February 24, 2015

Jerry Parks, MPH, health director for Albemarle (N.C.) Regional Health Services and alumnus of the Gillings School of Global Public Health, was awarded the 2015 Ronald H. Levine Legacy Award at the annual State Health Director’s meeting on Jan. 22 in Raleigh, N.C.

Jerry Parks, left, poses with Dr. Ron Levine at the annual State Health Director's meeting in Raleigh, N.C., on Jan. 22.

Jerry Parks, left, poses with Dr. Ron Levine at the annual State Health Director’s meeting in Raleigh, N.C., on Jan. 22.

Named for former North Carolina State Health Director Dr. Ron Levine, the award honors individuals whose work and commitment on behalf of the public’s health has resulted in significant, sustainable and positive improvements to health and quality of life in North Carolina.

Parks, who received his Master of Public Health through the Gillings School’s Public Health Leadership Program (PHLP) in 2000, oversees a district health department that serves seven counties in northeastern N.C., including Pasquotank, Perquimans, Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Bertie and Gates.

“I am truly humbled by this honor,” Parks said. “To have my name mentioned in the same sentence as Dr. Levine’s is honor enough, but certainly the award will be a constant reminder for me to continue to strive to live and serve by his example.”

William Sollecito, DrPH, clinical professor and former director of the Public Health Leadership Program, noted that Parks was in the first PHLP distance education cohort at the Gillings School.

“Jerry was identified as a ‘pioneer’ in distance education when he was featured in the 2001 U.S. News and World Report ‘Best Graduate Schools’ issue in an article on distance education opportunities for working practitioners,” Sollecito said. “He personifies the leadership development vision of the Public Health Leadership Program. He was named health director for what is now Albemarle Regional Health Services shortly after receiving his master’s degree, and he is now considered by many to be one of the most influential health directors in our state. This is demonstrated in many ways, including through his leadership on the N.C. Local Health Department Accreditation Board, where I continue to interact with him regularly.”

His PHLP colleagues were aware of Parks’ leadership skills when they awarded him the Arnold Kaluzny Distinguished Alumni Award in 2005, Sollecito said. That award, established in 2000 to honor Dr. Kaluzny, emeritus professor of health policy and management who was instrumental in the founding of the PHLP, is presented to an alumnus or alumna whose accomplishments and leadership embody the goals of the program.

Sollecito said that Parks’ receiving the Levine Award is well deserved and applauded by the faculty and staff members in PHLP.

“Jerry’s success over the years demonstrates the value of distance education and the quality of students at our school, whether they complete their studies face-to-face or online,” Sollecito said.

The 2015 N.C. State Health Director’s Conference, the theme of which was “Serving the Next Generation,” provided a unique opportunity for local and state public health leaders to gather around public health issues of strategic interest. Sponsors of the event included the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, the N.C. Division of Public Health and N.C. Association of Local Health Directors.

Several health leaders affiliated with the Gillings School have received the Levine Award in the years since it was first presented in 2004, including Leah Devlin, DDS, MPH, Professor of the Practice of health policy and management and former N.C. State Health Director (2009); Rachel Stevens, EdD, RN, former clinical professor and senior adviser to the director of the School’s North Carolina Institute for Public Health (2011); and Pam Silberman, DrPH, Professor of the Practice of Health Policy and Management and co-director of the doctoral program in health leadership (2013).


Gillings School of Global Public Health contact: David Pesci, director of communications, (919) 962-2600 or dpesci@unc.edu.
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