MPH ’07, received her ScD from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in March 2016. Heather had previously worked as an evaluation specialist at the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie) in New Delhi, India. She is now employed by IDinsight in New Delhi as a senior manager.

MPA ’05/BA ’01, co-authored a children’s book that was briefly #2 on the Amazon.com bestsellers list for Children’s Diet and Nutrition books (behind the Disney Princess Cookbook). Max the Monkey Has MCADD is the first children’s book about this rare metabolic condition and has been embraced by families as a way to explain a very complicated disorder to young children.

BSN, ’60, is the author of The Patient’s Voice: Experiences of Illness. The second edition recently was published by FADavis Publishers, in Philadelphia and is available on Amazon.com in eBook and hardcopy versions. The book introduces contemporary autobiographical accounts of psychiatric and somatic illness written expressly for it. The accounts are of children’s and adults’ experiences of illness and include narratives of family members and advocates in the medical, legal and judicial system. They are all pertinent accounts for students of nursing, medicine, allied health professions and the law. Website: arts4health.org

MD, ’77, has retired after being the only interventional radiologist in Northeast Michigan for 26 years. “It is time to enjoy what I have worked for my whole life, and spend more time with my family and friends,” he says. It has been 26 years since Dr. Weeks toured ARMC (formerly Alpena General Hospital) saying, “I thought it was such a nice hospital for a small community, and I was fortunate to work with Dr. Bill Walker.” Dr. Weeks arrived in Alpena in 1989 after a family practice residency in Kalamazoo Michigan. He began his career working at St. Joseph’s hospital near Benton Harbor. He then decided to return for a residency in radiology. He spent four years at Beaumont studying diagnostic, interventional, and neuroradiology. He worked at Mid-Michigan Regional Medical Center for four years before coming to Alpena. As an interventionist, Dr. Weeks has spearheaded a successful dialysis program over the course of his career at ARMC along with perfecting special procedures such as: digital subtraction angiography, stenting, abscess drainages, cholecystostomies, nephrostomies/stenting, and multiple other procedures including bone, lung, and thyroid biopsies. He is proud of other services now offered in his department such as a vacuum-assisted breast biopsy program, initiated by his partner Dr. Steve Zwieg. Over the years, Dr. Weeks made many contributions to special committees and served in multiple staff positions at the hospital. He sat on the cancer committee for 26 years and held a Chief of Medical Staff position, Chief of Surgery, Medical Director of Radiology, and Director of the MRI mobile. The most gratifying part of his career, he says, is providing the best service possible for the community. At the time of his retirement, he admitted he will miss his colleagues and his staff “who are like my extended family,” and that “although it can be stressful at times, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

BA ’70/JD ’76, won the 2015 Blue Light Book Award for her book of poems, Hope is a Muscle (Blue Light Press, 2015). Her poetry has been included various anthologies, most recently in Poet Showcase (Hobblebush Books, 2015), River of Earth and Sky: Poems for the 21st Century (Blue Light Press, 2015), and Love Over 60 an anthology of women’s poems (Mayapple Press, 2010). Snider was first published in the ground-breaking anthology, Lesbian Nuns: Breaking Silence (Naiad Press, 1985). She is retired and lives on a lake in rural New Hampshire. Besides swimming, hiking, and writing poetry, Snider has volunteered as a CASA Guardian ad Litem for abused and neglected children.

MSW ’87, was named a Michiganian of the Year by <em>The Detroit News.</em> He was honored for his extensive leadership in Detroit’s Latino community. Rivera is director of Wayne State University’s Center for Latino/a and Latin American Studies and he is also director of community engagement at Southwest Solutions. He has dedicated his life to helping people in his community through activism and engagement.

MSW ’96, was named a Michiganian of the Year by <em>The Detroit News.</eM> She is the president and CEO of the Skillman Foundation and works endlessly to enhance the lives of children who attend Detroit Public Schools. Allen also played a pivotal role in the $200-million citywide education reform organization, Excellent Schools Detroit. Increasing educational opportunities and reforming the academic system in the city is at the core of what she does.

PhD, ’80, recently joined the Keystone Policy Center’s Board of Trustees in Denver, CO. The Keystone Policy Center is a trusted nonprofit organization founded in 1975 to drive actionable, shared solutions to contentious agriculture, environment, energy, education, and public health issues. Keystone is recognized by public, private, and civic-sector leaders throughout the United States for independent, collaborative problem-solving approaches that offer a proven blueprint for progress and collective impact.

BA ’87, was appointed to serve on The Florida Bar Standing Committee on Pro Bono Legal Services. She previously served on the American Bar Association Standing Committee for Pro Bono Legal Services for a term of three years. Throughout her 25-year career as a Legal Aid Advocate, Ladis has not only spearheaded numerous efforts aimed at helping those in need but has also mentored, recruited, and trained hundreds of attorneys willing to donate their time on a pro bono basis. She leads Dade Legal Aid in Miami-Dade County, Florida, a nonprofit group that provides access to justice for all.