Speakers

Dr. Wagner is a registered dietitian with a doctorate in public health. Dr. Wagner’s research focuses on alleviating health disparities in underserved communities through health literacy to improve population health frequently leveraging CHWs. Dr. Wagner has delivered multiple programs, speaking engagements and trainings surrounding health literacy. Additionally, she established both a multi-stakeholder health literacy collaborative with the DFW Hospital Council Foundation and Health Literacy Texas, a statewide nonprofit. As a result of her work, she received the 2018 Texas Health Literacy Hero Award, the 2020 Distinguished Alumni Award from Texas Christian University and 2023 UNTHSC Health Professions Faculty Achievement Award.

Dr. Denise Hernandez is the founder of the DFW Community Health Worker Association as well as a member of the founding Board of Directors for the Texas Association of CHWs/Promotores. Denise is a member of the inaugural research team awarded by the Coalition of Urban Serving Universities Racial Justice, Equity Program Award at the University of Texas at Arlington where she also teaches in the Public Health program. Dr. Hernandez's work focuses on strengthening the support for the CHW workforce through research and policy at the local, state, and national level.

Patrick is the architect for the Intelligent Health Solutions which provides patient-centered careplans and digital coaching training modules that are delivered through technology platforms. These solutions emphasize best practices in digital coaching, digital health literacy, motivational interviewing, and psychographic segmentation. Dr. Dunn is a clinical exercise physiologist, data scientist, software engineer, and health educator with 38 years of experience in cardiac rehabilitation, preventive cardiology, quality, and wellness with specific expertise in digital health literacy and digital coaching methods.

She is a Nationally Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach and a graphic designer. She combines her design thinking with coaching skills to develop programs designed to support behavior change.

I lead the positive disruption of patient education at JHHS

Sharla Glass is Public Policy and Community Outreach Liaison for En-Vision America where for the last 19 years she has been a medication safety patient advocate and educator. She earned her BA from Loras College and MA in Pastoral Ministry from St. John's University in Collegeville, MN. She has lived experience navigating the healthcare system parenting six children with a variety of special needs.

Theresa Sladek, MA, is the Strategic Partnerships and Northstar Business Development Manager at Literacy Minnesota and works with organizations to ascertain and implement their digital literacy needs. Theresa also works with Literacy Minnesota’s national Open Door Collective program on poverty reduction through literacy. Prior to this, she developed statewide training on Navigation related to adult persistence. Theresa has a BS in Biology from Lewis and Clark College and a MA in Counseling Psychology from the University of St. Thomas. She worked as a counselor, project manager and corporate trainer before joining the field of education.

PATCH Teen Educators are a group of high school students (aged 14-18) from the Madison area. They are trained as public speakers and advocates. The Teen Educators come from many diverse backgrounds and are experts on the needs and concerns of young people today. They use storytelling and guided discussion to share their own perspectives about adolescent health care and to advocate for changes within health care systems that would ensure access to high-quality, youth-friendly health care for all young people. Through their work they are breaking down stigma associated with many health issues and are prepared to discuss a wide variety of sensitive or challenging health topics.

James has been working at PATCH for a year and a half now. He is originally from the Madison area and has his Bachelor's of Science in social work from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. While James was attending school his main goal was to find a career in advocacy, to work with underserved communities, and to have a healthcare focus. PATCH ended up being the perfect fit and he is so happy to be back in his hometown!

Katie Leath is a passionate health communicator with nearly a decade of experience making health information easy to read, understand, and use. She leads the team of experts at the UAMS Center for Health Literacy where she has served in various roles to help create and edit health-related materials for patients and consumers. Katie earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing with a minor in graphic design from the University of Central Arkansas. She graduated with honors from UAMS with a master of public health degree and from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with a master’s degree in applied communication.

Katie is a second-year student at the Clinton School of Public Service where she is pursuing a Masters in Public Service. Her public service focus is public health. Katie completed a year-long project with the UAMS Center for Health Literacy to assess the state of health literacy in the classroom for K-12 students.

Liz is a field specialist in nutrition and health education at the University of Missouri with a public health background in health planning. She is also a Certified Health Education Specialist. Liz additionally serves as a graduate course instructor and the University of Missouri (MU) Extension liaison for the MU Department of Public Health. Liz offers research-based courses for the community on topics including disease management, nutrition, food safety, mindfulness, balance and physical activity. She translates research and knowledge from the University for community use.

Eden is a field specialist in nutrition and health education at the University of Missouri with a background in school nutrition and gardens programs. She also started a farmers’ market in Manito Illinois, a small rural community South of Peoria Illinois. Her passion lies in connecting people with food and the sources of the food they consume to create a healthy life. Eden offers her community research-based courses on the topics including disease management, nutrition, food safety, community gardening, farmer’s market resources, balance and physical activity.

Samantha is a Public Health Strategist in Southern Wisconsin leading initiatives focused on Access to Care, Diabetes and Heart Disease, and Violence Prevention. Over the last four years, her commitment to improving population health is evident through her work in both healthcare and county health department settings. She graduated from the University of North Carolina with her Master of Public Health Degree and is a Certified Health Education Specialist.

Christine Streich is a Certified Health Education Specialist from Janesville, Wisconsin working to improve population health outcomes and advance equity in Rock County, Wisconsin. Her career started with helping start a community-based day program for adults with disabilities and has since diversified the clientele she works with ranging from 0-5 kiddos and families with Head Start, and older adults in a Managed Care Organization. These experiences have prepped her for her current role as a Public Health Strategist at a local public health department in coordinating a county-wide coalition called the Health Equity Alliance of Rock County (HEAR) that organizes the Community Health Assessment and Improvement Plan.

Shana works directly with students who required Individualized Education Program (IEPs) and coordinates the County Communities on Transition meetings with organizations who provide services for students with disabilities.

Amy A. Free is a nationally certified and state licensed interpreter who works between the languages of spoken English and sign language. Amy enjoys medical and healthcare interpreting and served on the on-call team for Madison's 3 hospitals for 8 years. Additionally, she is a Senior Sign Language Interpreter and lecturer at the University of Wisconsin, a mentor to new interpreters, and an instructor of aquatic exercise in the UW Health system. Amy pursues multiple, interdisciplinary passion projects. A favorite was a warm-water movement class provided in ASL for Deaf participants, a population largely underserved in group fitness classes.

Lara Miskevich is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) and is currently completing her M.S. in Community Health at Wayne State University in Detroit. Lara is passionate about promoting Health Literacy and the fields of Health Education and Communication. She strives to continue to grow as a health educator and for her work to have a positive and empowering effect for patients across Metro Detroit and the country.

Angela Murphy is a nurse and has held various positions within healthcare including inpatient, ambulatory, school-based nurse, nurse supervisor, and a quality specialist.

Professor Trudeau is a recognized expert on clear legal communication, numeracy, and health literacy. He is the first lawyer to be appointed to the US National Academies’ Roundtable on Health Literacy and the Food & Drug Administration’s Risk Communication Advisory Committee.

Anna-Kate is a seasoned health communicator with a passion for making health information easy to use and understand. At the Center for Health Literacy, she creates and edits plain language health materials and supports the center’s training services. Before this, Anna-Kate worked in communications for non-profit and healthcare organizations, including most recently in the UAMS Psychiatric Research Institute. She received a bachelor’s degree in Linguistics and French from the University of Central Arkansas and has spent many years studying abroad.

Katie is a passionate health communicator who has been making health information easy to understand and use for the last decade. She leads a team of experts at the UAMS Center for Health Literacy who creates and edits health materials. Katie earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing with a minor in graphic design from the University of Central Arkansas. She graduated from UAMS with a master of public health degree and from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with a master’s degree in applied communication.

Reagan Laborde is an Instructional Designer at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, has a background in k-12 education and a bachelor's in Secondary Education and a master's in Learning Technologies from the University of North Texas. A fervent advocate for curriculum development and instruction, Reagan is passionate about conveying essential information to diverse populations. With an unwavering passion for education, Reagan's work is dedicated to fostering inclusivity and inspiring effective learning experiences through various modes of education technologies.

She holds a Ph.D. in Health Communication. For 30 years, she has been a leader and practitioner in the field. She has consulted, presented, and trained nationally, and internationally, on health literacy, plain language, and implementing health literacy initiatives in organizations. Thousands of people across the U.S. have attended her highly-regarded workshops on reader-friendly information. She is a court-approved readability expert. Audrey was the health literacy leader at a diverse safety net medical center for several years. She co-authored Building Health Literate Organizations: A Guidebook to Achieving Organizational Change.

In her role, she supports mission-driven professionals in making everyday communications inclusive, understandable, and effective through a philosophy grounded in social justice. She also provides tailored plain language training across sectors that are designed to address unique needs of each organization. Melanie also works closely alongside community members, prioritizing their perspectives in creating materials such as flyers, slide decks, handbooks, and web content for nonprofit and government entities. She often incorporates key themes into her work including cultural humility, universal design, and trauma-informed care.

In her role with Clear Language Lab, Sarah works with a wide range of organizations to create understandable, usable, and humanizing communications. She provides professional development through training facilitation, coaching, and materials review.
Coming to this work from adult education, Sarah has seen how important clear communication is in the fight for justice and equity, and she enjoys sharing the communication strategies she’s learned with others. Through this work she hopes to challenge systemic injustice by making sure information is accessible and actionable for those who need it.

Founder and President of Health Literacy 360 LLC, Karen’s mission is to reduce communication barriers within the complex healthcare system
For over 20 years, Karen served as the Director of Organizational Development and the Health Literacy Institute at an urban teaching hospital in the heart of downtown Cleveland, Ohio until its closing in Nov. 2022. Karen has provided training and keynotes at numerous healthcare facilities and conferences at the local, state, and national levels over the last two decades.
She is past president and co-founder of Ohio Health Literacy Partners, a state-wide, non-profit collaborative, and is most recently chair of the National Council to Improve Patient Safety through Health Literacy.

Kajua Lor, PharmD, BCACP earned her Doctorate of Pharmacy from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 2009, after which she completed an ambulatory care residency at the University of Minnesota. She is a board-certified ambulatory care pharmacist. Dr. Lor was the first Hmong pharmacist to obtain a pharmacy academia position in the nation. Dr. Lor has over 13+ years of experience as a clinical pharmacist with Spanish-speaking patients and currently is a clinical pharmacist 1 day per week at Sixteenth Street Clinic, a federally qualified health care center in Milwaukee, WI. She has several peer-reviewed publications and is co-author of ‘Getting in: a practical guide to pharmacy admission’. Dr. Lor’s research interests involve the intersections of social determinants of health with chronic care management & herbal medicine use. She is a community engaged health disparities researcher. Dr. Lor was selected and graduated as a fellow of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program and is collaborating with leaders across various sectors, disciplines, and lived experiences to create healthier, more equitable communities.

Melissa French is the Content Director at the Lupus Foundation of America (LFA). She directs the National Resource Center on Lupus, an online collection of health education resources and self-management tools for people with lupus. She oversees Strategies to Embrace Living with Lupus Fearlessly (SELF), a digital self-management program for people with lupus. Before joining the LFA, Melissa was the director of the Roundtable on Health Literacy of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM). Melissa has a Masters of Science in health and medical policy from the Schar School of Policy and Government of George Mason University.

Katie Carpenter is the Program Implementation Consultant for the Strategies to Embrace Living with Lupus Fearlessly (SELF) program, a digital self-management program for people with lupus. Prior to joining the LFA, Katie was the Assistant Director of Analytics and Clinical Effectiveness at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford. Katie holds her MS in Healthcare Leadership and Quality Improvement from the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice.

Leah brings empathy and a passion for service to her training in behavioral and community health to develop programs that move communities toward health equity. A self-described “word nerd,” she understands the importance of clear, respectful communication in building relationships between community members and information providers. Leah enjoys helping communicators build their skill sets and working with organizations to help them better understand and serve their communities."

Apichaya (Miu) Stieve is a Maryland certified community health worker, and the Horowitz Center’s community liaison for the Lifting All Voices project in Frederick, Maryland. A native of Surin, Thailand, Miu blends her expertise in cross-cultural communication with a plain language approach to ensure that all community members have access to clear, accurate, actionable health information.

She leads the Michigan Health Literacy Coalition. She teaches health literacy practices to future and present health providers, runs a Health + English program every summer, and consults on initiatives to build organizational health literacy. She has worked with the National Adult Literacy Agency in Ireland to increase the impact of the Crystal Clear Pharmacy Awards for literacy-friendly pharmacies. She received her PhD in Rhetoric and Technical Communications (with specializations in literacy. linguistics, and usability testing) from Michigan Technological University