Dr. Little is an Associate Professor of Public Health Sciences at the University of Virginia and a member of the UVA Cancer Center where she directs a Center for Nicotine and Tobacco Research. Her research focuses on developing, evaluating and translating evidence-based cancer prevention and control interventions into community-based settings, such as schools, pharmacies, federally qualified health centers and military systems. She has spent her career developing her skills as a community-engaged researcher and leader, focused on reducing cancer health disparities.

She has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health as a co-investigator since 2014 and as a principal investigator since 2016. She has received funding as both a co-investigator and principal investigator from the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs and the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth (VFHY). Her current research focuses on reducing cancer health disparities among rural, low income, minority and military communities through interventions to reduce modifiable health risk behaviors, namely through research on tobacco prevention (R01DA043468, PI Little), tobacco cessation (R01CA267963, PI Little) and promoting vaccines and cancer screenings (P01CA229143, MPI Paskett/Anderson/Dignan/Kennedy). Her research employs mixed methods within a dissemination and implementation science lens. This approach allows her to gain a deeper understanding of the unique needs and perspectives of her community partners to effectively reduce cancer and other health-related disparities. 

Related website: https://med.virginia.edu/phs/2017/09/15/littlemelissa/  

Annie Turner is Executive Director of the Cancer Action Coalition of Virginia, with more than 20 years of experience leading nonprofits and building cross-sector partnerships. She previously led Food for Others in Northern Virginia, expanding food access and guiding the organization through significant growth during the pandemic, and has also served as Co-Chair of the Fairfax Food Council. Annie has worked as an organizational development consultant supporting nonprofits and local governments and today focuses on bringing partners together to reduce the burden of cancer across Virginia. 

Originally from Lima, Peru Gonzalo grew up in Fairfax County, Virginia. He moved to Richmond in 2007 to attend Virginia Commonwealth University where he graduated with a B.A. in Political Science in 2011. 

While a majority of Gonzalo’s career has been in Virginia. In 2016 he accepted a role at NASCAR and became a Manager of Government & Community Affairs at in Daytona Beach, Florida for three and a half years. Gonzalo returned to Virginia in 2020. 

Later, Gonzalo was the Director of Government Affairs at a non-profit trade association and today is the Director of State Government Relations for the American Heart Association.

Lindsay Hauser is the Director of the Office of Community Outreach and Engagement at the University of Virginia Comprehensive Cancer Center. She oversees the strategic planning, development and implementation of cancer related community programs and facilitates bi-directional community partnerships to support the development of cancer related research that addresses heath disparities in communities across Virginia and West Virginia.  Lindsay is active in many community boards and coalitions, including the Eliminate Tobacco Use Virginia Initiative which she helps lead. Lindsay holds a master’s degree in Community Health, a bachelor’s degree in Health Education and is a Master Tobacco Treatment Specialist. 

Elizabeth K. Do, Ph.D., M.P.H. is a Research Director within the Schroeder Institute at Truth Initiative. In this role, she is responsible for leading research focused on characterizing patterns and trajectories of nicotine product use among young people, identifying factors that contribute to these behaviors and evaluating Truth Initiative’s mass media campaigns. Dr. Do is also a Professorial Lecturer in Epidemiology at the George Washington University, the former Chair of the Tobacco Free Alliance of Virginia and a steering committee member of the Eliminate Tobacco Use Virginia Initiative. She earned a doctorate in Clinical and Translational Sciences, focused on psychiatric, behavioral and statistical genetics, a Master of Public Health, focused on social and behavioral health sciences and epidemiology, from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Bachelors of Arts in Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia.

Hannah Robbins Bruce, M.P.H., C.H.E.S. is public health marketing strategist with extensive experience leading statewide health communication campaigns focused on substance use prevention, vaping/tobacco prevention and childhood obesity prevention. She holds a Master of Public Health from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science and Community Health Education from Virginia Commonwealth University. She is a member of the Nation Commission for Health Education Credentialing and is a certified health education specialist. She currently serves as a Marketing Strategist at the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth which includes overseeing campaign development from research and audience segmentation to content creation, media strategy and evaluation for large-scale public health initiative

Finius Burkett is a senior at Courtland High School in Spotsylvania County. He is a member of Y Street, the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth's award-winning statewide youth-led program, and part of its prestigious Leadership Team. Finius is passionate about creating healthier outdoor environments through Y Street's Share The Air campaign. His dedication and hard work have made him an inspiration to other young people as he strives to be a positive influence. With his sights set on becoming an environmental engineer, Finius wants to continue making a difference beyond high school.

Nicolas Suarez is the Youth Advocacy & Strategic Partnerships Associate Director at CTFK, leading the engagement of advocates across the country and advancing the organization’s goals. With over eight years of experience in organizing and political advocacy, Nicolas has a demonstrated ability of empowering others and advancing equity in public health. Nicolas holds a dual bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from Boston University and has earned accolades for his work including the prestigious Gold Congressional Medal and CTFK’s 2017 South Region Youth Advocate of the Year.

Dr. Bernard F. Fuemmeler, Ph.D., M.P.H., is professor and Gordon D. Ginder, MD endowed chair in cancer research, Associate Director of population science at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Director for Research in the Department of Family Medicine and Population Health. Dr. Fuemmeler has mentored several predoctoral, post-doctoral and junior faculty and directs an NCI T32 training program in cancer prevention and control. He also recently took on the directorship for a university-wide core laboratory focused on supporting research registries and cohorts (CARA core). 

Dr. Fuemmeler holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Oklahoma State University and an M.P.H. in epidemiology from Harvard University. He received postdoctoral training in cancer prevention and control research through the National Cancer Institute’s highly selective cancer prevention and control fellowship program where he worked with NCI staff scientists in the Health Behavior Research Branch. Prior to relocating to VCU in June of 2016, Dr. Fuemmeler was at Duke University where he was a tenured associate professor with a primary appointment in the Department of Community and Family Medicine and was a member of the Duke Cancer Institute.

Dr. Fuemmeler has authored more than 175 peer-reviewed publications in areas of cancer epidemiology and prevention, obesity and tobacco control. Recent work is aimed at cancer prevention efforts among firefighters, investigating neighborhood and structural characteristics in relation to cancer risk and outcomes and investigating multi-level intervention efforts to reduce cancer burden within low-income communities. Dr. Fuemmeler is a fellow of the Society of Behavioral Medicine and American Psychological Association. He served as President for the Society of Behavioral Medicine from 2023-2024. Dr. Fuemmeler’s work has continuously been supported by awards from several institutes of the National Health Institute (NCI, NIA, NIEHS, NIDA). He was a standing member of the Lifestyle Change and Behavioral Health Study Section (2016-2022) and now serves as an ad hoc grant reviewer for NCI Special Emphasis Panels (NCI-A, Provocative Questions Panel, K22 panel, and R03/R21 panel). 

Related website: https://medschool.vcu.edu/about/portfolio/details/bffuemmeler/