Staff

Director

Gary Butts, M.D., is Associate Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics, Medical Education, and Community and Preventive Medicine, and an Associate Dean for Diversity Programs, Policy, and Community Affairs at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Dr. Butts has been the recipient of numerous honors and awards and has authored a number of professional articles. Dr. Butts has had several notable accomplishments; some of his most significant originate from his term as a Deputy Commissioner for the New York City Department of Health (1993-1998). In this capacity, he developed and implemented the Mayoral primary care expansion Communicare program for the New York City Department of Health, opening two community clinics to support improved primary care capacity for children and adults seeking health care in the public sector. He was also responsible for providing oversight to broker resources through the “Healthy Start NYC” Infant Mortality Initiative to support community-based partnerships to reduce barriers to early prenatal care, achieving greater reductions in infant mortality rates in targeted communities. Dr. Butts received his medical degree from Cornell University Medical College and his postdoctoral training from Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

Associate Director of Recruitment and Retention

Adam Aponte, M.D., was born and raised in East Harlem, NY, the product of Puerto Rican parents. He attended the public school system in New York City and in 1986 was admitted to the City University of New York where, in 1990, he graduated with a B.S. in Biology. In 1990 he was admitted to Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and received his M.D. degree. Dr. Aponte did a three-year residency in Pediatrics at The Mount Sinai Hospital, which he completed in 1997. He was board certified in Pediatric Medicine in 1997. Upon completion of his residency training he began working with the Children's Aid Society, a social service agency in New York City in existence for more than 145 years. There Dr. Aponte worked with a foster care population and became knowledgeable about the social and health issues faced by this group. He also became very knowledgeable surrounding School Based Health Centers and oversaw the operations of three such centers in New York City's Washington Heights neighborhood.

Clinically Dr. Aponte has focused on teaching his patients and parents how to attain healthy lifestyles from early on in life. He promotes reading early to children and is developing a reading program in the Pediatric Ambulatory Care Center of North General Hospital.

Associate Director of Curriculum Support

Edward Ronan, Ph.D., is the Associate Director for Academic Support and is responsible for coordinating and arranging academic support and enrichment activities for MSSM medical students. Dr. Ronan serves as the Director of our Summer Enrichment Pre-Matriculation Program (SEP), Associate Director of The Mount Sinai School of Medicine Humanities and Medicine Program, and Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs at The Mount School of Medicine. He also is an Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Biological Chemistry at MSSM.

Associate Director for Faculty Development

Angela Diaz, M.D., is Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, where she is responsible for the Division of General Pediatrics, and the Division of Adolescent Medicine. She is also director of the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center, and of Health Services for the Children's Aid Society of New York.

Dr. Diaz served as a White House Fellow in 1995, where she examined health care policies in the U.S. Territories in the Pacific and the Caribbean. She has been involved in issues of international health, as well as advocacy issues and policy in the United States. Her research has covered adolescent reproductive health, teen pregnancy prevention, childhood sexual victimization, and adolescents in the Juvenile Justice System. Dr. Diaz has been the recipient of numerous honors and awards and has authored a number of professional articles. She received her medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and her postdoctoral training from Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

Director, Center of Excellence for Youth Education

Lloyd Sherman, Ed.D., is the CMCA Associate Director for Learning and Education who also directs the MSSM Center for Excellence for Youth Education. Dr. Sherman has oversees MSSM educational pipeline programs targeting high school and collegiate students. Dr. Sherman also is a Clinical Associate Professor for the Department of Medical Education, and the Director and Curriculum Develop for the BioScience Studies Institute (BSSI) at MSSM.

Associate Director of Research

Ray Cornbill, M.B.A. oversees the CMCA Research and Development Unit which provides specific training in research methods and provide assistance with development of individual faculty and medical student research projects.

Technical Assistance, Research Development Unit

Mary Rojas, Ph.D., is the Research Assessment/Evaluation expert of the Research & Development Unit (RDU). She has directed departments of epidemiology and research at IPRO, Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, and currently directs one at MSSM Adolescent Health Center.

Associate Director of Operations

Ann-Gel S. Palermo, M.P.H., has worked in the area of community-based public health with a principal focus on issues related to social determinants of health using a community-based participatory research approach. She earned a Masters of Public Health degree (majoring in Health Policy) in 1999 from the University of Michigan. Ms. Palermo is the Associate Director of Operations for the Center for Multicultural and Community Affairs at The Mount Sinai School of Medicine where she is responsible for overseeing and managing programs and activities in the areas of community, patient care, education, and research to improve the health of all populations by diversifying the health care workforce and by impacting health policy and research. Since 1999, Ms. Palermo has served as the chairperson of the Harlem Community Academic Partnership (HCAP) which is a diverse partnership of representatives from community and academic organizations committed to identifying social determinants of health and implementing community-based interventions in Harlem. HCAP is housed at the Center for Urban Epidemiologic Studies at The New York Academy of Medicine. Ms. Palermo also serves as a board member of the East Harlem Community Health Committee, Board Chair of the Board of Directors for the Manhattan-Staten Island Area Health Education Center, and is a member of the New York Academy of Medicine Institution Review Board. Her previous community research experience includes research and analysis on issues related to diabetes care in East Harlem, benefit and coverage issues for low-income Medicare beneficiaries, and health financing issues affecting the Medicare program and the health care system in general. Ms. Palermo is currently pursuing her Doctorate of Public Health at the CUNY Graduate Center.

Cultural and Medicine Program Director

Edward J. Poliandro, Ph.D., is responsible for coordination and integration of Culture and Medicine initiatives and implementation of new initiatives for high school/collegiate programs, medical students, residents, and faculty. Dr. Poliandro is also the Chair, Northeast Regional Consortium for Cross Cultural Medical Education.

Program Coordinator

Sherria McDowell, M.P.H., is the Coordinator for Special Funded Projects. She is responsible for coordinating the day-to-day activities, including all phases of planning, design, development and evaluation of projects surrounding Minority Health Research, culture and health, and medical education. Sherria earned her MPH from NYU School of Education in Community Health.

Assistant Dean for Administration

Michelle Sainte has worked with the Center of Excellence for Multicultural and Community Affairs since its inception and serves as the administrative partner between CMCA and the Department of Education in her role as Assistant Dean for Administration for all educational activities in the School of Medicine; this includes the Graduate School, pipeline programs, as well as professional development activities.

Office Manager

Carmen Duran-Santos has been with Mount Sinai School of Medicine for more than six years and manages the day-to-day operations of the CMCA and is the assistant to CMCA Director Gary Butts, M.D.