Principal Speaker

Donna E. Shalala, PhD

Donna E. Shalala, PhD, is president of the University of Miami and former secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).A well-known figure with more than 25 years of experience as a scholar, teacher and administrator, Dr. Shalala was appointed Secretary of HHS by President Bill Clinton in 1993 and led the agency for eight years, becoming the longest-serving HHS Secretary in U.S. history. Among her many accomplishments in that position, she made health insurance available to millions of children through the approval of all State Children’s Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP), raised child immunization rates to the highest levels in history, led major reforms of the FDA’s drug approval process and food safety system, and revitalized the National Institutes of Health. At the end of her tenure as Secretary, the Washington Post described her as “one of the most successful government managers of modern times.”

Shalala recently chaired the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative on the Future of Nursing, which last October issued a comprehensive report on the challenges facing the nursing profession and opportunities to build upon nursing-based solutions to improve quality and transform the way Americans receive health care. The well-received report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, recommended enhancing the scope of practice for nurses; fostering inter-professional collaboration in which nurses are full partners in the health care team; and improving and expanding nursing education, particularly master’s and doctoral programs.

Shalala became Professor of Political Science and President of the University of Miami in 2001. Since then, the University has solidified its position among top U.S. research universities and continues to rise in national rankings. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Shalala received her undergraduate degree in history from Western College for Women. She received her PhD from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.