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Brandon Mizroch
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When Viruses and Vulnerabilities Collide: A Syndemic of HIV, HCV, and Drugs |
- Brandon Mizroch, Louisiana Department of Health
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Dr. Brandon Mizroch (He/Him) MD, MBBS Brandon attended medical school at the University of Queensland/Ochsner Health System joint degree program. After medical school he pivoted to work in public health? with the Louisiana Department of Health where he spent the next six years overseeing the academic detailing program for the Office of STDs/HIV/HCV. After working with physicians all over the state of Louisiana working on topics such as PrEP, PEP, syphilis prevention and treatment, and other infectious diseases, the office created the nation’s first state-level HCV elimination project. He helped create the education program that trained over 800 clinicians in delivering HCV care, resulting in curing over 12,000 people living with HCV. In 2022 Brandon moved to Salt Lake City, Utah oversee the academic detailing program for the Utah AIDS Education & Training Center where he works to continue their mission of improving the health of Utah’s most vulnerable members. In 2025 he started his own Public Health Consulting Company to continue this work with jurisdictions around the country.
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Alicia Belay
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Collaboration to Increase Access to Doula Support in North Dakota (Panel) |
- Alicia Belay (moderator)
- Shelly Davis
- Elizabeth Pihlaja
- Candi Smith
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| Alicia Belay currently serves as the Assistant Director of the Community Engagement Unit at the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services. She has a doctorate from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in Social and Health Psychology and a master’s degree in public health from Gondar, Ethiopia. Her focus in the last 10 years has been on health equity and maternal outcomes, with a special focus on the postpartum period. Outside of playing with her two rascally boys (3 and 6 years), Alicia dedicates her free time to a small nonprofit that she helped to found in 2018, which provides job training and microloans for women in Africa. |
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Amanda Bakken
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Rabies in North Dakota: Prevention, Control and Care |
- Amanda Bakken, ND Department of Health and Human Services and
- Margo Kunz, ND State Board of Animal Health
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| Amanda Bakken, MS, MPH Vectorborne and Rabies Epidemiologist Division of Disease Control and Forensic Pathology Margo Kunz, DVM North Dakota Assistant State Veterinarian North Dakota Department of Agriculture. |
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Jason Anderson
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An Introduction to the Science of the Positive and Positive Community Norms |
- Jason Anderson, The Montana Institute
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| Upon his discharge from the United States Army, Jason obtained his bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Moorhead State University. After a 25-year career in community corrections, having served as a probation/parole officer, a project manager, probation department director and trainer of several topics, Jason transitioned into a full-time role as a consultant and trainer in early 2023. Within his community corrections career, he served as a Regional Training Coordinator for the National Institute of Corrections for 5 years. Jason participated in the international Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers train-the-trainer event in 2010. He has been affiliated with The Montana Institute doing curriculum development and training since 2014. He spent a number of years as an active member of 2 school-based substance abuse coalitions and as a member of the Itasca County Veteran’s Crisis Response Team which supports veterans experiencing mental health crisis. An avid outdoorsman and storyteller, Jason enjoys singing in his church choir and dabbles in community theater. |
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Dawn Hunter
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Innovative Strategies to Advance Public Health |
- Dawn Hunter, The Dawn Institute
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| Dawn Hunter is Founder & CEO of The Dawn Lab, a firm that takes a public health approach to designing policies and practices that support individual, organizational, and community well-being. Collaborating with public health agencies, community organizations, and academic institutions, she creates innovative solutions for health equity and community power building. Building on more than a decade in the field of public health law, her work includes research, legal and public health data analysis, facilitation of capacity-building workshops, and training on advocacy, ethics, and values-based messaging. She has served as an advisor on several key public health leadership initiatives. Dawn is a Certified Wellness Practitioner, Certified in Public Health, and is a licensed member of the Florida Bar. |
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Amber D. Lyon-Colbert
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Water Quality and Public Health: Challenges and Solutions for North Dakota |
- Amber D. Lyon-Colbert, PHD, MS, UND, Dept. of Population Health
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| Amber Lyon-Colbert, PhD, MS, is an Assistant Professor in Population Health at the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of North Dakota (UND). She holds a Master's degree in Biology/Microbiology from California State University, East Bay, and a PhD in Environmental and Occupational Health from Oregon State University. Her research focuses on water quality and its effects on public health in North Dakota, particularly groundwater contamination and its impact on rural, underserved populations. Dr. Lyon-Colbert is dedicated to advancing knowledge in environmental health and addressing critical health disparities in rural communities. |