Montgomery County Public Health Director Joey Smith to speak at APSU

Clarksville, TN – Montgomery County Public Health Director Joey Smith (’99) was recently honored as one of the leaders in his field in the United States, and Austin Peay State University is proud to welcome Smith to campus as he discusses his successes and what he sees in the future of public health.

Smith’s discussion will take place from 11:30am–12:30pm on April 8th in University Center room 305, located on the campus of the University.

On January 6th, 2015, Smith was one of the 12 Public Health Officials in the nation named by the Kresge Foundation to the Emerging Leaders in Public Health.

Selected in a nationwide competitive process, each leadership team will receive up to $125,000 and technical assistance from field experts to implement a 16-month project.

Smith was chosen alongside representatives from major cities, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, New Orleans and San Antonio.

During his discussion, Smith will offer his thoughts on the health of Montgomery County, how health is measured and how the Emerging Leaders in Public Health project will enable his team to explore ways to accelerate the improvement of population health.

“Our project gives us the ability to further explore the proportional application of local public health efforts and resources towards determining factors,” Smith said.

Smith has experience using data to steer public health efforts in creative ways. Over the last three years, Smith and Dr. Patti Orr from the APSU School of Nursing have co-written a grant that creates access for breast health education and screening mammograms at zero cost for uninsured women in Montgomery County.

“It’s an honor to just be nominated. But a lot of the honor needs to be shared. Each day, I get to work with smart and talented people. I live in a great community that has skilled leaders and excellent schools.”

Space will be limited to the first 50 attendees. For more information, contact Marian Perron at 931.221.6295 or perronm@apsu.edu.