Shelley A. Hearne

Shelley A. Hearne is the Deans Sommer and Klag Distinguished Professor of the Practice in Public Health and a faculty member in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She also serves as director of the Lerner Center for Public Health Advocacy and executive director of the Forsythia Foundation. Her work centers on strengthening public health advocacy, policy engagement, and health equity in urban and governmental settings.

• DrPH, Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, 1994
• MPH, Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, 1988
• AB, Bowdoin College, 1983

Dr. Hearne’s research focuses on public health advocacy, health policy, urban health systems, food safety, bioterrorism preparedness, and pandemic response. She explores how to build advocacy capacity within the public health workforce and develop equitable, evidence-based policies. Her work emphasizes the integration of science, policy, and community engagement to improve health outcomes.

Her recent publications demonstrate a consistent focus on policy development, advocacy training, and equity-centered approaches to public health. Articles analyze syllabi in public health education, advocate for competency-based training, and promote tools for equitable policy-making. Her research spans journals like Journal of Public Health Management and Practice and book chapters with Oxford University Press and APHA Press.

• American Public Health Association Executive Director’s Citation
• Bowdoin College Common Good Award
• Senator Frank Lautenberg Award for lifetime achievement in public health advocacy (2006)
• Delta Omega Curricula Award (2004)
• Elected member, Delta Omega Society, Alpha Eta Chapter (2006)

Dr. Hearne has led major public health initiatives including founding CityHealth and serving as executive director of the Big Cities Health Coalition and managing director at The Pew Health Group. She has authored influential national reports, testified before Congress, and contributed to accreditation and oversight of public health schools. She currently teaches courses in public health advocacy and health policy leadership. She is also a trustee at Bowdoin College and chairs their Committee on Inclusion.

Dr. Hearne leads the Lerner Center for Public Health Advocacy, a hub for research, training, and policy engagement aimed at building advocacy capacity across the public health field. Her work fosters collaboration between academia, government, and nonprofit sectors to advance health equity and effective public health practice.