The Public Health Preparedness Summit and Virginia Epidemiology Seminar provide a venue where participants are exposed to current information, research findings, practical tools and lessons learned from the actual events and current topics to strengthen public health preparedness in Virginia.
- Detailed Summit Agenda
- Detailed VES Agenda
- 2026 Virginia Epidemiology Seminar Booklet
- Finance & Admin In-Person Event Agenda
Agenda at a Glance
| Day 1: March 24, 2026 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Pre-Conference Workshop - Spokesperson Training | Brookie Crawford | |
| 12:00 – 1:00 PM | Registration | Hotel Atrium | |
| 1:00 – 1:50 PM | Welcome/ Opening Session • Presentation of Colors • Leadership Welcome | Bob Mauskapf | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 1:50 – 2:00 PM | MRC E.P.I.C Awards Ceremony | Chesapeake Ballroom | |
| 2:00 – 2:30 PM | General Session- Keynote: State of PH Funding focusing on PHEP/HPP | Lisa Peterson, ASTHO Jeffery Ekoma, ASTHO | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 2:30 – 3:00 PM | Administration Preparedness Exercise Introduction and Overview | Aaron Kesecker Jonathan Falk Brad Porter | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 3:00 – 3:10 PM | Break into Regional Rooms | ||
| 3:10 – 5:00 PM | Tabletop Exercise: • Central Region • Eastern Region • Northern Region • Northwest Region • Southwest Region • Central Office | Blue Ridge AB Blue Ridge C Chesapeake AB Blue Ridge DE Chesapeake C Shenandoah ABC |
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| 5:00 – 5:30 PM | Exercise Hotwash in Rooms | ||
| Day 2: March 25, 2026 | |||
| 7:30 – 8:00 AM | Registration and Breakfast | Hotel Atrium and Hallways | |
| 8:00 – 9:00 AM | Keynote Session • AI and Public Health | Arman Latif | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 9:00 – 9:10 AM | Move to Breakouts | ||
| 9:10 – 10:10 AM | Breakout Session I | Various | |
| Measles Overview - Panel | Speaker Panel: Emily Rich Anna Barringer Barbara Downes Angie Myrick-West | Chesapeake AB | |
| Shelter Planning- Logistics Developments and Trends | Leanne Knox Eric Callas Jennifer Sharpe Emma De Jong Ron Clinedinst | Chesapeake C | |
| Navigating Misinformation in an Age of Rapid Change | Brookie Crawford | Blue Ridge AB | |
| Change Management | Crystal Barrett | Blue Ridge C | |
| Workplace Safety- Best Practices | Liz Coleman | Blue Ridge DE | |
| OEMS Changes | Chad Mason | Shenandoah ABC | |
| 10:10 – 10:20 AM | Break | ||
| Breakout Session II | Various | ||
| Central Region Strike Team - Panel | Speaker Panel: Angie Myrick-West Stephanie Duong Sarah Gagnon | Chesapeake AB | |
| Mental Health in Emergency Response | Stephanie Waite | Chesapeake C | |
| Drinking Water Processes and Collaborations - Roles of Health Districts | Franklin McMillian Jordan Good | Blue Ridge AB | |
| Resilience- Continuity of Operations Pre/Post and During Events | Mariel Waller | Blue Ridge C | |
| HAN Group Manager/Dispatcher Best Practices | Rich Watson Donald Moore Leanne Knox | Blue Ridge DE | |
| Empower Data Usage | Justin Crow | Shenandoah ABC | |
| 11:20 – 11:30 AM | Break | ||
| 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM | Breakout Session III | Various | |
| Leading Through Uncertainty in Public Health | Xavier Crockett | Chesapeake AB | |
| Scope of Practice in Shelter Management | Erin Callas | Chesapeake C | |
| Health Equity with Special Populations in Emergencies | Sandra Serna | Blue Ridge AB | |
| “Who Will Show Up?” Rethinking Recruitment and Volunteerism for Todays Public Health Challenges | Analise Gammel | Blue Ridge C | |
| SNS-Strategic National Stockpile/MCM- Medical Counter Measures Overview | Glenroy Christie | Blue Ridge DE | |
| Climate Change Emergencies | Eric Seymour | Shenandoah ABC | |
| 12:30 – 1:30 PM | Lunch (Provided) and time to transition to next breakout | ||
| 1:30 – 5:00 PM | Discipline Specific Breakout Sessions | Various | |
| VDH - Health Directors | Blue Ridge DE | ||
| VDH - Nurse Managers • Agenda | Chesapeake AB | ||
| VDH - Emergency Coordinators | Chesapeake C | ||
| VDH - Business Managers | Blue Ridge AB | ||
| VDH - MRC Coordinators | Shenandoah ABC | ||
| VDH - Epidemiologists | Blue Ridge C | ||
| Day 3: March 26, 2026 | |||
| Virginia Epidemiology Seminar | |||
| 8:30 – 9:00 AM | Registration | Hotel Atrium | |
| 9:00 AM | Welcome | Kelsey Holloman, MPH | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 9:05 – 9:20 AM | Opening Remarks | Laurie Forlano, MPH, DO | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 9:20 – 9:40 AM | When Two Mosquito-Borne Viruses Collide: An Unprecedented West Nile and La Crosse Coinfection in a Non-Traveling Adult in the Fairfax Health District, 2025 | Chtaura Jackson, MPH, MS | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 9:40 – 10:00 AM | Burkholderia pseudomallei Infection Associated with Travel to the Philippines, Central Virginia Health District, April 2025 | Cali Anderson, MPH Paige Bordwine, MPH, CIC, MT(ASCP) | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 10:00 – 10:20 AM | When Alarm Bells Ring: Interpreting Wastewater Surveillance Signal for H5 Infected Wildlife | Michelle Yancey, MPH, PhD | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 10:20 – 10:35 AM | Break and Networking | ||
| 10:35 – 10:55 AM | Multi-jurisdiction Response to a Case of Measles Associated with an International Exposure in Eastern Region, September 2025 | Brittany Kendall, MPH, CHES, CIC Ashley Caesar, MPH, MHI | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 10:55 – 11:15 AM | If It’s Not One Thing, It’s Another: A Multi-Source Respiratory Outbreak at a Private School in Virginia, October- November, 2025 | Stephanie Neal, MPH, CIC | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 11:15 AM – 11:35 AM | Integrating Partner Services and Social Network Analysis to Identify Syphilis in a High-Risk Network, Western Virginia, 2025 | Courtney Gonzalez, MPH, CHES Danesha Alam-Richardson, BS | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 11:35 – 11:55 AM | An Evaluation of Candida auris Transmission Between Healthcare Facilities | Eboni Bassett, MPH | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 11:55 AM – 1:00 PM | Lunch and Networking | ||
| 1:05 – 1:25 PM | Understanding COPD Burden in Virginia: Patterns, Disparities, and Public Health Implications | Francis Adams, MPH | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 1:25 – 1:45 PM | Assessing Local Needs to Support Maternal Health-Related Emergency Preparedness Efforts in Virginia | Juliana Keeney, MPH | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 1:45 – 2:05 PM | Examining Drug Overdose Deaths Without Opioid Involvement Among Virginians, 2019-2023 | Lauren Yerkes, MPH, CPH | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 2:05 – 2:20 PM | Break and Networking | ||
| 2:20 – 2:40 PM | When the Workforce Is Tired: Designing Programs That Support People and Practice | Ginger Vanhoozer, MPH, BSN, RN, CIC, AL-CIP | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 2:40 – 3:00 PM | Disrupting Syphilis Transmission through Hyper-Localized At-Home Testing Initiatives in a High-Burden Health District, Crater Health District, Virginia | Tia Sanchez, BPA | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 3:00 – 3:20 PM | Linking Emergency Medical Services and Emergency Department Data for Heat-Related Illness Surveillance, Virginia, 2024-2025 | Daisy Banta, MPH | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| 3:20 – 3:30 PM | Voting for People’s Choice Award | Chesapeake Ballroom | |
| 3:30 – 3:40 PM | Closing Remarks and Award Presentations (Grayson B. Miller, Jr., MD Award, Diane Woolard, PhD Award, and People’s Choice Award) | Brandy Darby, DVM, MPH, DACVPM | Chesapeake Ballroom |
| Finance and Admin In Person Event | |||
| 8:30 – 9:00 AM | Registration and Coffee | Hotel Atrium | |
| 9:00 -11:55 AM | Finance and Admin In Person Event | Blue Ridge BC | |
| 11:55 AM - 1:00 PM | Lunch | ||
| 1:00 – 3:00 PM | Finance and Admin In Person Event | Blue Ridge BC Chesapeake C |
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About
The Public Health Preparedness Summit and Virginia Epidemiology Seminar and Finance & Admin In-Person Event provide a venue where participants are exposed to current information, research findings, practical tools, and lessons learned from the public health emergency response to strengthen public health preparedness in Virginia.
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Last Updated: March 13, 2026