2024 Program

The Art Gallery Opening Reception is an evening of socializing and engagement. Featuring the Art Gallery's official opening, this event will include live presentations and performances. Food will be provided by the Taste of GME, a potluck that allows participants to engage with colleagues about the foods of their countries, cultures, and faiths and connect with the gallery artists about their work. Taste of GME is coordinated in partnership with the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the GME DEI Taskforce. 

This half-day conference aims to raise awareness and encourage action around the systemic health disparities that exist across racial, ethnic, cultural, and social groups while also recognizing interventions and research centered on health equity and historically underrepresented groups in medicine. In collaboration with the School of Medicine Diversity Week, the event will bring together stakeholders from across the institution, providing a platform to share compelling new findings, facilitate scientific exchange, and identify opportunities for collaboration. The theme of this year's Health Equity Day is Empowering Emerging Voices.

This session will engage members of the Emory Healthcare Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leaders network to share best practices, network in their DEI space and empower. The work will be organized around the four pillars of the strategic plan. 

Session speakers include:

• Ildemaro J. González, MBA
  • Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Emory Healthcare, Winship Cancer Institute, Co-Chair EHC DEI Leaders Network
• Georgia Jackson, DNP, MPH, RN, NE-BC
  • Director of Workforce Development and Patient-Family Centered Care, EUH; Co-Chair EHC DEI Steering Committee; Co-Chair EHC DEI Leaders Network; Co-Chair EU Operating Unit DEIB Advisory Committee; AARP Center for Health Equity Through Nursing Ambassador

Panelists include: 

• Janelle N. Williams Holder, MD, FACP

  • Assistant Professor, Division of Palliative and Supportive Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine; Co-Chair Diversity, Equity, Inclusion - Belonging Committee, Emory St. Joseph Hospital

• Beth Jansa

  • Director, Community Outreach & Foundation, Emory Decatur Hospital, Emory Hillandale Hospital, Emory Long-Term Acute Care; Co-chair, Community Team - EDOU DEI Council

• Adrienne Harris, MSN, RN

  • Nursing Unit Director of the 4th Floor Surgical Unit, EJCH; Co-Chair EJCH JEDI Committee, Member EHC DEI Steering Committee & DEI Leaders Network

• Bridget Piggue, ThD, MDiv

  • Director of Spiritual Health, EUHM and Director of Operations, Emory Spiritual Health; EUHM Health Equity Team; Cross-Cultural Empathy Education Team, EHC; Chair, Racial Ethnic Multicultural Network of the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE), Spiritual Health

• Douglas Flanagan, LPN

  • LPN Lead, Addiction Alliance of Georgia/Emory Addiction Center, EUH/ Emory Clinic

    Co-Chair DEI Committee PGP

• Lucero Rodriguez

  • Director of Employee and Patient Experience; Co-chair DEIB Advisory Committee at EUH OU, Certified Diversity Executive (CDE)

Departmental and division leadership is foundational in our ongoing efforts to affect meaningful transformation from one’s sense of merely being to that of belonging, and thriving within a vibrant, diverse and inclusive community. This session will host DEI leads across SOM departments who will highlight their programmatic and/or individual level initiatives. We will explore the different experiences along this journey, metrics and/or data demonstrating the impact of these initiatives, as well as insights and lessons learned while doing this invaluable service.  

Session speakers include:

• Nadine Kaslow (psychiatry and behavioral sciences) 
  • Professor and Vice Chair for Faculty Development, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Emory University Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences 

• Erica Lee (psychiatry and behavioral sciences)  
  • Associate Professor and Eminent Psychologist, Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science  

• Kimberly Curseen (family and preventative medicine)  
  • Associate Professor Division of Palliative Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine 

• Jada Bussey-Jones (medicine) 
  • Carter Smith Sr Professor Department of Medicine Associate Dean, Professional Development, Emory at Grady Chief, Grady General Internal Medicine 

•  Kimberly Manning (medicine)  
  • Professor Department of Medicine, Associate Vice Chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine.  

• Shanta Zimmer 
  • Professor, Medicine-Infectious Disease, Sr. Associate Dean of Medical Education, DEI Lead, University of Colorado, Emory University alumni 

• Wendy Greene (surgery) 
  • Director of the Acute and Critical Care Surgery Service, Emory University Hospital, Co-Chair of the African American Women’s Collaborative (AAWC)   

• Cherie Hill (gynecology and obstetrics) 
  • Residency Associate Program Director, Associate Professor, Emory University School of Medicine, Co-Chair of the African American Women’s Collaborative (AAWC)

• Michele Sumler (anesthesiology)  
  • Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Associate Professor Department of Anesthesiology 

Join us for updates on SOM diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, including partners from the Woodruff Health Sciences Center. 

Session speakers include: 

• Sheryl Heron 
  • Associate Dean for Community Engagement, Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer, Emory School of Medicine 
• Ildamaro J. Gonazlez 
  • Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Emory Healthcare, Winship Cancer Institute, Co-Chair EHC DEI Leaders Network
• Joanne McGriff
  • Associate Director of the Center for Global Safe WASH and Assistant Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Rollins School of Public Health 
• Lisa Muirhead 
  • Associate Dean for Equity and Inclusion, Admissions, & Student Affairs, Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing Emory University