Milan, Advisory Council member, named as interim president of AIDS United

June 23, 2016

Jesse Milan Jr.

The AIDS United board of trustees has named Jesse Milan Jr., JD, nationally recognized leader on HIV/AIDS policies and programs and member of the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health’s Advisory Council, as the organization’s interim president and chief executive officer.

Milan began the new position on June 20 and will serve until a permanent hire is selected, likely in fall 2016.

Formed in 2010 through a merger between National AIDS Fund and AIDS Action, AIDS United aims to ensure access to life-saving HIV/AIDS care and prevention services and to advance sound HIV/AIDS-related policy for U.S. populations and communities most impacted by the epidemic.

“Jesse Milan is a courageous leader who has lived with AIDS for 30 years,” said Barbara K. Rimer, DrPH, dean and Alumni Distinguished Professor at the Gillings School. “He has been one of the heroes and leaders of the movement that has helped to turn AIDS from an indefatigable killer to a chronic disease people live with and manage. Jesse’s work has been accomplished not so much in clinics and laboratories as in communities. He’s a leader who inspires confidence because he consistently delivers — one of many reasons we wanted him as a member of the Gillings School’s Advisory Council.”

Milan, a recognized leader and thought expert in the HIV community, brings 30 years’ experience in executive roles in the public and private sectors and has directed multimillion dollar budgets and staff for federal, state, local and global public health agencies.

Beginning in 2002, Milan served a five-year appointment as co-chair of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)/Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Advisory Committee on HIV and STD Prevention and Treatment. In 2007, he was designated a Fulbright senior specialist in global HIV/AIDS. He has received numerous honors, including the 2015 Public Service Award from the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care.

Most recently, he has worked as a leadership development consultant with the Dorrier Underwood firm and as a consultant to the CDC, NMAC, HRSA, Office of HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Policy and others. He currently serves as chair emeritus on the Black AIDS Institute board of directors and on the scientific advisory board for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

“We are thrilled that Jesse Milan is joining AIDS United during this time of transition,” said Robert Hilliard Jr., MD, MBA, chair of the AIDS United board of trustees. “Not only does he bring decades of leadership, management experience and pre-existing relationships with our funders, partners and grantees, he also brings a firm understanding of the work required to move the needle on our mission of ending the AIDS epidemic in this country.”

Milan said he has admired AIDS United since its founding and believes strongly in the pivotal role it plays in the national response to the HIV epidemic.

“AIDS United’s work, at the intersection of HIV policy and strong programs, is unparalleled,” he said. “I’m thrilled to join its team and serve in this new role, even if only for a short while.”

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