SUWANEE, GA, October 12, 2023 /24-7PressRelease/ — Angela Ragin-Wilson, PhD, has been included in Marquis Who’s Who. As in all Marquis Who’s Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
With more than two decades of excellence in environmental health and public health, Dr. Angela Ragin-Wilson, Ph.D. currently serves as the Deputy Associate Director of the Agency of Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) at the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). With over 190 scientific and administrative personnel engaged in the formulation, development, implementation, and evaluation of environmental epidemiology, environmental medicine, surveillance, exposure investigations, health studies and toxicology research, Dr. Ragin-Wilson manages ATSDR’s operational budget of over $70M. As Deputy Associate Director of ATSDR, she also oversees the agency’s collaborative work with state health departments and other federal agencies and has extensive experience in providing scientific consultation and technical assistance to state and local health departments, academic institutions, and tribal governments.
During her career at CDC/ATSDR, Dr. Ragin-Wilson has held several scientific and leadership positions. After completing her Ph.D. in Chemistry at Purdue University, she joined the CDC as a team lead in the Organic Analytical Toxicology Branch of the Division of Laboratory Sciences (DLS). In this role, she developed cutting-edge biomonitoring methods that were used to assess the exposure of the U.S. population to environmental chemicals and toxic substances. As a Health Scientist in the Laboratory Practice Evaluation and Genomics Branch of the Division of Laboratory Systems, she provided laboratory and scientific expertise to various groups engaged in addressing issues in health-care laboratory systems, practice and operations, with an aim to improve the quality of service, patient outcomes and equity in public health care delivery. She also served as the lead project officer for the CDC’s Tuberculosis Model Performance Evaluation Program. Prior to her current role, Dr. Ragin-Wilson served as Acting Deputy Director in the Division of Toxicology and Human Health Sciences and Chief of the Environmental Epidemiology Branch, where she led and managed several high-profile national environmental health studies, providing supervision and direction to multi-disciplinary scientific project teams and programs focused on reducing environmental health risks and disparities in vulnerable populations.
As a high school student whose favorite subject was chemistry, Dr. Ragin-Wilson was inspired by her high school chemistry teacher to major in chemistry in college, which she did, graduating from Xavier University in 1991 with a B.S. in Chemistry. Even as an undergraduate, she enjoyed working in the laboratory and found much satisfaction in conducting scientific research under the guidance of one of her chemistry professors. The experience motivated her to pursue graduate studies, at Howard University, earning a M.S. in Chemistry in 1993. After completing her M.S degree, she was employed as a Process Development Chemist in the Manufacturing Process Development and Optimization Laboratory at pharmaceutical giant, Eli Lilly and Company. In this role, she optimized a biomolecular substitution reaction that was an active production step for a major antibiotic, which resulted in a million dollar a year cost savings for the company.
After several years of industrial/corporate R&D experience, Dr. Ragin-Wilson decided to continue her education and received her Ph.D. in Chemistry from Purdue University in 2003. As a graduate student at Purdue University, she was very active in several scientific societies and was inducted into Phi Lambda Upsilon Honorary Chemical Society in 1997. She also served as Treasurer (1997-1998) and President (1998-1999) of Iota Sigma Pi National Honor Society for Women in Chemistry. As a result of her high academic performance and research achievements while in graduate school, Dr. Ragin-Wilson received numerous awards, recognitions and fellowships from several institutions and organizations including The Coca Cola Foundation, Kraft General Foods, The National Institute of Health, and The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
In 2003, after receiving her doctorate degree from Purdue University, Dr. Ragin-Wilson decided to pursue a career path in the public sector by accepting a position at the CDC, and turned down more competitive job offers from several major private corporations. When asked if, in retrospect, she would make the same career choice today, she is quick to affirm her decision, pointing to the rewarding satisfaction she derives from her work, and her numerous contributions to public service. Dr. Ragin-Wilson has authored or co-authored several peer reviewed publications and is a member of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology, International Society of Exposure Science, and the National Biomonitoring Network Steering Committee. The numerous awards and recognitions she has received for her professional accomplishments at the CDC include the NCEH/ATSDR Director’s Award for Outstanding Leadership of Environmental Public Health Projects (2014 and 2016), Public Health Impact Award (2014), Honor Award for Excellence in Program and Policy Evaluation (2015), Honor Award for Excellence in Program Delivery (2016), Health Equity Award (2018), NCEH/ATSDR Director’s Award for Outstanding Publication (2020), and the NCEH/ATSDR Director’s Award for Outstanding Leadership in Organizational Change Management (2020).
Dr. Ragin-Wilson’s extracurricular community service and engagement activities are also worthy of note. She has served on the Dean’s Leadership Council at Purdue University since 2010 and was Chair of Purdue’s External Alumni Advisory Board from 2016-2020. In recognition of her service and professional accomplishments, Dr. Ragin-Wilson was awarded the 2011 Outstanding Alumnus Award by the Department of Chemistry at Purdue University. Dr. Ragin-Wilson is a strong proponent for STEM mentorship and believes that mentoring aspiring young scientists is her way of paying forward the inspiration and encouragement given her by her high school chemistry teacher so many years ago, that has led to her academic achievements, personal growth and current professional success. Since 2006, Dr. Ragin-Wilson has served as a mentor for fellows participating in the Oak Ridge Institute for Science Education Fellowship Program. She has volunteered for Super Science Saturday for Georgia Middle School Students and served as a summer research mentor for the Howard Hughes Biomedical Institute Program at Spelman College. She hopes that her efforts will help to ensure that the STEM environment reflects the diversity of the nation’s population.
In her spare time, Dr. Ragin-Wilson likes to read novels, hike, travel and spend time with her family. Looking forward, she plans to engage with international NGOs and become involved in global public health work in Africa.
About Marquis Who’s Who®:
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who’s Who in America®, Marquis Who’s Who® has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. Marquis celebrates its 125th anniversary in 2023, and Who’s Who in America® remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the world. Marquis® publications may be visited at the official Marquis Who’s Who® website at www.marquiswhoswho.com.
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