Dawn O'Connell, BA'94, a senior executive and strategic adviser with extraordinary experience at the highest levels of government and public health leadership, has been selected as secretary to the Vanderbilt Board of Trust.
O'Connell served as a principal at Health Security Strategies, advising governments, private equity firms and nonprofit organizations on public health and health security matters. Before that, she was the presidentially appointed and Senate-confirmed assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she oversaw several crucial national programs, including the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, the Strategic National Stockpile and the National Disaster Medical System.
At HHS, she served as deputy chief of staff, managing policy and operations, and later as senior counselor to the HHS secretary, directly overseeing multiple agencies and leading the department's response to emerging public health threats. She also served as chief of staff to U.S. Rep. John Spratt of South Carolina's 5th district.
"Dawn has built an accomplished record of public service, leading complex organizations and advising institutions on matters of governance and strategy," Chancellor Daniel Diermeier said. "I am confident she will serve the Board of Trust and Vanderbilt well."
TEACHING FUTURE LEADERS
Beyond her federal service, O'Connell is a lecturer and senior fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, where she co-teaches a course on leadership and decision-making in public health responses. She led a seminar series on health policy at the Harvard Kennedy School's Institute of Politics and serves as adjunct faculty at the University of Maryland School of Public Health.
O'Connell graduated cum laude with a degree in English from Vanderbilt, then earned her juris doctor from Tulane University Law School. She is a member of the New York and District of Columbia bars.
O'Connell will begin her staff role as secretary in mid-August.
- Learn more about the Board of Trust
