Director

Geof Swain, MD, MPH - Geof started the WCHE in 2006 and remains its Director. He has been involved in issues relating to the social and economic determinants of health and in reducing health disparities through upstream, policy-level interventions for over two decades, including serving on multiple state health plan committees and teams focused on social determinants of health. He has extensive clinical, teaching, health policy, and leadership experience, including his appointment as emeritus faculty at UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health.  Prior to his retirement, he served for over 26 years as Medical Director and Chief Medical Officer at the City of Milwaukee Health Department. Dr. Swain currently serves on the Wisconsin Public Health Association Policy and Advocacy Committee, and was WPHA's President for 2022. Previously, he provided key leadership to the Social and Economic Factors subcommittees for the Wisconsin’s 2010 and 2020 State Health Plans, and served for 4 years on the Health Equity and Social Justice Strategic Direction Team of the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO).

Key Contributors

Victoria Faust, MPA - Formerly an Action Researcher and Evaluator with the Population Health Institute at the University of Wisconsin, Victoria is now Senior Learning & Evaluation Officer with the Colorado Health Foundation.

Jonathan Heller, PhD - Jonathan is a Senior Health Equity Fellow in the Population Health Institute at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. He co-founded (and until 2020 co-directed) Human Impact Partners, a national non-profit focused on bringing the power of public health to campaigns and movements for a just society.

Multiple former Fellows from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Service Fellowship Program.

Our Advisory Board

Elizabeth Giese, RN, MSPH, Director and Health Officer, Eau Claire City County Health Department

Raisa Koltun, MPH, PharmD, Senior Advisor, CSA Enterprises, Milwaukee WI

Langston Verdin, MPH, Director of Community Partnerships and Strategy, Greater Milwaukee Committee

Shelly Shaw, MPH - Associate Director, Office of Community Health, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin - Madison.