Building off the amazing success we saw in the first year of the program, we are proud to welcome our second cohort of Baltimore Corps fellows to BCHD! Baltimore Corps fellows are integral team members who help support, improve, and even create new programs which help address public health issues to help build strong, healther communities. Check out their profiles:

Evan Behrle joins the Health Department as the Special Assistant to Chief of Staff Kristin Rzeczkowski and Deputy Chief of Staff Gabe Auteri. Originally from Baltimore, he returns after two years spent studying political philosophy in Oxford, England. Drawn to the Health Department by Commissioner Wen’s commitment to equity, he views his fellowship as an opportunity to learn about how to realize the principles of social justice that he has been studying.  

David Olawuyi Fakunle is a Policy, Community Engagement and Outreach Fellow at BCHD working with Chief Policy and Engagement Officer, Sonia Sarkar. A native of East Baltimore, David is also a fourth-year doctoral student in the Department of Mental Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Prior to Hopkins, he received his B.A. in Psychology and Criminology & Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland, College Park in 2009. David selected BCHD for his fellowship placement due to the existing relationship with the department, his belief in practical public health work, and his commitment to promoting true equity in Baltimore.

Kathleen Goodwin is Special Assistant to Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen. Originally from the Boston area, Kathleen moved to Baltimore in 2015 to complete the requirements to apply to medical school. As a Baltimore Corps Fellow, she is looking forward to learning more about leadership at the intersection of public health and medicine, and finding innovative ways to improve health and well-being in urban communities.

Kelsey Krach joins BCHD as the Communications and Engagement Fellow working with Michelle Mendes and Sean Naron. Originally from Baltimore, she recently returned to Baltimore after studying a Master in Visual and Digital Media at IE Business School in Madrid, Spain. Her passion for social justice, health, social entrepreneurship, and communications motivated her return to Baltimore in order to learn more about the intersection of local-level government, leadership, and equity. Kelsey has worked locally and nationally in the USA as well as abroad in South America and Europe in the realm of social entrepreneurship to help build stronger and healthier communities. She holds a BA in Cultural Anthropology and Spanish from University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC).

Ava Richardson joins the BCHD as a Behavioral Health Fellow to provide programming and technical support to Olivia Farrow, Deputy Commissioner of Youth Wellness and Community Health and Gabriel Auteri, Deputy Chief of Staff, to further Healthy Baltimore 2020 (HB2020) goals addressing health disparities. Ava has dedicated her career to finding and implementing practical approaches to bring forth social justice in health. Her past experience8s have illuminated the intrinsic relationship between the health of the planet and its inhabitants- echoing the need to put people and planet first. As an experienced public health strategist, community organizer and active, informed citizen, Ava fights daily for racial, gender, economic and geographic equity in Baltimore City, the State of Maryland, and beyond. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Frostburg University in Frostburg, MD and a Master of Public Health from Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD.