Don McKenna, ’88, ’97, was appointed as President of Penn State Health Hampden Medical Center, a 300,000-square-foot, acute care hospital in Hershey, Pennsylvania scheduled to open in 2021. McKenna previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Jupiter Health in Florida. Prior to that, he spent 10 years as the President and Chief Executive Officer of St. Mary’s Health Care System in Athens, Georgia.
Viral Climate Study Reveals Historic Global Public Health Standards
Dr. Alexander More, Associate Professor of Public Health and Director of the Honors College in Brooklyn, co-authored a paper published in Cambridge University Press that
Public Health Professor Uses Expertise to Educate Students and Help Those in Need
Few people at Long Island University are more vocationally congruent with much of the discourse surrounding the coronavirus pandemic than Heather Butts, Assistant Professor of Health Care Administration and Director of the Honors College at Post.
“I’ve always been interested in the epidemiology of diseases and bioethical issues at it relates to public health,” Butts said. “Anything that has to do with health and protecting people, and doing that on a large scale, interests me.”
Butts, who grew up in Queens, moved 70 miles south after graduating high school to earn her bachelor’s degree at Princeton. She went on to earn a Juris Doctor from Saint John’s University School of Law, a Master of Public Health from Harvard University and a Master of Arts in Psychology in Education. In 2009, she founded H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths, a non-profit that collaborates with schools, community organizations and other non-profits to provide adolescents and young adults with various programs and workshops in the areas of physical health, mental health, social/cultural education and life-skills.
“It’s a labor of love,” Butts said of H.E.A.L.T.H., which that stands for Health, Education, Academic, Life-skills, Training and Help. “We help with young people who were starting that new chapter of their life called adulthood, to help give them the support they are often sorely lacking.”
In addition to her professional expertise in public health, Butts was also well-positioned to serve those in need within the New York City area during the pandemic. As a steward at Little Free Library, a nonprofit organization that inspires a love of reading by fostering neighborhood book exchanges around the world, helped lead an initiative that stocked canned goods and additional supplies in Little Free Library stations in the New York City area to help provide COVID-19 relief. The laudable work caught the attention of WNBC and PBS NewsHour, which interviewed Butts in a promotional news segments.
“We’re able to do a lot of wonderful projects that involve community outreach and helping other people,” she said. “We’re doing a number of projects from a food security standpoint as well as gardening projects that give back to the community.”
Another role for which Butts is ideally suited is her leadership position with LIU’s Honors College at Post. For the past year, alongside fellow Co-Director Dr. Daniel Hanley, she has helped guide many of the University’s most exceptional students, some of whom are uncertain as to what career path they intend to pursue – a sentiment familiar to her.
“That’s what I love about the Honors College,” she said of the interdisciplinary structure. “After my first year in college, I spent the next three years exploring.” Butts initially hoped to become a surgeon but found herself more interested in healthcare than clinical practice.
“The trajectory that of how I got to where I am wasn’t exactly a linear path, but I’m happy about that,” she said, having worked as a practicing lawyer, award-winning teacher, esteemed academic in-demand speaker and accomplished author. “When I talk to students, it’s not one dimensional.”
Facebook Taps LIU Alumna for Vice President
Sandra Altiné (BA, ’86) was named Vice President, Workforce Diversity & Inclusion at Facebook. Prior to joining Facebook, Altiné was the Managing Director of Global Diversity and Inclusion for Moody’s. She is a board member of Coro NY, a premier leadership training organization in New York City, and sits on the advisory board of The Families and Work Institute.
COVID-19 Insight for The Washington Post
Dr. Marc J. Diener, Associate Professor of Psychology and Co-Director of Clinical Training, shared his expert insight in an article from The Washington Post. The piece discussed the different types of psychological therapy and provided guidance for readers to determine if they should consider pursuing treatment to help cope with stress brought on by the coronavirus.
David J. W. Grant Distinguished Scholar
Dr. Kenneth R. Morris, Professor at LIU Pharmacy and Director of the Lachman Institute for Pharmaceutical Analysis, was selected as the 2020 David J. W. Grant Distinguished Scholar in Basic Pharmaceutics by The National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology & Education. The award recognizes outstanding scientific achievements in the relevant areas of pharmaceutical science and technology. It is the Institute’s highest awarded recognition.
National Science Foundation Funds Novel Carbon Research
The National Science Foundation is funding research from Dr. Cheng Zhang, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, that will mitigate the negative impacts of carbon emissions on the environment and the ecosystem. Zhang is developing a new approach that has the dual impact of removing CO2 from the atmosphere while generating commercial products.
Financial Professional of the Year
Eric Bitetto (BA, ’01), Founder of Semper Fortis Financial, LLC, was recently selected as Top Financial Professional of the Year 2020 by the International Association of Top Professionals for his outstanding leadership and dedication to the industry. The award is given to individuals based on their professional accomplishments, academic achievements, leadership abilities, longevity in the field, other affiliations and contributions to their communities.
Pharmacy Students Serve on COVID-19 Front Lines
Nearly 200 students from LIU Pharmacy’s graduating class have worked on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19. Among this group, over 100 students have worked in community pharmacies, while over 70 have worked in a hospital pharmacy, including dozens of students on rotation at The Brooklyn Hospital Center. Additionally, many students worked in both hospital and community pharmacies.
LIU Honors Graduates at Commencement 2020
Long Island University recognized the graduates of Long Island University during the 2020 Commencement Ceremony. The distinguished speakers were Wynton Marsalis, a world-renowned trumpeter, bandleader, composer and winner of 9 Grammy awards and the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in Music who currently serves as Managing and Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center; Rudy Ruettiger, the iconic Notre Dame University football player who inspired the blockbuster film Rudy; and Abdul Muktadir (MS, ’84), founding Chairman and Managing Director of Incepta Pharmaceuticals, the second largest drug manufacturer in Bangladesh.