Meet the Team
Center Leadership
Michael Mackert, Ph.D.
Director
Email Dr. Mackert
Jessica Hughes Wagner, MPH
Deputy Director
Email Jessica
Team Members
Patricia Semenov
Center Administrator
Jen Graham
Administrative Assistant
Breanna Deal
Communications and Event Specialist
Susan Kirtz, MPH
Assistant Director - Programs
Melanie Susswein, MSW
Program Manager
Komal Gandhi, M.A.
Online Education Program Manager
Hayley Fick, MBA
Sr. Program Coordinator
Lara O’Toole, LMSW
Sr. Program Coordinator + Writer
Lauren Kriss, Ph.D.
Sr. Program Coordinator + Writer
Laura Anaya Rodriguez, MPH
Sr. Program Coordinator
Saakshi Kamalahasan
Program Coordinator/Marketing Specialist
Chris Beeler
Creative Director
Dasha Rakasovic
Art Director
Shayna Brewer, MFA
Creative Lead for Online Education
Ellen Shin
Sr. Graphic Designer
Natalie Tarrant
Graphic Designer
Ana Wong
Graphic Designer
Lauren Pezzullo
Copywriter
Catherine Cunningham, M.S.
Research Associate II
Weijia Shi, Ph.D.
Research Associate II
Lindsay Bouchacourt, Ph.D.
Research Associate
Karly Quaack, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Our Founding Director
Jay Bernhardt, Ph.D., MPH is the President of Emerson College and Founding Director of the Center for Health Communication. He was the creator of the National Conference on Health Communication, Marketing, and Media and the Digital Health Communication eXtravaganza, and former Director of the National Center for Health Marketing at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.