Meet the team

We are a team of global health professionals committed to achieving worldwide health equity. With decades of combined experience, we collaborate to advance disease initiatives globally, ensuring healthy communities for all.

United for a Safer World.

Rapid. Coordinated. Effective.

Preparedness is no longer optional in an increasingly unpredictable world. It is essential. As the leading network for health preparedness and response, GOARN demonstrates how global collaboration fosters safer communities worldwide.

Strengthening Global Health Security

The GOARN Fund is dedicated to strengthening global public health security by providing the resources needed to enable a rapid, coordinated response to international disease outbreaks and emergencies. As a legally independent U.S. entity, we provide critical financial, technical, and operational support to GOARN and the WHO Operational Support Team (OST).

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Board of Directors & Officers

  • Ali S. Khan, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A.

    Serving as President of the GOARN Fund, Dr. Ali S. Khan has led a decades-long career aimed at improving global health. With 23 years at the CDC, he was a lead architect of the U.S. national health security program and has led numerous global responses to emerging infectious diseases, including Ebola, SARS, and avian influenza. In 2014, he retired from the U.S. Public Health Service, transitioning to Retired Assistant Surgeon General, and became the Dean of the College of Public Health at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

  • Howard Hahn, J.D., LL.M.

    Serving as Secretary of the GOARN Fund, Howard Hahn specializes in health care, tax-exempt organizations, and non-profit law. He is an attorney with Kutak Rock LLP in Omaha, Nebraska. A Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, he has decades of experience advising nonprofit boards on governance and tax compliance. He currently serves on the board of OneWorld Community Health Centers, based in Omaha, Nebraska.

  • MD. Andreas Jansen

    Andreas Jansen, M.D.

    Serving as Treasurer of the GOARN Fund, Dr. Andreas Jansen is a leading expert in public health intelligence and infectious disease surveillance, with a primary focus on strengthening international networks and standards for early outbreak detection and pandemic preparedness. Dr. Jansen currently serves as the Head of the Centre for International Health Protection at the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin.

  • Maureen Lichtveld, M.D., M.P.H.

    Dr. Maureen Lichtveld is the Dean of the School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh and the Jonas Salk Chair in Population Health. A member of the National Academy of Medicine, she has over 35 years of experience in environmental health, disaster preparedness, and community resilience, previously serving 18 years at the CDC and ATSDR.

  • John J. Lowe, Ph.D.

    Dr. John Lowe is the Chair and a Professor for the Department of Environmental, Agricultural, and Occupational Health at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Dr. Lowe is recognized for his expertise in infection prevention and control of emerging infectious diseases and special pathogens, including COVID-19, Ebola, Lassa fever, and Influenza. 

  • Michael Ryan

    Michael J. Ryan, M.D.

    Dr. Michael Ryan served the WHO for nearly three decades, most recently as the director of the WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme since 2017. An epidemiologist and a former trauma surgeon, he has worked to eradicate the spread of diseases such as Rift Valley fever, SARS, Ebola, and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever. In 2019, he assisted with the creation of the Global Preparedness Report for the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, which strives to highlight the current state of preparedness internationally.

EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP

  • Alexandra Todd

    Executive Director Alexandra Todd serves as the Executive Director, overseeing the daily operations and strategic grant-seeking activities of The GOARN Fund. She brings extensive experience in health program management and technical coordination to lead the Fund's efforts in supporting global outbreak response and health security initiatives.

Ex-Officio Members (Non-Voting)

  • Abdirahman Raman Mahamud, M.D.

    Dr. Mahamud is a global public health leader with over 20 years of experience and is the Director for Alert and Response at WHO. He served as the Global COVID-19 Incident Manager, developing operational, technical, and strategic infrastructure and plans from 2021 to 2023. Currently, Dr. Mahamud leads the WHO in disease detection, risk assessment, and response to public health events and emergencies.

  • Armand Bejtullahu

    Armand Bejtullahu is a key technical expert within the GOARN. He has been instrumental in coordinating international deployments and training initiatives for outbreak investigation and response since 2005. He works to strengthen regional response capacity to ensure support reaches countries and populations that need it most.

  • Daniela Garone, M.D.

    Dr. Daniela Garone is the International Medical Coordinator for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and co-chairs the GOARN Steering Committee. She is a specialist in infectious diseases with over 30 years of clinical experience, primarily focused on managing medical programs and operational research in resource-limited settings.

  • Edmund Newman, Ph.D.

    Dr. Ed Newman is the Director of the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST), a partnership between the UK Health Security Agency and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. He co-chairs the GOARN Steering Committee and oversees rapid investigations and responses to disease outbreaks in low- and middle-income countries.

  • Mauricio Cerpa Calderon

    Mauricio Calderon currently serves as an advisor in Health Emergencies to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Mauricio oversees resources, teams, and partnerships to strengthen prevention, preparedness, and response across multiple hazards. He has advocated for the involvement of climate change adaptation in health strategies.