"I am pleased to welcome Teresa Garate to the Illinois Department
of Public Health," said Dr. Damon T. Arnold, department director.
"Her work in policy development and program implementation will help
protect the health of Illinois residents throughout the state."
Formerly a senior-level administrator in the Chicago Public
Schools who served as the chief of staff for the Office of
Specialized Services during Arne Duncan's administration, Garate is
experienced in strategic plan development, program implementation
and monitoring, research and accountability, and budget and
personnel management. Garate works with a number of local community
organizations, city and state agencies and is widely published in
the academic arena. Most recently she was the co-leader of the
school health initiative designed to create a collaboration between
the Chicago Department of Public Health and the Chicago Public
Schools.
"I am honored to be appointed as the assistant director for the
Illinois Department of Public Health," Garate said. "Public health
is something that impacts just about every area of our lives, and I
look forward to working for the promotion of safe and healthy
communities."
Garate holds bachelor's degrees in applied psychology and special
education, a master's degree in special education, and is currently
a Ph.D. candidate. She has provided input in the Chicago area and
throughout the state on education, public health, disability and
social science issues. She has served as a member of the Illinois
State Advisory Council to the Governor on Disability, the co-chair
for the Joint Statewide Bilingual Special Education Committee, an
advisory board member for the Center for Capacity Building on
Minorities with Disabilities Research and an advisory board member
for the Chicago Park District Disability Policy Steering Committee.
[Text from
Illinois Department of Public Health
file received from the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information] |