These terms will begin January 1, 2027. 

Nominations should be submitted by Friday, July 17th by clicking here. Self-nominations are encouraged. This is an opportunity for you as a WPHA Member to share you are interested in board or nomination committee positions for the nominations committee to follow up with you. There are various pre-requisites to each position (such as membership or board participation. More information about each position is in our WPHA bylaws. After July 17, nominations will be reviewed. Continuous sharing of interest is encouraged and follow up by the nominations committee will occur.

Nominations' Diversity Statement: We are committed to building health and racial equity so that everyone has a fair and just opportunity for health and well-being. Achieving this goal requires a continuous focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. We are committed to fostering diverse perspectives. We recognize that individuals’ perspectives are shaped by a host of factors, included but not limited to race, ethnicity, gender, physical and mental ability, age, socioeconomic status, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, familial status, education, religion, legal status, military service, political affiliation, geography, and other personal and professional experiences.

We know that the presence of diverse perspectives alone is not sufficient. Therefore, we also are committed to creating inclusive environments where all individuals are encouraged to share their perspectives and experiences. WPHA will identify candidates through its nominations process, considering both individual qualities as well as the board and nominations’ composition as a whole.  We commit to being continuous learners and working alongside each other to support diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging within WPHA.

Join University of Wisconsin-La Crosse faculty for an online information session on their online Master of Public Health (MPH) program on June 9, 2026, at Noon (CT).

Applications are currently being accepted for the January 2027 program start.

This 100% online graduate program is designed for working professionals and offers:

• 100% online delivery—balance work and school without pausing your career
• The same affordable tuition for all students, regardless of location
• Applied, real-world learning tailored to professional goals
• Scholarships and financial aid for eligible students

During the session, Anders Cedergren, Ph.D., CHES, Academic Program Director, will provide an overview of the program and answer participants' questions.

Learn more and register for the online session: Information session - Public Health Online | UW-La Crosse

Explore all that the MPH program has to offer: Public Health Online | UW-La Crosse

To help our community get to know this year's WPHA award recipients, we asked them a few questions about their experiences, accomplishments, and perspectives. We are excited to share their responses and invite you to watch the recording of the 2026 Awards Ceremony!

• WPHA Awards
• WALHDAB Awards

This year the Poster Hall was held on Tuesday, May 19, to encourage greater participation and engagement, early in the conference. The Poster Hall created a space for attendees to learn, network, and exchange ideas.

For the first time, we also included a poster judging component. Participants were encouraged to vote for their favorite poster based on:

1. Presenter clarity and confidence
2. Content quality
3. Visual clarity and design

Join us in congratulating Peggy Helm-Quest and Debra Santiago, with the Oneida Community Health Services Division, for receiving the most votes!

If you were unable to attend the Poster Hall, you can still explore the outstanding work shared by presenters. Visit the online poster gallery to view the posters and abstracts from the 2026 Annual Conference: 2026 WPHA-WALHDAB Posters. 

This is your chance - we need your feedback as we move into the next legislative session. What do you want to see on WPHA & WALHDAB's public health agenda?

View our 2025-2026 legislative priorities and tell us your ideas for next session to advance a pro public health agenda.

Click here for the survey. Please complete by June 8th!

The release of this resource aligns with the purpose of the newly formed Substance Use Section of WPHA: to bring greater awareness to—and build skills around—the topic areas of alcohol, tobacco, drug use, prevention, and harm reduction. This hemp resource is just the beginning. The section looks forward to developing additional tools, fostering collaboration, and supporting communities across Wisconsin as they navigate substance related challenges.

Click here.

About the Speaker: 

Kee Chan, PhD, MBA is a public health educator, researcher, and consultant who supports public health and health system teams in workforce development, population health management, and communicating impact. She earned her PhD in Epidemiology and Public Health from Yale University, BS/MS degrees in Biology from UC San Diego, and holds an Executive MBA. With over 20 years of experience in maternal and child health and public health genomics, she helped develop the first DNA-based test used for newborn screening for severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) and conducted cost-effectiveness research to inform decision-making. SCID newborn screening is now implemented nationwide in the United States and in several countries globally through partnership across public health, health systems, industry, advocacy organizations, academia, and families. She is a co-author (with Richard Sewell) of the textbook Public and Population Health: Perspectives for Health Systems Management (by the publisher ACHE) and hosts the “What is Public Health?” podcast. 

April 29th at 12 p.m.: Social Return on Investment (SROI) for Public Health: Making the Case for Equitable Investment

This session introduces Social Return on Investment (SROI) as a decision-ready way to define outcomes that matter, choose meaningful indicators, and communicate value, strengthening grant narratives and sustainability conversations without requiring advanced economics. 

View the session recording.

Participants will be able to:

• Describe the purpose of SROI and when it is useful for public health decision-making, funding justification, and program improvement.
• Define outcomes that matter to communities and partners (including equity-relevant outcomes), and translate them into measurable indicators.
• Draft a simple “value story” that connects activities,  outcomes, and social value, appropriate for proposals, briefs, and leadership updates.

May 27th at 12 p.m.: Design Thinking in Public Health: Co-Create Solutions for Inclusive Environments

This session equips participants with design thinking tools to understand stakeholder needs, define the right problem, and prototype inclusive solutions that fit real-world constraints. 

Participants will be able to:

• Use empathy-based tools to understand needs and barriers across diverse stakeholders (community members, staff, partners) in a system thinking framework (i.e. community-, state-, and global level impact)
• Create an actionable “How might we…?” problem statement that avoids deficit framing and supports inclusive practice.
• Prototype a feasible improvement (service, workflow, communication, policy, or program component) and identify early signals of success, including equity measures. 

View the session recording. 

July 8th at 12 p.m.: Make Data Actionable: Data Visualization and Storytelling for Equity-Focused Decisions

This session focuses on ethical data visualization and concise storytelling so participants can communicate results clearly, responsibly, and persuasively to communities, leaders, and policymakers. Each session is interactive and includes templates participants can use immediately in their work.

Participants will be able to:

• Design effective data visualization for clarity, accessibility, and impact for diverse audiences.
• Use data visualization principles to case study on maternal and child health equity findings (e.g., prenatal care access, preterm birth, infant mortality, postpartum visit rates) 
• Apply an equity lens to maternal and child health (MCH) data storytelling for diverse stakeholders.

Intro's from the Chairs!:

Julia Alberth, MPH: Hi friends! My name is Julia Alberth, and I love WPHA! I'm excited to serve as co-chair of both the Early Career Professional Section and the Community Whole Health Section. I was drawn to public health because of my love for communities and my commitment to advancing health equtiy.

I currently work as the Health Equity Coordinator with Healthy Climate Wisconsin, a statewide climate action nonprofit. Previously, I served as the Community Engagement Manager at the UW-Milwaukee Zilber College of Public Health. I earned my MPH from UW-Madison. Outside of work, I enjoy cooking, learning pottery, and spending time with family, my fiancé, and our two cats, Chad and Kiki.

I look forward to continuing to be a part of the Wisconsin public health community and doing my part to help make this a rewarding and inclusive space for everyone.

Brooke Ramusack: Hello! My name is Brooke Ramusack and I am excited to be joining the WPHA leadership team as the Early Career Professional Co-Chair! I moved to Milwaukee almost four years ago on a whim and have not looked back. My love for the city and the state prompted me to complete my MPH at the UWM Zilber College of Public Health and has been a driving force in my passion to serve Wisconsinites! Currently, I am a first-year fellow with the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and am placed with WI DHS in the Immunization and HIV Care and Prevention units. I look forward to learning from the WPHA community and connecting my fellow young professionals to resources and opportunities to promote their personal and professional growth.

Member Name: Nancy Eggleston

Involved in public health for how long? More than 10 years

What do you do in public health? Retired -- from Environmental Health

Why did you join WPHA? I originally joined WPHA to take advantage of the many training opportunities WPHA has to offer. It allowed me to get to know other public health professionals across the state. xpand my knowledge of the many different Public Health professionals across the state at annual conferences nd learn more about the in Public Health to help promote Public Health across the state.

One thing you value from your membership: WPHA provides broad training opportunities and an opportunity to be involved in Specialty sections.

One tip on how to engage with WPHA: Join Specialty Sections to meet like-minded people in your area of expertise. Also, once you become familiar with WPHA, consider becoming a representative for your area. Taking a leadership role in the organization will help you grow as a professional. 

Don't take yourself too seriously. Take time to relax and make friends with other professionals in your field. The relationships you build will span your career and beyond. The benefits of these friendships are immeasurable.

This interactive toolkit includes products from six agencies who participated in the project*, training recordings, and links to resources to support transformation of the community health improvement process to focus on health equity. If your organization conducts a community health (needs) assessment and/or creates a community health improvement plan, these resources are compiled for you and your partners!

Review, use, click on, download, copy, share any of the resources contained within the toolkit, including several brand new tools and resources created by our local community agencies as a part of this project!

Watch a video recording of the toolkit overview from November 20, 2023.

*In 2022, WPHA applied for and received a Mobilizing Communities for a Just Response (MC4JR) grant from the Department of Health Services (DHS). The grant focuses on starting to transform CHA/CHIP/CHNA processes in 6 Wisconsin communities. Read the full project background here.

Member Name: Kate Beardmore

Involved in public health for how long? 5-9 years

What do you do in public health? Program Evaluator for the Climate and Health Program within the Division of Public Health

Why did you join WPHA? When I joined WPHA I was working in the Public Health program at UW-Madison, and had newly moved back to the State. I wanted a way to connect with folx doing all sorts of amazing work in public health and thought WPHA would be a great connector. Turns out WPHA was not only a great way to network, but also a way for me to get involved and give back.

One thing you value from your membership: While I don't participate in the advocacy section as much as I would like, I so value the work they are doing for public health in WI. I know I can rely on that group to take action and advocate!

One tip on how to engage with WPHA: Join a section or committee! Being a part of a section or committee opens so many doors to meeting people and getting involved. Don't be afraid to put your name in the hat to lead a section or a meeting. WPHA is full of welcoming folx! I absolutely love working on the Annual Conference each year.

To submit your own Member Feature, or nominate a colleague, find links to those forms here.

Member Name: Annette Lemanski-Seibold

Involved in public health for how long? More than 10 years

What do you do in public health? Florence County Health Officer

Why did you join WPHA? I joined WPHA to support public health initiatives and policies collectively as well as strengthen our networking and infrastructure.

One thing you value from your membership: I appreciate the trainings and access to updates in public health.

One tip on how to engage with WPHA: One tip I would share is to step outside what may be your comfort zone and join a committee. It is interesting and educational to learn what others are doing in public health and how we can work together to improve outcomes.

To submit your own Member Feature, or nominate a colleague, find links to those forms here.

The "Member Feature" is back by request (because you're all awesome)! The Membership Committee is asking you to share a little bit about you, how and why you're involved, how you're improving the health of Wisconsin, and what you're getting out of your WPHA membership.  Then we'll share your feature out to all our members as sort of a "get-to-know-you" section of the new Membership Memo, coming to new members' inbox every other month starting in May 2023.

To submit a feature on yourself, fill out this form.

To submit a feature on your colleague, use the colleague form.

The purpose of the Retired Public Health Professionals Section is to provide fellowship and support of members who are retired, share expertise gained through many years of service in a variety of fields, and provide ‘helping hands’ for the strategic activities of WPHA’s committees and special initiatives. Interested in joining us? Click here to share that you are interested!

Please find the newsletter attached here!

CME/CE and learning certificates are available for this opportunity.

Over 150 major medical organizations, representing over 650,000 health professionals, have declared climate a health emergency. According to The Lancet medical journal, “Climate change is the greatest global health threat facing the world in the 21st century, but it is also the greatest opportunity to redefine the social and environmental determinants of health.”. However, only 27% of Americans can name a specific way in which climate change is harming our health.

Climate, A Public Health Crisis: Making Connections & Building Solutions Together will bridge that gap and inspire healthcare professionals, community members, and students to take action. Sessions will explore what health professionals are doing in Wisconsin, environmental justice and health, skill-building for taking action, adapting for mental health challenges, solutions in agriculture and transportation, and more!

Together we can foster solutions that benefit health. Join us on November 13, 2021 from 9 AM-12:45 PM, save your spot now.

Register Today for a 3-part webinar series presented by Nehemiah: Racial Disparities in the Criminal Justice System. These webinars will be held 6:30-8:30pm for three weeks.

Please note- once you register, the same link will work for all of the dates. 

Make a Difference:

• Meet virtually with your members of Congress or their staff, or attend any virtual town halls or other meetings they have planned during the recess (call their local offices for details).
• Submit an op-ed to your local paper. Use our tips for writing an op-ed. You can also email speakforhealth@apha.org if you would like to use an op-ed template on gun violence prevention, climate change or public health funding.
• Use Facebook or Twitter to engage your members of Congress. Make sure to use the hashtag #SpeakForHealth!
• Submit an action alert to your members of Congress. We strongly encourage personalizing the alert before sending it, and you can also use the action alert as a script if you would prefer to call or directly email your members of Congress or their staff.

Resources:

• Watch the APHA Speak for Health webinar and review the slides to learn how to be an effective public health advocate.
• APHA’s updated state fact sheets give a snapshot of key public health issues in your state to aid you in speaking with elected officials.
• Get up-to-speed on other key public health issues by reading APHA’s fact sheets and reports and issue briefs.
• Stay up-to-date on APHA’s advocacy efforts with our monthly Legislative Updates and letters to Congress and federal agencies.
• Check out other Speak for Health resources.

Your voice helps shape how members of Congress view critical public health issues, and your communities’ public health concerns deserve to be heard by our nation’s leaders. Join us and Speak for Health — for today and for future generations.

Sincerely,

Jordan Wolfe

While the WPHA Mentor program has been on hold during this most trying time, WPHA membership is sharing experiences and providing significant guidance on how to be a success in public health.

ADVOCATING FOR WISCONSIN'S HEALTH: STRIVING FOR JUSTICE THROUGH SYSTEMS CHANGE
May 25-27, 2021

As a WPHA Member, we are pleased to provide you with the first opportunity to register for the Virtual Annual Public Health Conference - You wont want to miss it!
Register early to take advantage of the Early Bird Rate and receive a Conference Care Package (limited to the first 100 registrants). Join your public health colleagues from around the state for must see keynotes, exciting breakout sessions, networking, and some self-care. One of the best parts about this conference - you can participate in your pajamas!

Registration Rates: EARLY BIRD DEADLINE APRIL 9TH

Member: $145 Early Bird / $195 Regular
Non-Member: $275 Early Bird / $325 Regular
Student/ Retired: $50 Early Bird / $100 Regular

Wednesday, December 16 | 4:00pm - 5:00pm - REGISTER HERE

Thursday, December 17 | 9:00am - 10:00am - REGISTER HERE

Join WPHA members around the state for WPHA updates, Networking, Games & More!  Ugly Zoom Backgrounds, Sweaters, Headbands or Masks are encouraged - Be Creative! 

AGENDA

• Welcome & WPHA Update
• Public Affairs Committee Update
• Networking & Virtual Game/Activity
• Closing