Staff Spotlight: Eric DelGizzo.
Collaborative work is key to developing sustainable public health solutions and improving population health outcomes. This weekly series spotlights one SPH staff member who advances public health through collaborations within the field and across sectors.
What are your main priorities and responsibilities as media engagement associate in the Office of the Dean?
Helping the Dean communicate the message of public health in the broader conversation, maintaining relationships with various media stakeholders, working with the Dean’s Office team to ensure smooth functioning of the office, serving as a liaison between the Dean’s Office and communications teams within BU and external organizations.
How is collaborative work integral to your role, and what are one or two collaborations that have been most meaningful to you?
In my role, I have been lucky to get to work with many members of the SPH community, and always come away from these experiences with new knowledge and new appreciation for the amazing work being done here. The knowledge bit is especially important, as I did not come from a public health background (I originally studied theater, getting to SPH through a series of twists, turns, and happy accidents). So I always appreciate opportunities to learn on the job, which are richly afforded by collaboration.
Standout interactions for me are working with the two teams I have been fortunate to be directly part of during my time at SPH—first the Career & Practicum Office, where I worked from 2013 to 2016, then the Dean’s Office. In each place, I found colleagues who—reflective of our community as a whole—are as brilliant as they are kind, who taught me much and continue to do so.
What do you enjoy most about your role, and what are you looking forward to in the new school year?
For me, the best part of working here are the people here, and what I most look forward to about next year is the same thing I most look forward to about next month, next week, tomorrow—the chance to reconnect with fantastic colleagues to advance the work of public health.
“Eric DelGizzo joined the Dean’s Office four years ago, coming from a successful tenure in the SPH Career & Practicum Office. He is a thoughtful coworker, always looking out for others, and is the first to volunteer if there are ever tasks to be done. Eric helps to draft, pull together, and vet public-facing writing, social media, and media engagement for the Dean’s Office. A scholar of Shakespeare, Eric can quote just about any mid-16th-century poet and knows more movie references than anyone I have met. He regularly brings to our team meetings factoids about the day or cultural updates. He is the king of puns and is a joy to work with. Every school should have an Eric DelGizzo, and we are grateful that he shares his many talents with SPH.”
Catherine Ettman, chief of staff and director of strategic initiatives in the Office of the Dean