Sherri Garber Mendelson, RNC, PhD, CNS, IBCLC

President

Vacant

Vice President

Susan G. Igdaloff, MDX

Secretary

Mordechai Taylor, CPAX

Treasurer

Mitch Goldstein, MD, MBA, CML

Director at Large

Gilbert I. Martin, MD

Director at Large

Steven Chin, MD, MMScX

Director at Large

Don Null, MDX

Director at Large

Harry Schned, MD

Director at Large

Elizabeth Snow Russel, PhD, OTR/L

Director at Large

Elizabeth Russel, graduated from UNH with a bachelors in Occupational Therapy, CSUN with a Masters in Special Education and USC with a PhD in Occupational Science. Experience as a Pediatric Occupational Therapist including work within public schools, hospital inpatient and outpatient departments, NICUs, and California Children’s Services. Specialist in the areas of early intervention, deafness, blindness, physical disabilities, and sensory integration. Previously Program Director and Assistant Professor at Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles. Active in Occupational Therapy Associations and the Infant Development Association of California. Presently Program Consultant with Children’s Medical Services.

William E. Wagner, III, M.A., M.P.H., Ph.D.

Director at Large

Dr. Wagner holds a joint appointment as Professor of Health Sciences and Professor of Sociology at California State University, Channel Islands and serves as the Executive Director of the Social Science Research & Instructional Council of CSU System. He teaches primarily biostatistics and research methods/design courses. He has published in national and regional scholarly journals on topics such as urban sociology, sports, homophobia, academic status, and public health. His work has also been presented at numerous regional, national, and international scientific and professional conferences. Dr. Wagner has published a number of books in the areas of statistics, survey research, and research methodology. Dr. Wagner worked as a statistician at SPSS, Inc., while completing his M.A. & Ph.D. in Sociology at the University of Illinois, Chicago. He also holds an M.P.H. (Master of Public Health) degree from CSU Northridge. Dr. Wagner also holds two undergraduate degrees from St. Mary’s College of Maryland: one in Anthropology/Sociology, the other bachelor’s degree was earned in Mathematics.

Barry R. Halpern, MD

Director at Large

Tania Esakoff, MD

Director at Large

Tania Esakoff, is an obstetrician and gynecologist at Cedars-Sinai’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology with a subspecialty in maternal-fetal medicine. She is the Clinical Director of the Cedars Sinai Prenatal Diagnosis Center and also directs the comprehensive Diabetes in Pregnancy Program at the Cedars-Sinai Prenatal Diagnosis Center. Dr. Esakoff is board certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Dr. Esakoff’s clinical focus and areas of research include diabetes in pregnancy, macrosomia, racial and ethnic differences in perinatal outcomes, ultrasound and placenta accreta. She has published numerous scientific studies in such peer-reviewed journals as the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the Journal of Maternal Fetal and Neonatal Medicine and is the author of four book chapters. Dr. Esakoff earned her bachelor’s degree in neuroscience at the University of California, Los Angeles. She earned her medical degree at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), where she performed her internship and residency, serving as chief resident. She also completed fellowship training in maternal-fetal medicine at UCSF.

Judy Sherif, RN, CPN, BSN, MNA

Director at Large

Yolonda Rogers-Jones, BA

Director at Large

Yolonda Rogers-Jones is a native of Los Angeles, CA and she has worked over two decades in communities where African American/Black women, men and children live. As the County Coordinator of the Black Infant Health (BIH) Program for the past 20 years, Yolonda has amplified the voices of Black people in health settings to ensure folk outside the culture hear about the birth, health and life experiences of people living in Black skin. Yolonda attended LAUSD schools, earned her BA in Communications from Mills College and holds a Human Resources Certification from UCLA. Her career experiences also include managerial positions with New England Telephone Company and Pepsi Corporation. Yolonda loves a good mystery… she stands in awe of the African American/Black people who have lived before her and who confronted earlier iterations of social injustice… she is genuinely a “people person” and loves being the mother of a son and a daughter.