Board President, Director — Brian Willis
Brian Willis began researching the public health impact of child sex trafficking in 1990 at the same time he joined the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) where he worked on HIV laws and policies, tuberculosis, and immunizations. In 2002 he co-authored the first study to estimate the global public health impact of sex trafficking of children. Read Brian’s full bio here.
Board Secretary, Programming and Outreach Advisor —
Carrie Burgess
Carrie Burgess served as a United States Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay from 2013 to 2016. In her first two years, she worked at the grassroots level as a Community Health volunteer in a rural community. She led reproductive health programming at the local schools and worked with local stakeholders to develop projects that targeted the social determinants of health in the community. Read Carrie’s full bio here.
Board Treasurer — Betsy Chandler
Betsy Chandler a has a Master’s Degree in reading education from the State University of New York at Albany (SUNY) and a Masters in social work and social research from Bryn Mawr College where she focused on research, advocacy and program development.
In 1992 she founded and was president of a transitional housing program for homeless women and children in Chester County, Pennsylvania, and was the Executive Director from 1997 to 1999.
Most recently she has tutored adjudicated teenage boys at a wonderful not-for-profit home and school in Coatesville, PA.
Board Member — Joanna Cummings, MS, RD, CNSC
Joanna Cummings, MS, RD, CNSC, is the Associate Dietetic Internship Director and an Instructor in The Graduate Programs in Human Nutrition at the Oregon Health and Sciences University School of Medicine. She received her Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition from Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and is a Registered Dietitian (RD) with advanced certification as a Certified Nutrition Support Clinician (CNSC). Her clinical and research experience includes pediatric and adult nutrition, inherited metabolic disorders, oncology, and bone marrow transplant.
Additionally, she has worked extensively on the development of nutrition education tools as the Leadership and Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) trainee at the Child Development and Rehabilitation Center (CDRC) at OHSU, Research Dietitian at Children’s Hospital Colorado, Clinical Dietitian in Oncology at the University of Colorado and as an adjunct professor at the University of Northern Colorado.
Board Member — Charlotte Brandin
Charlotte Brandin has been active in philanthropy for 25+ years in the field of child protection, family supports and social rights. After serving as Executive Director for World Childhood Foundation USA (2002-2014) she has assumed roles as advisor, board member and consultant both in the US and Sweden, notably as executive chairperson for Charity Rating, a rating agency of Swedish nonprofits, and advisor for BRY, advocating for Swedish children’s safety and legal rights. A Board member and consultant for Family Alliance, the US subsidiary of Family for Every Child, based in the UK, she has continued her work with In her role as strategic facilitator for Natural Creativity, a center for self-directed learning in Germantown, PA, where she advised on fundraising, communications and social media as well as board-related matters. She is currently our Volunteer Chief Operating Officer.
Charlotte is currently engaged with Butterflies USA, supporting Butterflies, a child-rights organization working with street-connected an runaway children and youth in India; and with Hello Future, providing refugee youth in Syria education focusing on digital literacy.
A native of Sweden, she has lived in the US since 1989.
Board Member, Advisor for Maternal Health — Dr. Heather Thompson
Dr Heather Thompson is a Canadian OB/GYN with a longstanding interest in social justice; she is excited to work with Global Health Promise, which aligns well with her interests in human trafficking and women’s health.
Heather’s international experience has taken her to Geneva, where she interned at the WHO, as well as to various countries in sub-Saharan Africa, most recently in Togo with Samaritan’s Purse. Closer to home, she works as an OB/GYN in Canada, and she also does some part time work in addictions.
Heather was in a leadership position for many years in Pneuma, an organization that takes clients from local addiction-recovery facilities and homeless shelters on year-round outdoor adventures. She has been the co-chair for the Student Advisory Committee for the Global Health Education Consortium (GHEC, now CUGH-Coalition of Universities for Global Health). Heather has also worked to organize several fundraisers for organizations such as Save The Mothers and Center for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technology (CAWST).
Heather is also an avid outdoors adventurer; you’ll be most likely to find her somewhere in the backcountry skiing, hiking, or paddling.
