Dr. Julie Morita was appointed as commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) in early 2015. Under Dr. Morita’s leadership, CDPH developed and launched Healthy Chicago 2.0, a four-year plan to assure healthy equity by addressing the social determinants of health. In addition, under her leadership, CDPH led efforts to pass several tobacco prevention initiatives including raising the age for purchasing tobacco products to 21 years.

Previously, Dr. Morita served as CDPH’s Chief Medical Officer leading the city’s response to the pandemic influenza outbreak and the city’s efforts to prevent the introduction and spread of the Ebola virus. Dr. Morita has served as a member of the National Academy of Medicine’s Committee on Community Based Solutions to Promote Health Equity, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the National Vaccine Advisory Committee, and the Illinois Chapter of American Academy of Pediatrics.

Prior to her time with CDPH, Dr. Morita served as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer with the CDC and worked in private practice. She is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical School.

Dr. LaQuandra S. Nesbitt is a board-certified family physician with over a decade of experience leading population health initiatives in governmental public health agencies. Dr. Nesbitt currently serves as the Director of the District of Columbia Department of Health in Washington, DC, a position she has held since January 2015 when appointed by Mayor Muriel Bowser. As a physician leader, Dr. Nesbitt mobilizes organizations and communities to implement innovative solutions that promote health and wellness, and achieve health equity. Throughout her career she has led multi-sector collaborations to address innovation in healthcare delivery and its impact on high cost, high need and other special populations; the integration of public health and health care; and the impact of medical marijuana and decriminalization of marijuana possession on the public’s health. Prior to her role in DC, Dr. Nesbitt served as the Director of the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness where she led initiatives focused on Affordable Care Act implementation and violence prevention.

Dr. Nesbitt received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry from the University of Michigan, her medical degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine, and a Master of Public Health in Health Care Management and Policy from the Harvard School of Public Health. She completed an internship in family medicine at the University Hospitals of Cleveland/Case Western Reserve University and completed the remainder of her family medicine residency in the University of Maryland’s Department of Family Medicine where she served as chief resident. Dr. Nesbitt completed her fellowship training with the Commonwealth Fund Harvard University Fellowship in Minority Health Policy.

Monica Valdes Lupi, JD, MPH, joined the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) as Executive Director in February 2016. Among other public health priorities, she is committed to advancing health equity and racial justice for all Bostonians and strengthening strategic collaborations across diverse stakeholders.
As the Executive Director of the BPHC, the city’s health department, Ms. Valdes Lupi manages a $162M budget and leads 1,200 employees. In this role, her portfolio includes Boston Emergency Medical Services, school-based health centers, several substance abuse treatment facilities, and the largest homeless services program in New England. As Executive Director, Ms. Valdes Lupi serves as the key advisor to Mayor Walsh on health issues and builds on innovative partnerships across city departments by leveraging strategic opportunities for housing, economic development, transportation, education and environmental policies to positively impact the health of all Boston residents.Prior to returning to BPHC, Ms. Valdes Lupi led the Health Systems Transformation team as a Chief Program Officer at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO). In this role, she led initiatives related to health equity, public health integration with primary care, Medicaid/Public Health Partnerships, public health informatics, government relations, and state health policy. Through this diverse portfolio, she guided her team in strengthening the technical assistance and capacity building services provided to state and territorial health officials, senior deputies, and their leadership teams.Ms. Valdes Lupi also served as the Deputy Commissioner for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) before joining ASTHO where she led the day-to-day operations of an agency with a budget of nearly $1B with 3,100 employees that included: four public health hospitals, several regulatory bodies, and numerous programmatic divisions that addressed chronic and infectious disease, substance abuse services, environmental health, tobacco control, maternal, child and adolescent health, and emergency preparedness.Ms. Valdes Lupi also served as the Chief of Staff at the BPHC. One of her key accomplishments included leading the City’s first campaign to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities in partnership with the Mayor’s Office, hospitals, community health centers, higher education, and community-based organizations. As part of this initiative, she oversaw the initial distribution of nearly $2 million in grants aimed at improving the health for Boston’s most vulnerable residents.Ms. Valdes Lupi worked previously at the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers as a policy analyst where she coordinated the activities for the Boston Conference of Community Health Centers. She received her JD from the Dickinson School of Law, her MPH from the Boston University School of Public Health, and her BA from Bryn Mawr College. She lives in Boston with her husband, Louis, and two kids, Niko and Elie.