SOPH keynote speaker honors late Dr. Joel Lee: “He was public health”
Because health matters, you matter. That was the message from keynote speaker Donna J. Petersen at the 14th annual State of the Public’s Health Conference, hosted by the UGA College of Public Health. Public health professionals and students from across Georgia gathered at UGA Center for Continuing Education & Hotel on October 23, 2025 to celebrate innovation, understand the latest research and connect on ongoing projects
Keynote speaker Donna J. Petersen at the 14th annual State of the Public’s Health conference.
Petersen, a USF Health professor and former Chief Health Officer, senior associate vice president and dean, was determined to make sure audience members walked away feeling valued, powerful and important, despite the challenges they face.
From community mistrust, funding decreases, misinformation, job losses, ongoing and emerging health crises, and more, navigating this season in public health hasn’t been easy. But Petersen reminded the audience that public health is no stranger to adversity.
“It may seem more acute right now, but it’s not new. If you go back and read history, this has just always been the reality,” said Petersen.
However, Petersen emphasized one thing that hasn’t changed: People want to be healthy. And public health professionals have the tools and skills to collaborate with their communities to achieve that goal.
“We bring our knowledge, our expertise, our skills, our passion, all the data, and our vision for a healthier future,” said Petersen. “We look at the circumstances. We understand this. But the public brings their own information, their own data. They bring their wisdom. They bring their lived experience. And they bring their desire to be healthy.”
Petersen encouraged public health professionals to remain passionate about their mission because their communities rely on them.
“They need you because they can’t do this on their own,” said Petersen. “They need somebody with your knowledge, your expertise, your vision, your ability to organize and bring people together. They need you. And that means they need you to be strong.”
Petersen acknowledged that remaining strong in challenging times can seem like a lofty goal. She pointed to leaders of the public health community, like the late Dr. Joel Lee, as a
source of inspiration.
“He was public health. He lived and breathed it, but he also embodied it, and he was all that’s good about public health,” Petersen said. “He was warm. When you met him, you immediately felt comfortable being with him. And he certainly never met a problem that he didn’t think could be solved. He brightened up the room.”
Lee was a founding leader of the University of Georgia College of Public Health and served as the John A. Drew Professor Emeritus of Healthcare Administration in the Department of Health Policy and Management Department and as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. He passed away on January 16, 2024, after dedicating his life to public health service.
Petersen encouraged public health students, faculty and community members to embody Lee’s legacy of joy and hone it like they would any other skill in their profession.
“You can shift your perspective away from the negative and the frustration and the anger to saying, ‘You know what, none of that matters. I understand it. I’m not going to ignore it, but I’m going to work. I’m going to find ways to maneuver within because that’s what we do.’ We’re really, really good at that,” said Petersen.
By Mackenzie Patterson
