GWSPH Colonials Weekend 2017


October 24, 2017

The Milken Institute School of Public Health was proud to celebrate with alumni, families, students and friends on October 20 and 21 during GW’s Colonials Weekend. We had a packed program full of events.

The festivities kicked off with a donor’s appreciation breakfast in honor of all the alumni, students, faculty and staff who have generously supported the school over the last year.

On Friday afternoon the Honorable Vincent C. Gray BA ’64, Councilmember Ward 7, and chair of the Committee on Health for the Council of the District of Columbia stopped by to join a panel discussion on local health initiatives in DC. Gray was joined by distinguished faculty, including Bill Dietz, MD, PhD, director, Sumner M. Redstone Global Center for Prevention and Wellness, and professor in the Department of Prevention and Community Health; Alan Greenberg, MD, MPH, director, DC Center for AIDS Research and Professor, and chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics; and Olga Acosta Price, PhD, director, Center for Health and Health Care in Schools, and associate professor in the Department of Prevention and Community Health. Each of the panelists shared how their work in local D.C. neighborhoods affects change and serves as a model for improving health.

The night concluded with a very special celebration honoring the inaugural 950 Award winners:

Roslyn M. Brock, MHSA '89, MBA 


Jeffrey A. Flaks, MHA '96 



Osazee Imadojemu, MPH '13, JD '13


Venessa Perry, PhD, MPH '99 

Madiha Tariq, MPH '11 

Named after our address--950 New Hampshire Avenue--the award honors alumni who display outstanding loyalty to the school, have successful careers in public health and embody the school's ethos. Congratulations again to all the winners!

Friday evening, we also honored long-standing faculty member and chair of the Exercise and Nutrition Sciences Department, Loretta DiPietro, PhD, with the Outstanding Faculty Achievement Award. It was a surprise for Dr. DiPietro, who shared fond memories with the audience and gave a heartwarming thanks to faculty and staff, as well as former Dean Ruth Katz, who recruited her to GWSPH.

We hope everyone who attended had a great time! Couldn’t make it? Checkout some photos from the event here as well as photos from Saturday’s sunrise yoga and breakfast. Hope to see you all next year!