federal and state grant administration and public health non-profit management to lead the CDC Healthy Schools and CDC Arthritis cooperative agreements. Additional portfolios she directs include SOPHE Awards, Professional Preparation, and the National Committee on the Future of School Health Education. She has overseen and contributed to various CDC funded field resources for school health educators, and co-authored literature in areas of opioid addiction, school health, and childhood obesity to inform health policy and practice.

Mauricia T. Lewis is a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago and resides in that country. She received a Master of Education Health Promotion from The University of the West Indies St. Augustine campus in 2018. In 2015 she received a post graduate degree in Communications, Media and Public Relations from the University of Leicester, England. In 2012, she received a Bachelor’s degree in Film with a Major in Film Studies and Minor in Psychology from The University of the West Indies. For the past twelve (12) years she has been employed in the Public Health Department and Health Education Unit of the Port of Spain Corporation. Her job title is Audio Visual Aids Officer. Her duties include working with the Public Health Educator I and II.
During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic she assisted and worked with the Health Educator I distributing literature to schools, business establishments, members of council and members of the public. Some of this literature includes:
• COVID-19 fact sheet (in English and Spanish). These were distributed to primary and secondary schools.
• Assisted with COVID-19 (novel Coronavirus) Bilingual Booklet. This was distributed to establishments and members of the public and distributed to members of council of the Port of Spain Corporation.
• Wash hand poster.