Title: For Lara, Business Meetings are the Best Part of the Annual Meeting
Author:
Section/SPIG: Community Health Planning and Policy Development
Issue Date:
HIGXYZ23HIGZYX Most people spend their time as members of APHA blissfully unaware of the inner workings of the organization. However, any organization this large has to have a bureaucracy, complete with politics and rules, personalities and inconsistencies. It is a great, and fairly non-threatening, way to get your feet wet if you are interested in leadership. It is also a wonderful way to meet and get to know fascinating people from around the country who share an interest in public health. Fortunately, it is simple to get involved in APHA leadership -- just attend your section meetings at the Annual Meeting and run for a section position.
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| Lara Jone (right) listening in on a CHPPD business meeting |
My first APHA Annual Meeting was in 1994. I was an MPH student at the University of Minnesota, with a desire to strengthen efforts at prevention. However, I recognized that the country doesn’t value prevention nearly as much as it reveres treatment. Attending the Annual Meeting was exhilarating for me. I didn’t have a background in health, and so was overwhelmed and pleased by the feeling that there were so many others in the country who also believed in public health. For several years that fortification was the main reason I attended the conference. Now I attend because I participate in the APHA leadership. Each year I see familiar faces and meet new people. I learn more and more about how the organization works; I still know little. However, APHA is a primary face of pubic health at the national level, and it is important to keep it running. While I always feel I should do more, I also know that my involvement is one of the things that keep APHA a vibrant and living organization. While many people prefer to spend their time attending sessions, visiting the exhibit hall, and catching up with old friends, I spend a great deal of my time in meetings. It’s not for everyone. However, if you are thinking about how you could enhance your career in a busy world, I would suggest participating in the CHPPD Section leadership as a great place to start. You will be welcomed. Lara Jones is involved in so many different things at her job that she says, it's hard to describe exactly what she does. Lara is responsible for managing the mini-grant programs, staffing the School Systems Work Group, and administering the annual survey of programs that address child overweight. She works for the Consortium to Lower Obesity in Chicago Children, http://www.clocc.net. Also, Lara is a PhD candidate at the University of Illinois in Chicago School of Public Health in Health Policy and Administration investigating the role of the built food environment on eating behaviors.