The Colorado School of Public Health is pleased to announce Dr. Carolyn DiGuiseppi and MPH student Nicole Tuitt both received the 2009 University of Colorado Denver Chancellor's Diversity awards.  Dr. DiGuiseppi and Nicole were recognized by UC Denver Chancellor M. Roy Wilson during an award luncheon hosted by the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.  Congratulations to both and thank you for your commitment to diversity on campus and in the community. 

Dr. Carolyn DiGuiseppi is Professor of Epidemiology and Director of the General Preventive Medicine & Public Health Residency Program in the Colorado School of Public Health.  Dr. DiGuiseppi received her medical degree from the University of Virginia and her PhD in epidemiology from the University of London. She trained in pediatrics and in preventive medicine at the University of Washington, where she also earned her MPH degree.  Before joining the faculty at the University of Colorado Denver in 2000, she was a senior research fellow at the Institute of Child Health, University College London.  Prior to that, she served as a senior health policy analyst at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and as project director and science advisor for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force’s “Guide to Clinical Preventive Services.” Dr. DiGuiseppi has served on a variety of federal and state advisory committees and currently serves on the editorial board of several national and international journals.  She has published numerous studies reflecting her research interests in the epidemiology and prevention of disability in children and injuries in all ages. Dr. DiGuiseppi has directed the Preventive Medicine residency program since 2000 and has a long-standing interest in improving access to quality health care through enhancing the diversity and diversity-related training of the preventive medicine and public health workforce. 

Dr. DiGuiseppi will also be recognized by the University of Colorado President Bruce Benson next month at the President’s Diversity Award reception.

Nicole Tuitt is currently an MPH student in the Colorado School of Public Health.  She is the chair of the Diversity Committee for the School’s student council, which is committed to creating an understanding of diverse populations and fostering dynamic relationships within the Colorado School of Public Health and community.  In the spring of 2006, Nicole began working at Brother Jeff’s Community Health Initiative, where she became an advocate for African American women infected with HIV/AIDS.  In the summer of 2007, she began interning with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Office of Health Disparities and is responsible for coordinating the Recruiting and Retaining Youth of Color Task Force and the Colorado Black Health Collaboration.  Nicole obtained her undergraduate degree from the University of Colorado Boulder and plans to pursue a medical degree in order to become a primary care physical working in underserved communities.