Community Champion Award

2024 Award Recipients

Alumni Aid for Ukraine, SAIS
Alumni Aid for Ukraine is a group of alumni and students that was initially launched to mobilize both financial and in-kind resources to help Ukrainian war-torn families fleeing their country resettle across the EU and in particular in Bologna, Italy, given the location of SAIS Europe, the existing students’ activity and the alumni connections to the city. The first goal of the group was to leverage their international connections to create a network of volunteers throughout Europe that can provide immediate relief to refugees by connecting them to potential hosts, helping them satisfy bureaucratic requirements, directing them to language/translation resources, and – generally – securing demand- driven support to people in need as the inflow grows. A second and more structured goal was to implement a One-Month Relief Program aimed at placing a certain number of families under a secure shelter, complemented by a small stipend for immediate needs, for a period of one month, to allow for other actors such as local administrations, and NGOs to better plane for more permanent solutions. Today, they are an official partner of The King Baudouin Foundation, an international philanthropic organization based in Brussels, Belgium, enabling the group to work together to promote the protection of human rights and stimulate civil society. Their mission has grown to unite alumni and students alike within international relations world to contribute to the protection of those affected by crises by funding innovative, inspiring, and impactful programs to tackle these issues. They also plan to support student experiential learning funds and provide humanitarian response grant-funding

Shelly Choo, SAIS ’91, BSPH ’14
Shelly Choo is a champion for families of Baltimore City and the state of Maryland. During her time as Senior Medical Advisor for the B’More Healthy Babies Initiative, Dr. Choo led infant sleep training for families and she managed provider outreach efforts to ensure clinicians caring for families and babies in the area had access to B’More Healthy Babies resources, contributing to a 32% decline in infant death in Baltimore City.  As Chief Medical Officer for the Baltimore City Health Department, she led multiple population health initiatives such as the Accountable Health Communities Initiatives (AHC) and the Levels of Care for Baltimore City Hospitals to Respond to the Opioid Epidemic. After Dr. Choo’s incredible work with the Baltimore City community, she began work as the Director of the Bureau of Maternal and Child Health (MCH) at the Maryland Department of Health. In this role her expertise and vision can extend to families across Maryland, where she manages multiple essential services such as the Maryland Title V program, Family Planning, Women Infant and Children initiatives (WIC), and home visiting.  Shelly Choo has been saving lives in Baltimore City and across the state of Maryland for nearly a decade, leading to recognition as a 2023 40 under 40 in Public Health by the de Beaumont Foundation. Her work impacts families and communities in all stages of life, and the thoughtful and evidence-based approaches she brings have resulted in an increase in community access to resources and knowledge.

Sophia Lynn, SAIS ’91
Sophia Lynn currently serves as executive director of the Crow’s Nest Research Center, a non-profit organization located in Stafford, Virginia and dedicated to conservation, wetlands research, and environmental education. Sophia favors using shared nature conservation values as a common rallying point for local communities. Her prior career pursuits include working with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to establish the President Lincoln’s Cottage National Monument, serving as Deputy Director for the Council of Institutional Investors, and postings in Havana, Madrid, and Washington, DC with the U.S. Foreign Service. She is married to David C. Frederick and between them they have three children.

Deborah Rose, Friend of A&S
Deborah Rose is a chronic disease epidemiologist with interests in psychosocial epidemiology, demography, environmental health, and sustainable development. She spent over 20 years designing and analyzing data from the US National Health Interview Survey focusing on 1990 Health Objectives, Healthy People 2010, tobacco use, Hispanic health, and advising the Ministries of Health of Hungary, Mexico, and Taiwan on best practices for their health interview surveys. Following her career in Public Health, Dr. Rose has taken on the mantle of President of the Helping Africa Foundation, which is dedicated to the improvement of health, education, and social welfare conditions in Sub Sahara  Africa. Specifically, Dr. Rose has worked to launch Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Centers in these areas. These computer labs provide local students with access to educational materials and resources, powered by a device that enables  continued functioning without connection to the internet. More locally, and in alignment with her commitment to supporting educational opportunities for underrepresented populations, Dr. Rose is a significant supporter of BioEYES, a K-12 STEM outreach program which empowers students to experience hands-on science research through the study of zebrafish. Through the generous support of advocates like Dr. Rose, BioEYES has reached over 182,000 students over the course of 20 years, including PhD graduates of Johns Hopkins.

Richard Antoine White, Peab ’96
Dr. Richard Antoine White is a 1996 recipient of a Bachelor of Music degree in tuba from the Peabody Institute, for the Johns Hopkins University Alumni Association Community Champion Award. An accomplished and renowned community leader, with over two decades of performing on the world’s classical music stages, Dr. White’s accomplishments, which I will outline below, demonstrate the profound impact he has within his local community and recognition he brings to both the Peabody Institute and Johns Hopkins University.  Richard, a native of Baltimore, Maryland who started from humble beginnings, planted the seeds for music to later become his way forward, when he began his tuba studies at 12 years old. After earning his Bachelor of Music degree from Peabody, he later attended Indiana University, earning both his master’s and doctorate degrees, making him the first Black American to earn a doctorate in tuba and his ensuing career. He now serves as the principal tubist in the Santa Fe Symphony and the New Mexico Philharmonic and is the Associate Professor of tuba/ euphonium, as well as the Associate Director of the Spirit Marching Band at the University of New Mexico, making him one of only two Black American tenured tuba professors in the country. Inspirational speaker, professor, principal tubist, and best-selling author, Dr. White, continues to be a beacon for what the future of community engagement and leadership might represent in the world. Simply put, Dr. White is a community champion. Luckily for Peabody and  Hopkins, he is also an extremely proud alumnus, who makes himself available to talk about his journey and provide guidance to future generations.