The California Endowment (Los Angeles, CA)
The 2022 TCE Youth Awards honoring inspiring young leaders and youth-serving nonprofit organizations from across the state was celebrated by The California Endowment in July. The awardees represent the best of young people and youth- serving organizations that are advancing health and racial equity, transformational leadership, and social justice. Nine winners received their awards at the ceremony.
The four youth serving organizations named Youth Power Partner Award winners are 67 Sueños, Oakland; Latinos Unidos Por Educación, Bakersfield; Project Q, Los Angeles; and Youth Will, San Diego. These organizations were selected for their consistent efforts promoting improvements in health in marginalized communities and creating a pipeline for new young leaders focused on racial equity and changing entrenched systems. Each organization will receive $10,000.
The four youth individuals selected as winners for the Voices for Change Award are Ishaan Brar of Bakersfield, California; Sofia Ongele of Santa Clarita, California; Dipti Venkatesh of San Jose, California; and Allison Vo of Garden Grove, California. They are exceptional youth leaders whose work reflects an unflinching commitment to health and racial equity and social justice. They each will receive $3,000.
The recipient of the Brandon Harrison Youth Visionary Award is Kamarie Brown of Los Angeles, California. This statewide award recognizes an outstanding youth leader who overcame obstacles to achieve notable civic and personal accomplishments. She will receive $10,000. The award is named for the late Brandon Harrison, a beloved youth leader and community activist from Stockton, California.
Contact: Sarah Reyes at 559.470.4545 or sreyes@calendow.org.
Marie A. Bernard, MD
John A. Hartford Foundation
The John A. Hartford Foundation (JAHF) announced Marie A. Bernard, MD, as this year’s recipient of The John A. Hartford Foundation Trustees Award for her many years’ dedication to improving the lives of older adults through research, education, and clinical practice improvement.
Dr. Bernard is recognized for her work enhancing diversity in the sciences, especially in her current role as Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). At NIH, she ensures that the full range of workforce talent is accessed to promote scientific creativity and innovation. She also co-leads NIH’s UNITE initiative to end structural racism.
Previously, Dr. Bernard was the Deputy Director and Senior Geriatrician of the National Institute on Aging (NIA). In that role, she served as the principal advisor to the NIA Director and led a broad range of activities dedicated to improving the lives of older adults, including co-chairing two Healthy People 2020/2030 objectives related to care of older adults and dementia. Additionally, she spearheaded NIH diversity efforts as co-lead of the NIH-wide Inclusion Governance Committee, which promotes diversity in clinical trials, and oversaw the NIA Office of Special Populations focusing on health disparities research and training for NIA-affiliated scientists from diverse backgrounds. She also led the Women of Color Committee of the NIH-wide Working Group on Women in Biomedical Careers. Prior to joining NIH, she was the endowed professor and founding Chair of the Donald W. Reynolds Department of Geriatric Medicine at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine and Associate Chief of Staff for Geriatrics and Extended Care at the Oklahoma City Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
Dr. Bernard is the recipient of many awards, including from the Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education and the Gerontological Society of America, along with receiving the NIH Director’s Award for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Dr. Bernard has lectured and published widely in areas of nutrition and function in older adults, with particular focus on underrepresented minority populations.
Contact: Marcus Escobedo at 212.832.7788 or marcus.escobedo@johnahartford.org.