The Boggs Center Celebrates Graduation of 2022-2023 NJLEND Fellows

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

On May 5th, 2023, The Boggs Center celebrated the graduation of the 2022-2023 NJLEND Fellows at the New Jersey Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (NJLEND) program’s 7th annual Maternal and Child Health Leadership Symposium. Held in New Brunswick, the symposium was attended by those from the Rutgers community, Children’s Specialized Hospital, SPAN Parent Advocacy Network, and other state and community organizations.

The event featured a keynote address, “Racial Disparities in Maternal and Infant Health in New Jersey,” by Charletta Ayers, MD, MPH, Associate Professor, Assistant Dean of Multicultural Affairs, and Vice Chair of Clinical Services for the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and adjunct faculty at the Rutgers School of Public Health. During the NJLEND Leadership Projects Poster Session, graduating NJLEND Fellows presented findings and implications of their year-long projects intended to benefit the larger maternal and child health community. Fellows also shared their personal definitions of leadership, the culmination of the year-long Defining Leadership: Charting Your Trajectory Learning Exercise.

Congratulations to the 2022-2023 NJLEND Fellows and Boggs Center Interdisciplinary Trainees: Nataly Abrams, MS; Erin Amantia, BSN, RN; Jennifer Miller Boyle, BA; Chao Chen, PhD; Heidi Chiu, LMSW; Maha Ibrahim, DDS, DMD; Steffen Klenk; Alivia Kowal, BSN, RN; Jordan Mattingly, MPH; Lilian Mekhail, MD; Rositta Michael, MD, FAAP; Asma Noubani; Daniel Park, MAP; Gabrielle Pignatelli, BA; Julianne Ricca, MS; Colleen Roche, BS; Janis Rodgers, MFA; Ruhi Shah, MPH; Erik Strandberg, BS; Emily Thampoe, BA; Nila Uthirasamy, BS; Anjali Viswanath, MS; and Ethan M. Yoo, BA.

Part of a national network, The Boggs Center’s NJLEND program provides graduate-level interdisciplinary training aimed at preparing the next generation of health leaders to address the needs of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), related developmental disabilities, and other maternal and child health populations. Funding for LEND programs is authorized by the Autism CARES Act and is administered through the federal Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau.

To learn more about the NJLEND program, visit About NJLEND.