The George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health celebrated its seventh annual 950 Awards Ceremony recently, honoring alumni for their service to the school and the outstanding impact of their careers.
Dean Lynn R. Goldman presented the awards, named after the address of the Milken Institute SPH building, to four distinguished alumni after making brief introductory remarks.
“I have to say this is one of my favorite annual events here at the School of Public Health,” Goldman said. “The GW SPH is proud of the work of its alumni.”
The awardees expressed gratitude for their GW experiences, citing their positive memories as a reason for giving back.
The Seventh Annual 950 Awardees are listed below:
Ricky D. Allen, M.H.A. ’00
Ricky Allen is the immediate past president of the GWU Master of Healthcare Administration Alumni Association. As a professorial lecturer in SPH, he teaches leadership and ethics. Having recently retired from government service, he brings more than 35 years of military and civil service to the classroom. He served in various high-profile positions, most recently as hearing office director in the Arlington field office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals. He has also held positions in the Defense Health Agency and at the Veterans Health Administration. As a program manager at Universal Consulting Services, he managed the U.S. Navy’s Wounded Warrior Program. While on active duty, he served on the staff of the Navy Surgeon General as deputy director of internal communications.
“GW has been a major part of my life since I came on campus in 1998,” Allen said. As one of seven children raised by a single parent in Compton, Calif., he said, “I shouldn’t be standing here, but yet I am.” Two of his siblings were murdered; his father died of a drug and alcohol overdose. He thanked his mother, who died of cancer, for her “passion and perseverance,” and several other people for helping him on his journey.
Keri Apostle, M.P.H. ’10
Keri Apostle has more than 15 years of experience in healthcare research and analysis. She serves as group director of the policy and data analytics group at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, leading a team that provides data and insights to policymakers. She also leads CMS efforts to foster data transparency and enable better access to healthcare data. Previously, she worked at Health Research and Analysis as an analyst focused on the reporting of enrollment data for the World Trade Center Health Program.
“Attending George Washington University to study epidemiology was my dream,” Apostle said, adding that she took evening classes to earn her master’s degree while working during the day in GW’s Department of Political Science. She thanked Milken Institute SPH faculty members who invested in her success. “Public health in this country feels like it’s at a crossroads,” she noted, since professionals increasingly find themselves battling illness while battling misinformation at the same time.
Steve Friedman, B.A. ’90, M.H.A. ’95
Steve Friedman joined the National Cancer Institute in 2004. Since 2015, he has worked with the institute’s division of cancer control and population sciences, first as a senior adviser for operations and, since 2018, as program manager for the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results project known as SEER. A cancer survivor, he was selected in 2003 as one of 26 cyclists in the inaugural Tour of Hope, riding cross-country to raise awareness for cancer clinical trials. He was a founding director of the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs and is a past president of the board for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults, as well as the recipient of multiple NIH Merit Awards and an NIH Director's Award.
“I can only hope that at some level, I’ve had some kind of positive impact,” Friedman said, after noting that part of GW’s appeal is its proximity to the federal government. The COVID pandemic and the rise of anti-science rhetoric increased his appreciation for his GW education, he said, thanking GW faculty members who supported and influenced him.
Christopher Jones, Dr.P.H. ’19
Christopher Jones is a captain in the U.S. Public Health Service, currently serving as director of the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Previously, he served as director of the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the CDC and in various other leadership roles in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
“I loved my time at GW,” Jones said, adding that he urges prospective students to consider GW because “you’ll be right in the middle of the action,” learning not just theory, but application of public health. “People know that if you’ve gone through programs here, you know your stuff,” he said. “And they know that you’re looking at public health through a very thoughtful lens.”
