2007 Idaho Conference on Health Care
Deborah Klein Walker, Ed.D
Deborah Klein Walker, Ed.D. is President of the American Public Health Association and a Vice President in the Health Division of Abt Associates. Before joining Abt in 2004, Dr. Walker was at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health for 15 years where she most recently was the Associate Commissioner for Programs and Prevention responsible for programs in maternal and child health, health promotion and disease prevention (including the tobacco control program), primary care and community health programs (including those for HIV/AIDS and substance abuse), minority health, data integration and information systems. Dr. Walker is a current trustee of the Cambridge Health Alliance and a co-founder of New England SERVE, an organization committed to quality services for children with special health care needs. She is a past president of the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs, a former board member of the Massachusetts Public Health Association, and a past chair of the Maternal and Child Health Section of the American Public Health Association.
Dr. Walker is currently an Adjunct Professor at the Boston University School of Public Health and an Adjunct Lecturer at the Harvard School of Public Health. She received a B.A. magna cum laude and with great distinction from Mount Holyoke College and an Ed.M. and Ed.D. in human development from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Dr. Walker has authored three books and over 100 articles and book chapters. Her research and policy interests include child and family policy, program implementation and evaluation, public health practice, disability policy, community health systems, health outcomes and data systems.