Sara Beaudrault, MPH, manages the Strategic Initiatives Team within the Oregon Health Authority, Office of the State Public Health Director. Sara and her team lead efforts to modernize Oregon’s governmental public health system, implement the state health improvement plan, and align public health and health system transformation efforts, including rural health transformation. Sara has worked for Oregon Health Authority for 20 years and has led efforts to modernize the governmental public health system since this work began in 2015.

Syrus Duffy, MPA, is a Research Specialist at the University of Missouri’s Institute of Public Policy where he leads Missouri’s data collection effort for the Foundational Public Health Services Gap Analysis. Through his work, he aligns cross-sector partnerships and supports infrastructure to strengthen public health and community systems.

Steven Fiala, PhD, MPH, serves as the Modernization Lead within the Oregon Health Authority, Office of the State Public Health Director. Steven has worked at the Oregon Health Authority for 15 years and has led policy, partnerships, and evaluation work for chronic disease prevention, commercial tobacco control, and cannabis legalization, in addition to advancing public health modernization.

Valerie Yeager, DrPH, MPhil, is a Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at Indiana University’s Fairbanks School of Public Health in Indianapolis where she is also the Director of the Center for Health Policy. Her research primarily focuses on the public health workforce and agency experiences with workforce development and systems change.