SPER’s Executive Committee is comprised of eight officers and includes a President, a President-Elect, an Immediate Past-President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, four Members-at-Large, a Student Representative, and an International Representative. The 2023 Elections will include voting for the following positions:
President-Elect, Member-at-Large, Treasurer, International Representative, and Student Representative.
2022 Members of SPER are entitled to one vote per category. Learn more about the candidates below.
Voting will conclude on May 12, 2023.
President-Elect
Monique Hedderson (She/Her)
Senior Research Scientist and Associate Director, Women and Children’s Health Section Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
Candidate Statement
I am delighted to have the opportunity to run for President of SPER. My career has benefited greatly from the SPER community, and I am grateful for the scientific ideas and collaborations fostered at SPER over the past 20 years. I have enjoyed serving on the program planning committee and I would welcome the opportunity to give back to the organization. Read more
Edwina Yeung (She/Her)
Senior Investigator and Acting Branch Chief, Epidemiology Branch, Division of Population Health Research, Eunice, Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Candidate Statement
I am honored to be asked to run for SPER president. I’ve been a member since my postdoc, over a decade ago. SPER has always been a scientific home for my growth and development as a perinatal epidemiologist and I appreciate the opportunity to give back to the organization that has meant so much to my own professional development. Read more
Member-at-Large
Stefanie N. Hinkle (She/Her)
Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Candidate Statement
I have been a member of SPER since I was a doctoral student and attended my first SPER meeting in 2010 in Seattle. I have greatly enjoyed the smaller, welcoming community of SPER. I have served as an abstract reviewer and on the program committee and am very excited to have the chance to serve as a Member-at-Large. I am currently Assistant Professor at University of Pennsylvania. Read more
Jessica Knight (She/Her)
Assistant Professor
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
University of Georgia
Candidate Statement
I am honored to be nominated for the SPER Member-at-large. I’ve been a member of this society since I was a doctoral student at Emory University and continue to look to SPER for expertise and connection. Read more
Stefania Papatheodorou (She/Her)
Lecturer in Epidemiology
Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health
Candidate Statement
I would be very honored to serve as a member-at- large for SPER. I am currently a Lecturer in Epidemiology at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and a trained Obstetrician and Gynecologist. I have been working for over a decade in the field of perinatal epidemiology with a specific focus on the effects of climate change and environmental exposures, particularly air pollution, on pregnancy and childhood outcomes. Read more
Catherine J. Vladutiu (She/Her)
Office of Epidemiology and Research
Maternal and Child Health Bureau
Health Resources and Services Administration
Candidate Statement
I have been a member of SPER for 14 years beginning when I was a PhD student in epidemiology and a T32 trainee in reproductive and perinatal epidemiology. My membership in this Society helped to shape my pre- and post-doctoral training and federal career as a perinatal epidemiologist. Read more
Treasurer
Candice Johnson (She/Her)
Assistant Professor
Department of Family Medicine and Community Health
Duke University School of Medicine
Candidate Statement
Seventeen years ago, I attended my first SPER meeting as a Master’s student, and the Society has been my professional home ever since. Over the intervening years, I have served as Student Representative, member of the Program Committee, reviewer for the Student Prize, abstract reviewer, and poster judge. Read more
Collette N. Ncube (She/Her)
Assistant Professor
Department of Epidemiology
Boston University School of Public Health
Candidate Statement
If elected, it would be my pleasure to serve as Treasurer of the Society for Pediatric and Perinatal Epidemiologic Research. I have been a member of SPER since I was a postdoctoral fellow. As an active member of this society, I have served multiple times as Program Planning committee member, abstract reviewer, poster judge and student prize paper judge. Read more
International Representative Candidates
Neda Razaz (She/Her)
Assistant Professor, Docent
Clinical Epidemiology Division
Department of Medicine Solna | Karolinska Institutet
https://staff.ki.se/people/neda-razaz
Stockholm, Sweden
Candidate Statement
It would be a privilege to serve as the International Representative of the SPER Executive Committee and welcome the opportunity to make a positive contribution to the global reach of SPER in this role. The SPER annual meeting has been an important part of my professional career since 2011 when I started my PhD education in perinatal Epidemiology at the University of British Columbia, Canada. Read more
Gizachew Tessema (He/Him)
Senior Lecturer and NHMRC Fellow
School of Population Health, Curtin University, Australia
Candidate Statement
I would be honored to serve as SPER International representative for the upcoming years! I am an active member of SPER since 2020 and attending and presenting in the annual conference. Read more
Student Representative Candidates
Miranda Loutet (She/Her)
Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada and Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
Candidate Statement
Thank you so much for this opportunity to be nominated for the SPER Student Representative position. I have greatly enjoyed being a member of SPER throughout my doctoral studies, attending many webinars, and learning from other members. Read more
Sharonda M. Lovett (She/Her)
Epidemiology PhD Student
Boston University School of Public Health
Candidate Statement
I am honored to be nominated as Student Representative (2023-2024) of the Society for Pediatric and Perinatal Epidemiologic Research (SPER). Read more
Bethany Rand (She/Her)
Public Health Sciences PhD candidate
University of Tennessee Knoxville – College of Education Health and Human Science
Candidate Statement
I am delighted to be considered for the Student Representative (2023-2024) position at the Society of Pediatric and Perinatal Epidemiologic Research (SPER). Read more