APHA announces 2026 awards for excellence in public health

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Every year, the American Public Health Association honors excellence in public health leadership and innovation, from state and local health officials to those speaking up for public health from the halls of Congress.

This year’s awards will be presented Monday, Nov. 2^nd at 12:30 pm CT during APHA’s 2026 Annual Meeting and Expo, which officially kicks off Nov. 1.

“The commitment and accomplishments of these outstanding public health leaders is inspiring," said Georges C. Benjamin, MD, CEO of APHA. "Their contributions have helped strengthen the field and build a healthier nation as we tackle the serious challenges facing public health today."

This year’s honorees include:

James Curran, MD, MPH, dean emeritus and professor of epidemiology and global health at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, will receive the 2026 Sedgwick Memorial Medal for Distinguished Service in Public Health for his early and ongoing research promoting HIV/AIDS prevention and policy. His decades spent at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the early years of the HIV/AIDS epidemic has been key to recognizing disease transmission and developing surveillance strategies that continues to save lives. Curran used his experience to train the next generation of public health after nearly 30 years at Emory, where he founded the Emory Center for AIDS Research. 

Jack Tsai, PhD, regional dean and professor of public health at UTHealth in San Antonio, will receive the 2026 APHA Award for Excellence for his innovative and evidence-based solutions to reduce and prevent homelessness. With millions in federal research funding and hundreds of papers published, Tsai’s work ranges from community-based interventions to national research projects that influence broader policy. His work as a research director for the National Center for Homelessness Among Veterans has helped halve veteran homelessness over a decade, while his academic roles at both UTHealth and Yale University have resulted in research programs that emphasize holistic approaches to reducing homelessness,, and health professionals who are trained to provide primary and preventive care services.

The National Pan-Hellenic Council will receive the 2026 APHA Presidential Citation for improving the health of underserved communities through fraternity- and sorority-led health and civic engagement programs. More than 6,500 chapters of fraternities and sororities known as the “Divine 9” lead decades-old initiatives focused on better access to behavioral healthcare, medical care, social services and voting outreach education. Council members have served as former surgeons general and as past APHA presidents, including the first Black APHA president Paul Cornely, MD, DrPH, elected in 1970. 

Melissa Simon, MD, MPH, vice chair for research at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the George H. Gardner, MD, Professor of Clinical Gynecology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, will receive the 2026 Helen Rodriguez-Trias Social Justice Award for advancing equity in women’s health, cancer care and the healthcare workforce. Simon founded and co-founded city- and statewide collaboratives focused on providing culturally competent healthcare, reducing health disparities and improving cancer care among low income, minority and disabled populations. She is an advocate for more diversity in cancer clinical trials and has been among the highest National Institutes of Health-funded OB-GYNs, using her research to highlight cancer death disparities and increase access to social services and diagnostic screenings. Simon also created a free curriculum about health care professions which has reached over 30,000 people in over 150 countries since 2015. 

Theodore Tulchinsky, MD, MPH, professor emeritus at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, will receive the 2026 Victor Sidel and Barry Levy Award for Peace for promoting health diplomacy among Israeli and Palestinian health authorities to prevent the spread of infectious diseases and strengthen the global public health workforce. Tulchinksy, a former public health director for Israel’s Ministry of Health and supervisor of health in the West Bank and Gaza, built connections between researchers and healthcare professionals that resulted in improved maternal and child health outcomes and vaccination campaigns to eradicate polio and measles in Gaza. As a professor, he has mentored students across the Americas, Asia and Africa, helped establish public health programs in states of the former Soviet Union and made a lasting impact as the founder of Israel’s first bachelor of public health program at Ashkelon Academic College. 

Iulia Vann, MD, MPH, public health director for the Allegheny County Health Department in Pittsburgh, will receive the 2026 Milton and Ruth Roemer Prize for Creative Local Public Health for collaborative public health work that encompasses community input, workforce development and policy. Under her leadership, the health department has linked with the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health under an academic health department model that meets community public health needs while training the next generation of health professionals. Vann has built trust among residents and county officials by providing air quality data to the public, creating an environmental justice index for air pollution exposure, and updating regulations surrounding safe water standards, housing and other areas to reflect best practices.

Alexandra López Vera, PhD, MPH, CHES, an assistant professor of medical education at the California University of Science and Medicine, will receive the 2026 Ayman El-Mohandes Young Professional Public Health Innovation Award for her work in reducing barriers to care for Spanish-speaking populations. She created the university’s Medical Spanish program to train medical students on how to communicate with the Latino community and educate students about structural health inequities. As a volunteer faculty member at the Inland Empire Free Clinic in Colton, California, López Vera puts culturally competent care into action where she assists Latino residents with accessing healthcare resources and gives medical students real world experience in delivering culturally appropriate care. 

Gregory Homish, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Community Health and Health Behavior at the University at Buffalo’s School of Public Health and Health Professions, will receive the 2026 Lyndon Haviland Public Health Mentoring Award for shaping professional development and training opportunities aimed at creating a more diverse public health workforce. As a principal investigator of a $1.3 million federal grant, Hamish used the funding for a scholarship geared toward underserved students to pursue a public health education dedicated to reducing health inequities. Through his mentorship, he has helped over 150 students, fellows and faculty members reach professional milestones such as publish peer-reviewed research, defend dissertations and apply for fellowships and faculty positions.

Arden Handler, DrPH, MPH, professor emerita at the University of Illinois Chicago’s School of Public Health and director of the university’s Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health, will receive the 2026 Martha May Eliot Award for her decades of research, advocacy and training in the name of maternal and child health equity. Handler’s career demonstrates the connections between policies and public health outcomes. She fought for expanded Medicaid coverage for pregnant women and postpartum women as one of the founders of the Illinois Maternal and Child Health Coalition, now known as EverThrive Illinois. Through leadership roles at the university and within the Association of Teachers of Maternal and Child Health, she’s introduced students to public health leaders experienced in advocating for communities they serve and has pushed for more practice-based training for MPH and doctoral students for all university maternal and child health programs.

Kevin Borrup, DrPH, JD, MPA, assistant professor in pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and an executive director of the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center’s Injury Prevention Center, will receive the 2026 David P. Rall Award for Advocacy in Public Health for his injury prevention research and policy advocacy. Over his two decades at Connecticut Children’s, he has played a role in advocating for a comprehensive state graduated drivers licensing law that reduced teen driving deaths, and a hospital violence intervention program that helped prevent Hartford-area shootings and injuries. As an APHA member, Borrup continued to elevate injury prevention as a policy priority through a variety of leadership positions, including as a member of Governing Council, Joint Policy Committee and chair of the Injury Control and Emergency Health Services Section.

Lilia Cervantes, MD, MSCS, director of immigrant health and associate professor in the University of Colorado Anschutz’s Department of Medicine, will receive the 2026 Sommer Klag Advocacy Achievement Award for her work in security kidney-related healthcare coverage for undocumented individuals. Colorado policymakers revised the state’s emergency Medicaid policy to include coverage for standard hemodialysis treatments thanks to Cervantes’ research on undocumented Coloradans who were ineligible for Medicare to treat kidney failure. In addition to her research, Cervantes formed a coalition of patients, caregivers and community groups to advocate for policy change. Following changes in Colorado, Cervantes shared her advocacy strategies with physicians in other states seeking similar policy reforms, resulting in six additional states expanding standard hemodialysis coverage for undocumented residents. 

Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH, a lecturer in the Department of Health and Human Performance at Texas State University’s College of Education, will receive the 2026 CEO Citation for her contributions to APHA in promoting environmental and occupational health. Her decades of research on toxic exposures in workplaces, injury disparities and environmental hazards continues to be invaluable to the Association’s advocacy, whether it be congressional testimony or comments on proposed federal regulations. Monforton’s ability to break down complex issues and build consensus among her colleagues shines through her roles as a Joint Policy Committee co-chair, Action Board chair, Governing Councilor and member of the Occupational Health and Safety Section. Today, she serves as the Section’s co-chair of policy and advocacy and its chair of program planning.

Further information on each award, including past recipients, is available online.

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The American Public Health Association champions optimal, equitable health and well-being for all. With our broad-based member community and 150-year perspective, we influence federal policy to improve the public’s health. Learn more at www.apha.org.