Press Inquiries

HSC’s staff experts are available for interviews on a variety of subjects related to school wellness and environmental health. They are also happy to provide background to reporters and others conducting research on these issues.

Contact

To schedule an interview or to learn more about Healthy Schools Campaign, please contact Tara Kennon at 312-419-1810.

 

HSC staff available for interviews include:

Rochelle Davis, Founding Executive Director

Rochelle Davis, the founding Executive Director of the Healthy Schools Campaign, brings a broad range of experience and expertise to issues affecting children’s environmental health and wellness. She also serves as Primary Investigator on an NIEHS funded Partnership to Address Disparities in Asthma and Obesity in Latino Schools. She was the founding director of Generation Green, a national membership organization that works on children’s environmental health issues. Rochelle serves on advisory boards related to children’s health and is engaged in dialogue about federal, state and local policy. She is co-author of "Fresh Choices," a cookbook that explores the relationship between food, the environment and children’s health (Rodale, 2004).

Mark Bishop, Deputy Director

Mark Bishop began working on school environmental health issues in 1995 at the American Lung Association of Eastern Missouri as director of Environmental Programs. At the ALAEM, Mark directed state-wide environmental health education campaigns and policy initiatives. At HSC, Mark was instrumental in bringing the Green Clean Schools Act to Illinois, now the second state in the nation to require green cleaning in schools as well as passage of the Green Schools Construction Act of 2007. He worked closely on the development of guidance documents such as HSC’s Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools and Resource Guide for Healthy, High-Performing Schools.

Guillermo Gomez, Chicago Director

Guillermo Gomez is a social justice activist currently focused on work to implement school wellness programs involving food and fitness in schools throughout Chicago's Latino communities. He has over 25 years experience in not-for-profit advocacy organizations that focus on underserved minority communities concerning issues as diverse as education, health, adult education, workforce development, environmental justice, immigration and human rights, public transportation, and displacement of low income families. Guillermo is currently the director of Parents United for Healthy Schools/Padres Unidos Para Escuelas Saludables and the Partnership to Reduce Disparities in Asthma and Obesity in Latino Schools.

Jean Saunders, School Wellness Director

Jean Saunders speaks widely on the topic of good nutrition and healthy food, and works with school districts, parent groups and community organizations to improve the school food environment and promote active lifestyles for children.  A professionally trained chef, she was a recent delegate to the International Exchange Forum on Children, Obesity, Food Choice and the Environment in Paris, France and has served on school wellness councils for large school districts in the Chicago area.  Jean began her career in corporate marketing and advertising, working for high tech firms including Apple Computer and the grocery delivery firm Peapod. She has also operated a catering business and has worked with elementary and middle schools to deliver cooking-in-the-classroom programs.