Structure

Reflecting the Mailman School’s commitment to lasting change, FORWARD will engage a broad range of stakeholders in building our full vision, developing solutions, measuring success and holding ourselves accountable to our goals through a FORWARD Accountability Cabinet and Action Corps.

The FORWARD Accountability Cabinet, a permanent advisory group to the Dean, will recommend the range of efforts and actions needed to realize the school’s goals;  will develop measures of success and continually assess progress towards them; and will provide oversight and coordination of the Action Corps.  The Action Corps, which are overseen by the Accountability Cabinet, are made up of numerous student, faculty, staff, and alumni volunteers. They propose to the Accountability Cabinet actions to be taken in their focus area and partner with the administration in advising on and implementing these actions.

The FORWARD Accountability Cabinet is co-chaired by Kiros Berhane, Chair of Biostatistics and Maria O'Brien, Deputy Chief of Staff & Executive Director of Strategic Projects.

2022-23 Cabinet Members

Former Cabinet Members and Action Corps Leads

 


Announcing the Action Corps Charges and Co-Leads for 2022–2023

Belonging and Inclusion: Identify the actions we can take to build connection and a sense of belonging for individual members of our community and groups within it.

Building Learning Opportunities: Assess the current landscape of DEI learning opportunities available through CU, CUIMC, and Columbia Mailman, identify gaps and develop a proposal for future learning opportunities and structure. 

  • Samantha Garbers, PhD, Associate Professor, Population and Family Health
  • Roxanne Russell, PhD, Director of Online Education
  • Diamond Jackson, EdM, Project Coordinator, Office of Diversity, Culture and Inclusion

Assessing the Climate and Building an Annual Report: Devise and bolster participation in a school climate survey and recommend the content and format of an annual DEI report. 

  • Jamie Daw, PhD, Assistant Professor, Health Policy and Management
  • Westley Holiday, Director of Strategic Engagement & Project Management 
  • Nida Raja, Senior Administrative Coordinator, Dean's Office

Given the importance of this issue, and reflecting the School’s commitment to engaging all stakeholders in FORWARD, our Alumni Board has created its own committee to work in tandem with FORWARD, recommending and taking actions to further the engagement of all alumni to help move the school toward its goals. To learn more about, and be part of our alumni effort, please contact our Alumni Relations Office.

Finally, the Columbia Mailman Board of Advisors has created a Board committee that is dedicated to developing the external strategy and financial resources to meet our aspirations.