Brief Biography 

Dr. James Curran has been Dean and Professor of Epidemiology at the Rollins School of Public Health of Emory University since 1995.  He also serves as Director of the Emory Center for AIDS Research and holds joint appointments in the Emory School of Medicine and the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing.   In 1971, Dr. Curran  began his career with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).   His early assignments included research and faculty appointments at the University of Tennessee and Ohio State University Schools of Medicine and positions in health departments in Memphis, Tennessee and Columbus, Ohio.  He served in leadership positions in CDC=s HIV/AIDS research and prevention activities from 1981 through 1995 and reached the rank of Assistant Surgeon General in 1991.  His awards include the Distinguished Service Award, the Centers for Disease Control Medal of Excellence, the Surgeon General=s Exemplary Service Award, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Equal Opportunity Achievement Award, and the Edward Brandt, Jr. Award from the National Leadership Coalition Against AIDS.  He was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Science in 1993. He is a Fellow of the American Epidemiologic Society, the American College of Preventive Medicine, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America and is a member of the American Medical Association, the Georgia Public Health Association, the American Public Health Association, and the Atlanta Rotary Club among others.  Dr. Curran has authored over 240 publications and serves as a scientific advisor to the National Institutes of Health, the National Academy of Science, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization among others.  Dr. Curran graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a bachelor of science degree in 1966.  He received his doctorate of medicine from the University of Michigan in 1970 and a Master of Public Health degree from the Harvard School of Public Health in 1974.  He completed his residency in General Preventive Medicine at Harvard Medical School in 1995.  Dr. Curran serves on the Boards of the Georgia HealthCare Foundation, AID Atlanta and MedShare International while serving as an advisor to the Georgia Cancer Coalition, Jerusalem House, the Homeland Security Foundation (HSF)  and other local, national, and international organizations.  

PATRICIA A. GABOW, MD

Chief Executive Officer and Medical Director

Denver Health

Denver, CO  

Brief Biography 

Dr. Gabow received her undergraduate degree from Seton Hill College, and her M.D. Degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.  She trained in Internal Medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Harbor General Hospital in Torrance, California.  She received further training in Nephrology at San Francisco General Hospital and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.  Dr. Gabow joined the staff of Denver Health and Hospitals in 1973 as Chief of the Renal Division.  In 1981 she became Director of the Medical Service.  She became Deputy Manager of Medical Affairs in 1989 and Manager (CEO) of DHH in 1992.  Currently, she is CEO and Medical Director of Denver Health.  Denver Health is a highly integrated public health care system, which is the principal safety-net institution for Denver and Colorado.  She is also a Professor of Medicine in the Division of Renal Disease at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.  Her major clinical research area has been in polycystic kidney disease.  Dr. Gabow was principal investigator of a National Institute of Health Program Project Grant in polycystic kidney disease for 15 years.  Dr. Gabow is a member of numerous professional societies including the Association of American Physicians, the American College of Physicians, the American Society of Nephrology, the International Society of Nephrology, the American Federation of Clinical Research, and the American College of Physician Executives.  She has authored over 120 articles and book chapters.  She is the recipient of numerous awards and professional distinctions including the American Medical Association’s Nathan Davis Award for an Outstanding Public Servant and the University of Colorado’s Florence Rena Sabin Award.  She holds the Temple Hoyne Buell and National Kidney Foundation Endowed Chair for Kidney Research.  She has been honored by Denver Health with the Patricia A. Gabow Endowment for Vulnerable Populations.  She is a recipient of the 2002 Good Housekeeping Award for Women in Government.  Dr. Gabow has been actively involved in issues and organizations related to health care delivery.  She is a member of the Board of Colorado Health and Hospital Association, the Board of Colorado Access (Medicaid HMO of safety-net providers), and the Coalition of the Medically Underserved.  Dr. Gabow has served as Chair of the National Association of Public Hospitals, as Chair of the Board of the National Public Health and Hospital Institute and as Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of Polycystic Kidney Research Foundation.  She has served on the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on the Future Viability of Safety-Net Providers.  She is a member of Board of Regents (Advisory Board) for the Homeland Security Foundation.  Dr. Gabow is leading the Denver Health Community Voices Project, a $5 million initiative funded by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and the Colorado Trust, which focuses on improving the health of the underserved population.  Dr. Gabow is married to Harold Gabow, a professor of computer science at the University of Colorado at Boulder.  They have two children.  Dr. Gabow enjoys biking and cooking.

STEPHEN J. JAY. MD

Chair Department of Public Health

Indiana University School of Medicine

Indianapolis, IN 

Brief Biography

An AOA honor graduate (1966) of Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Dr. Jay completed graduate training in medicine (1971) and pulmonary diseases (1973) at Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, TX.  Following junior faculty positions at Southwestern and UK Medical Schools, Jay has served on the faculty of IUSM (1976-).  He is professor of medicine, associate dean, and chair, department of public health.  Since 1973, Dr. Jay has been engaged in service, teaching, scholarship, and administration in public health and related areas.  He directed the Dallas County Health Department tuberculosis clinics and the inpatient tuberculosis service of Wishard Memorial Hospital at IUSM. As senior vice president academic affairs and director of all teaching and research programs of Methodist Hospital of Indiana, an IUSM affiliated teaching institution, he also oversaw the management of three community health centers serving medically underserved persons in Indianapolis.  He guided development of novel primary care graduate training programs, an occupational medicine residency, the first primary care clinic based in a high school  (Arsenal Technical HS) in Indiana, and one of Indiana’s first Physician’s Assistant training programs with Butler University.    Dr. Jay has engaged in teaching and scholarship in tobacco control.  He is co-director (with Arden G. Christen DDS) of the IU Nicotine Dependence Program. He chaired the committee in 1989 that created smoke-free environments in all Indianapolis teaching hospitals. Dr. Jay chaired an Indiana Hospital Association Committee that developed, “A Practical Guide to a Smoke-Free Workplace” that was distributed to businesses and corporations throughout Indiana.  He is founding chair (1996-present) of the Indiana State Medical Association Tobacco Control Task Force.  Dr. Jay’s early research focused on mechanisms of lung defense in animals against bacterial aerosols and the adverse effects of tobacco smoke and air pollution on lung function.  Recent scholarship has centered on organizational models for public health and novel teaching and learning strategies for health professionals.  He directed the first Indiana Medicine/Public Health Initiative funded by the APHA/AMA and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and was Principle Investigator and Director (1995-June 2002) of the Indiana Area Health Education Center initiative, a project funded by HRSA in September 2001. Dr. Jay is co-PI on the HRSA funded University of Illinois School of Public Health Mid-America Public Health Training Center, an Illinois/IN collaborative initiative to improve PH infrastructure.   Dr. Jay has authored or co-authored more than 200 peer-reviewed articles/abstracts/editorials/letters and two books.  He is on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions.  Dr. Jay has served as PI/Collaborator of externally funded research projects and has administered several million dollars in Federal/Private/State grants.  He is past president of the national Association for Hospital Medical Education and past chair of the Accrediting Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the national accrediting organization for continuing medical education.  He is past president of the American Lung Association of Indiana (ALA-I) and the Indiana Thoracic Society.  Dr. Jay chairs the Indianapolis Alliance for Health Promotion. He serves on the Governor’s Tobacco Prevention & Cessation Agency and the ISDH Bioterrorism/Preparedness Advisory Board.   Dr. Jay has received awards and honors, including the 1991 ALA-IN Auerbach award for meritorious contributions to the prevention and control of lung disease in Indiana; the 1992 of the Indiana Public Health Foundation Tony and Mary Hulman Health Achievement Award for “exceptional and exemplary medical leadership in improving the state of human health and the advancement of preventive medicine and public health;” and the annual Indiana State Department of Health award in 1989 for outstanding contributions to tuberculosis control. Dr. Jay was recognized by ISDH on January 5, 2001 for “excellence in public health for outstanding contributions in promoting, protecting, and providing for people in Indiana. Dr. Jay received the annual University of Kentucky Department of Medicine Teacher of the Year Award in 1975 and the IUPUI Teaching Excellence Recognition Award in 1998.                                      

WILLIAM L. VASQUEZ, PH.D

Chair Graduate School of Business

Florida Metropolitan University 

Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Brief Biography

In May, 2001, Dr. William L. Vasquez accepted early retirement as a Vice President with the Citibank International Technology Office in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  Most recently, he had been a Program Manager responsible for Citibank's Call Center Consolidation effort across Latin America.  Before managing this program, Dr. Vasquez was responsible for the Y2K Program for all the Citibank Global Consumer Banks throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.  Today, Dr. Vasquez is the Department Chair for the Graduate School of Business of Florida Metropolitan University located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.   Prior to joining Citibank, Dr. Vasquez worked with several high-tech companies, holding positions in operations, marketing, and field engineering and traveling extensively around the United States and the world.  From 1976 through 1979, he lived in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and from 1979 through 1980, he lived on San Jose, Costa Rica.  Academically, Dr. Vasquez has been an Adjunct Professor since 1984.  He received his doctorate in Business Administration in 1992.  Since 1984, he has successfully taught courses including Marketing, Project Management, Management Information Systems, International Business, and Strategy and Policy.  Colleges and universities at which he has taught include Florida Metropolitan University, Florida Atlantic University, and Broward Community College.  In addition, Dr. Vasquez has served as an advisor to the Florida Atlantic University International Business committee for curriculum development, and he currently serves as the Chair of an advisory committee to the Broward County School System.  In his pursuit of professional and academic expertise, Dr. Vasquez has been certified by the Institute of Certified Professional Managers (ICPM) and the Institute for Certification of Computer Professionals (ICCP).  In addition, he has been published in industry journals and proceedings, and is an experienced speaker at conferences and tradeshows. Dr. Vasquez is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, and is a past member of the Board of Trustees of Nova Southeastern University.  In addition, he served on the Board of Directors for the Gold Coast Chamber Music Festival. Immediately following high school, Dr. Vasquez was selected to be among the group that built and launched the original nuclear submarine force.  From 1962 through 1970, he participated in the construction of three nuclear submarines and ultimately completed six cold war patrols on the Gold Crew of the USS George Washington Carver (SSBN - 656).

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