A vice president at ICF, Nicola oversees a body of work that supports government marketing and communications efforts focused on social and health behavior change. She provides corporate and technical oversight for projects to ensure excellent standards for quality, client satisfaction, and resource management.

She has held multiple leadership roles, including leading portfolios, business development, and a former line of business focused on community health. With training as a sociologist, Nicola is excited about work that seeks to improve quality of life for others, particularly by addressing surrounding environmental and social determinants.

She brings significant experience in behavior change and public health. She has crafted innovative approaches to address client challenges, developed research and evaluation designs to assess the effectiveness of change efforts and has provided training and technical assistance (TTA) to support initiatives. Her work has also involved translating evidence to practice and using practice-based evidence to inform further programming. Dr. Dawkins-Lyn received the BA in both Sociology and Communication from Wake Forest University. She received her MPH and PhD in Sociology, and later the MBA, all from Emory University.

Born in Jamaica, West Indies, Dr. Kavanaugh Chandler immigrated to New York as a young child and as a preteen moved to the small rural community of Statesboro, Georgia. Over the years, he pursued his lifelong dream of becoming a healthcare leader by pursuing his medical and business degrees. This path enabled Dr. Chandler to develop a healthy balance of understanding the amount of compassion that’s needed in the field of medicine, while balancing the business aspects that are necessary to support the mission of medicine – specifically, rural medicine.

Since 2018, Dr. Chandler has been passionately working with FQHC’s (Federally Qualified Health Centers) and providing quality affordable healthcare to thousands of individuals. He now serves as the CEO of Coastal Community Health, an FQHC in Coastal Georgia with clinics currently in McIntosh County (Eulonia & Shellman Bluff), Glynn County (Brunswick), and Camden County (St. Marys) offering a multitude of services ranging from dental, pharmacy, behavioral health, and primary care.

Dr. Barkin currently serves as the co-chair of the American College Health Association COVID-19 Task Force. Formerly, she was the Acting Deputy Director/District Nursing Director for the North Central Health District under the Georgia Department of Public Health. In this capacity she oversaw District operations including 13 Health Departments and an HIV treatment center. In 2018, she received the Lillian E. Wald award by the Georgia Public Health Association for her contributions to nursing practice. Prior to moving to Georgia, she served as the director of Carnegie Mellon University Health Services for over 25 years. She received her doctorate in public health and her Master of Science in nursing from the University of Pittsburgh. She is a Board-Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner and an ACHA Fellow. Over the course of her career in college health, she has held offices in local, regional, and national college health associations. Dr. Barkin is Past President of the Mid-Atlantic College Health Association and served as President of the American College Health Association (ACHA) from June 2011 to May 2012. She chaired the ACHA Affordable Care Act Transitional Issues Task Force and is past chair of the ACHA Coalition for Emerging Public Health Threats and Emergency Response Planning. She is a nationally recognized leader in the area of pandemic planning for colleges and universities.  She has been the recipient of awards for outstanding scholarship and service including, the Andy Award for Outstanding Service to Carnegie Mellon University and the ACHA Lifetime Achievement Award.  She has been honored as a Distinguished Scholar by the University of Pittsburgh and is a member of Sigma Theta Tau Honor Society for Nursing and the Delta Omega Honor Society for Public Health.

Dr. Keisha Reneé Callins, M.D., M.P.H, is an obstetrician/gynecologist with Community Health Care Systems, a federally qualified health center network in central Georgia. She currently serves as chair of the National Advisory Council for the National Health Service Corps and was a former NHSC scholar. She serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor and Joy McCann Endowed Professor with Mercer University School of Medicine. She was appointed by the Governor to serve on the Georgia Composite Medical Board (2014-2018), and the Sandra Dunagan Deal Early Language and Literacy Board (2017 to present). She serves on the board of directors for the Healthcare Georgia Foundation Board, the Georgia State Medical Association, and the Bibb County Medical Society. She is the chair of the Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) Task Force on Physician/Health Care Workforce Resilience and the Georgia OB/GYN Society Breastfeeding Medicine Committee. She has participated in several leadership opportunities such as Leadership Georgia, MAG’s Georgia Physicians Leadership Academy, and the C.H.A.M.P.S. Transformational Healthcare Leadership Fellowship at Morehouse School of Medicine. She is a member of the Middle Georgia Medical Society, Rotary Club, Junior League, and Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society. Dr. Callins earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from the University of Virginia; Master’s in Public Health degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health; Doctor of Medicine degree from Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) and graduate medical training at MSM OB/GYN Residency Program. Dr. Callins brings a wealth of knowledge to women’s health for rural and underserved populations and is actively involved in pipeline mentorship, translational research, and community engagement. Her personal mission statement is, “You may not be able to change the world, but you can change the world of everyone with whom you interact”.

Betsy Collins, MD, MPH, completed her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry at University of Texas at Austin and then went on to complete a combined degree at The Ohio State University in Medicine and a Masters of Public Health with a focus on Policy and Management.

During her residency, Dr. Collins focused on care for the underserved as well as very high acuity patients from around the state of Georgia. She then stayed on as an Assistant Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics with the Generalist Division at Emory University Hospital Midtown (EUHM) where she still continues to take care of patients as well as teach both medical students and residents.  Dr. Collins currently has a part-time clinical practice in OB/GYN at EUHM.  Her clinical interests are preventative medicine, healthy living through life changes, family planning and reproductive justice/ advocacy, decreasing birther morbidity and mortality, breast/chestfeeding and post-partum care. She is an advocate for the LGBTQIA patient population and continues to see a growing transgender patient base.  She provides full scope Obstetrics and Gynecologic care including delivering babies, preventative health services, gynecologic care, and surgery.

In addition to her teaching and clinical practice, Dr. Collins is a very active public health advocate. She is a steering committee member at the Georgia Clinicians for Gun Safety (GC4GC), a newly formed group of concerned healthcare providers to reduce firearm injury and death in our state. She also is very active in reproductive justice advocacy, especially supporting Georgia citizens in the right to make decisions for their own bodies and to live safe and healthy lives-whatever is best for themselves and their families. Finally, she is a staunch advocate for access to affordable, high-quality health care for every person.

Dr. Collins and her wife live in Atlanta and have two children who attend Atlanta Public Schools.

Kate Finley, Director of Consumer Lending Products for Synovus Bank, has been in financial services for over twenty years. In her current capacity Kate directs development, implementation, and management of Consumer and Private Wealth lending products, processes, and strategy. She partners with company leadership and business partners to align product management with customer interests, corporate strategy, and the economic climate. Kate represents Synovus within the Community Banking Association as Vice-Chair of the HELOC committee. Prior to her transition to bank product management, Kate managed Synovus Trust Company’s trading operations as well as client assets.

Kate earned her BBA from the University of Georgia in Finance and Risk Management and Insurance. Kate is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^TM professional.  Additionally she has passed CHARTERED RETIREMENT PLANNING COUNSELOR^SM and Chartered Financial Consultant^® exams and educational criteria.

Kate lives in Columbus, GA with her husband and two children.  Active in her community, Kate serves on the board of Trees Columbus and Georgia Health Initiative.  In her spare time Kate enjoys gardening, reading, and family travel.

Dr. Hernandez received her Master of Public Health from Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health and a Bachelor of Arts in anthropology from Stony Brook University in New York. She earned her Ph.D. in public health and a graduate certificate in interdisciplinary women’s health from the University of South Florida. Dr. Hernandez was a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) maternal and child health leadership trainee and epidemiology trainee. She was also a Satcher Health Leadership Institute Health Policy Post-Doctoral Scholar at Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM). She has more than 16 years of experience implementing population health that engages diverse stakeholder groups.

Dr. Hernandez is an NIH-funded researcher and founding Director of the MSM Center for Maternal Health Equity who has obtained diverse extramural funding to develop multiple lines of research to advance science toward eliminating women’s health inequities, specifically with Black and Latinx populations. She has laid the groundwork for research in maternal health by establishing partnerships with local and national organizations dedicated to maternal morbidity and mortality disparities, evaluating maternal health interventions and programs, and validating effective measures of maternal mental health and medical mistrust as psychosocial factors.

Dr. Hernandez currently sits on a variety of committees, including Georgia’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee, Georgia PRAMS Steering Committee, and more. She also sits on national organizations, including the American Public Health Association Committee on Health Equity, the Health Disparities Taskforce of the National Preeclampsia Foundation, and many others. Dr. Hernandez has presented her work at various international, national, state, and local conferences.

Laura Register is a retired community activist from rural south Georgia known for her ability to bridge political and religious divides.  She was elected to and served on the Grady County Board of Education for 13 years. She has presented on multiple panels with the University of Georgia Archway Program and the Carter Center at the United Nations. She has been a rural advisor to multiple statewide campaigns. She is now raising grass fed beef and collecting goats.

Chris Reynolds has been an executive in the investment industry for more than 30 years. He is currently an Advisory Board Member with RiskBridge Advisors, LLC. He has held senior positions with Cornerstone Investment Partners, Rigel Capital, LLC, Atlanta Capital Management Company, LLC, and Barclays Global Investors. He is an active member of many industry associations such as the Georgia Association of Public Pension Trustees (GAPPTA), Association of Investment Management Sales Executives (AIMSE) and the Southern Employee Benefits Conference (SEBC). Chris earned both a Bachelor of General Studies and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Houston. He also holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA), Certified Employee Benefits Specialist (CEBS), Certified Retirement Plan Fiduciary (CRPF), and the Chartered Pension Professional (CPP) designations. Chris has been active in his community having served on numerous non-profit boards such as Cool Girls, Inc., Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta, NFL/Youth Education Town, and The Children’s Museum of Atlanta to name a few. Through his extensive nonprofit experience, Chris is recognized as a leader in the areas of governance, fiduciary duty and board performance.

Lizann Roberts has over 35 years of experience in public health leadership and has focused her career on developing public-private endeavors to improve overall community well-being. She is a seasoned leader, facilitator, and coalition geek.

In 2007, Lizann worked with former Mayor Otis Johnson to launch Healthy Savannah and currently serves as the Executive Director of the Coastal Georgia Indicators Coalition also based in Savannah. In 2021 she was named a Community STAR by the board of Savannah Technical College and received an inaugural Community Peace Builder award alongside Mayor Van Johnson in 2022.

Prior to serving non-profits, Lizann was a faculty member of two academic institutions, created employee development and health management programs for large multi-site organizations and designed comprehensive health improvement programs for two large health care systems.

She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in health education with leadership certifications from Georgetown University and The Center for Creative Leadership.

Lizann is a native of Pierce County Georgia. Today, she resides on Isle of Hope a neighborhood in Chatham County with her husband Joe and doodle Adeline where she sings in the choir and serves on the vestry of St. Thomas Episcopal Church, loves to fish, and garden in her spare time.  She is a step-friend to 5 adults and 7 grand kids who all call her Lizzy.