The Tobacco Control Network is a vital resource for tobacco prevention and control. As a long-time member, I truly value TCN’s commitment to its members and its role in amplifying their voices.  With more than 15 years of experience in tobacco control and prevention, I understand the challenges tobacco control programs face. I am honored to serve on the Executive Committee and will work to ensure TCN remains a strong source of connection, knowledge, and empowerment for programs, especially during these uncertain times.

Ellen Cartmell is the manager of the Tobacco Prevention & Cessation Program at the Kentucky Department for Public Health. Prior to joining state government, she served as the public health policy advocate and public information officer for her hometown health department. She has also worked for the health department of the International Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies at its global secretariat in Switzerland, and in volunteer-management at American Red Cross National Headquarters in Washington D.C. Ellen is a graduate of Centre College and achieved her Master’s in Public Administration from Morehead State University, where her work contrasted international and Appalachian aid programs addressing at-risk pregnancy.

Ellen is a proud native of Maysville, Kentucky, and is descended from many generations of Kentucky physicians, politicians, and tobacco farmers. She became passionate about commercial tobacco control when her mother convinced her to attend a meeting of their local smoke-free coalition nearly ten years ago. Since then, Ellen has happily made a career in this special niche of public health.  Ellen also serves as the chair of her local public library board and in a number of civic organizations, and as the executive director of United Way of Mason County. Between meetings she likes to spend time with her cats, James Franco and Winn Ostrich.

Julie Lautsch has spent over 25 years working on campaigns from local to national in scope and scale, with 15 years in tobacco control and prevention exposing Big Tobacco’s lies and turning them into award-winning campaigns that spark change. As Chief of Media & Communications for California’s Tobacco Prevention Program, she leads the team behind “Wake Up,” the nation’s first comprehensive education campaign combatting vaping, “Flavors Hook Kids,” “We Are Not Profit,” and “Big Tobacco’s Fantasyland.” Julie thrives on blending strategy with fearless storytelling to cut through Big Tobacco’s smokescreens. Her mission: craft messages that fuel outrage, inspire action, and move us closer to a commercial tobacco-free future.

Ron Davis has been with the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Tobacco Free Florida for 23 years.  He currenlty serves as the State and Community Interventions Tobacco Policy Section Manager. Ron supervises staff who work with the community-based tobacco intervention providers in each of the tobacco policy focus areas in all 67 counties in Florida. He has presented at 9 national tobacco control conferences and two international tobacco conferences.  He has been an invited presenter for state tobacco control program conferences in three states. Mr. Davis coordinates tobacco control activities, advocacy initiatives and policy work at the state level and provides technical assistance and training to county level tobacco staff statewide.

Liz Johnson is the Director of the Tobacco Use Prevention and Control Program at the Tennessee Department of Health Services, serving in this capacity since October 2018. Liz possesses a broad set of skills in program management, community engagement, and leadership across the complete spectrum of stakeholders, including local, state, and national partners. Liz oversees all commercial tobacco and electronic vapor product prevention and cessation activities for youth and adults. Liz is a team player who is well-versed in building consensus around a common set of public health priorities and strategies. As tobacco use continues to be the leading cause of disease-related death in Tennessee, her current focus is to reduce commercial tobacco use among communities most disproportionately impacted and address the alarming rise in vape use among Tennessee youth.

Prior to this role, Liz was the Executive Director of the Sumner County Anti-Drug Coalition, served as the Program Coordinator for the Regional Intervention Program in Franklin, Tennessee, and taught elementary school for four years in Hendersonville, Tennessee.

Liz obtained a Bachelor of Science in Education from Middle Tennessee State University and a Master of Public Health from Walden University.

In her free time, she enjoys cooking, reading, and spending time with her husband, twin daughters, and boxer, Rudy.

Parker is the Communications and Program Planner for the Minnesota Department of Health, where he has spent nearly 13 years coordinating strategic communications for commercial tobacco prevention and policy initiatives. His work includes media relations and managing multiple youth counter-marketing campaigns. Parker has experience serving on multiple workgroups and councils, providing consultation to communicators across the agency, and previously served as the TCN Communications Officer from 2018 to 2023. He holds a master’s in public health administration and policy from the University of Minnesota.

Parker is interested in the role of Healthy Communities Engagement Officer because he is passionate about ensuring the integration of health equity principles in both internal and external functions of the TCN. This is especially critical given the current climate of uncertainty in states. His prior experience on the TCN Executive Committee and his work providing consultation across his own agency have prepared him to support the recruitment and retention of diverse representation within the TCN and its Executive Committee. By partnering with national organizations, including those working with underserved populations, he will work to ensure that the TCN’s efforts reflect the needs of all communities. When he’s not focused on work, you might find him relaxing in a hammock by the lake, teaching hot yoga, or out enjoying Minneapolis’s vibrant live music scene.

Terry Rousey serves as Associate Director of Statewide Initiatives at the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET), providing strategic leadership to advance Oklahoma’s health outcomes. He guides large-scale initiatives through a collaborative, data-driven approach, ensuring measurable impact, strong partnerships, and a clear return on investment for the state’s health priorities.

Allison Perry Sullivan is currently a Health Program Supervisor for the Tobacco and Cannabis Prevention Program at the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health. She has three (3) years of Tobacco Control Program experience over a twenty (20) year career in Public Health that began as an Environmental Analyst in Environmental Health programs such as Radon, Lead Poisoning Prevention, Asbestos, and Healthy Homes. Before that she worked for five (5) years in environmental consulting at CDM Smith. She has served as a Tobacco Control Network (TCN) member for the last three (3) years.

Barbara Fickel has worked in public health in the Pennsylvania Department of Health since 2002. She began her career in the Bureau of Family Health, where she administered programs serving children with special health care needs and was then promoted to Program Administrator for various maternal and child health initiatives. Ms. Fickel then transferred to the Department’s Bureau of Health Promotion and Risk Reduction, first with the Breast and Cervical Cancer Section then leading the Health Literacy Section. She moved to the Division of Tobacco Prevention and Control in 2009 where she served as the Section Chief for Statewide Programs, overseeing the PA Free Quitline, Tobacco Retail Enforcement, Clean Indoor Air, Media and Evaluation. Ms. Fickel was promoted to Director of the Division of Tobacco Prevention and Control in 2019. In this position, Ms. Fickel oversees the implementation of tobacco prevention and control programs that provide services across Pennsylvania and promote community-based and culturally competent service systems. She develops and implements short and long-range plans, goals and objectives consistent with the Department’s mission and federal guidance and recommends policy and program standards regarding all aspects of the Division. She serves as the Principal Investigator for federal grants including Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Statewide Tobacco Control Program and Tobacco Cessation and Food and Drug Administration Tobacco Retail Compliance Program. She graduated from the University of Scranton with a B.S. in Psychology.

Robert Ostbye has worked for the Bureau of Tobacco Free Florida at the Florida Department of Health for ten years; originally as local tobacco prevention program manager for a county health department before transitioning to a state-level role in 2017. He currently serves as a statewide policy manager, responsible for coordinating policy, systems, and environmental change interventions at the state and local level. In this role, Robert develops and manages policy initiatives for community-based tobacco prevention programs in each of our 67 counties.

Under his leadership, TFF’s community-based programs are gaining traction in the effort to establish comprehensive tobacco free school policies across the state. He also oversees Florida’s Online Tobacco Education Courses for students, educators, and nurses; provided through the School Board of Palm Beach County’s Tobacco Prevention Program. Robert is particularly passionate about establishing collaborative partnerships across agencies, sectors, and state lines to advance key tobacco prevention objectives.

Tabetha Gerdner is the Tobacco Program Manager for the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, where she oversees statewide tobacco prevention and control efforts, including youth engagement initiatives, Quitline services, and smoke-free policy programs. She collaborates with community organizations, health systems, and state and federal partners to advance prevention, early intervention and behavioral health initiatives across Iowa.

With more than a decade of experience in public health, Tabetha has played a key role in aligning Iowa’s prevention and early intervention strategies with the state’s new Behavioral Health Service System. Her leadership focuses on building systems that are data-driven, equitable, and sustainable.

Tabetha is also passionate about authentic leadership and youth empowerment. She has assisted in leading statewide youth summits, trained hundreds of local providers, and developed guidance frameworks that are now used across Iowa’s behavioral health and prevention systems.

When she’s not working on policy and program design, Tabetha enjoys spending time with her family at the lake, boating and running!

Keri Schneider has worked in commercial tobacco prevention and control for nearly 20 years. She is the Tobacco Prevention and Treatment Unit Supervisor for the Wisconsin Department Health Services, Commercial Tobacco Prevention and Treatment Program (CTPTP). Prior to this, she was the Tobacco Treatment Coordinator for CTPTP the Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Treatment Program. Keri provides leadership to the Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Treatment Unit and for all the tobacco treatment programs through the University of Wisconsin Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention, American Lung Association, Wisconsin Women’s Health Foundation, and collaborating community and state partners. Keri is a participant of the 2024 Leadership and Sustainability School and served a two-year term (2022-2024) as the Midwestern Region Co-Representative, and Co-lead for the Regional Representatives Workgroup on the Executive Committee for the Tobacco Control Network (TCN). Previously, she worked for the American Lung Association as the Manager, Health Promotions.

Lily Banning is a policy strategist, committed to elevating community-driven approaches to improving public health. She currently serves as a Tobacco Policy Analyst with the Oregon Health Authority – Public Health Division. In her role, Lily develops and evaluates statewide policy solutions, supports partner engagement and advises on program strategies to reduce use, access and exposure to commercial tobacco in Oregon.

She previously led statewide policy and partnership development for improved cardiovascular health as the Community Impact Director with the American Heart Association, Oregon and SW Washington. She is a graduate of University of California, Santa Cruz. She is a painter, surfer, proud mama and fierce advocate for community health.

Micah Zimmermaker serves as the Youth Commercial Tobacco Prevention Coordinator with the Youth Cannabis and Commercial Tobacco Prevention Program in Washington State. In this role, he oversees six local health jurisdictions, encompassing 23 counties, that lead regional youth commercial tobacco and cannabis prevention efforts across the state. He also sits as a founding steering committee member and supporting healthy youth workgroup member within the statewide Washington Breathes tobacco prevention coalition. Previously, Micah has worked for Los Angeles County and the City of Long Beach to implement policies focused on smokefree environments, including: dining, housing, and health department facilities. Including his current role, Micah has worked in public health and prevention for nearly two decades, with half of that time focused on commercial tobacco control.