Advisory Council

CEO, The Gerontological Society of America

James C. Appleby, BSPharm, MPH, ScD (Hon), is the Chief Executive Officer of The Gerontological Society of America (GSA), the nation’s largest interdisciplinary organization devoted to research, education, and practice in the aging field. The Society’s 5,200 expert members advance innovation in aging and disseminate research insights for scientists, clinicians, policy makers and the public. He leads the Society’s Reframing Aging Initiative to reshape the conventional negative narrative around aging that dominates public understanding and to address the entrenched ageism in American culture. Other major Society programs focus on improving adult immunization rates, enabling earlier detection of cognitive impairment, and improving oral health. Mr. Appleby holds a B.S. degree in pharmacy from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy & Science and an MPH degree from Temple University. He is the recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Science degree from the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia. He is a board member and secretary of the National Alliance for Caregiving and serves as Co-Chair of the Mayor’s Age-Friendly Washington, DC Task Force.

Mr. Davidson brings to Healthy Men Inc., over 20 years of experience successfully creating, implementing, and evaluating workforce and community level trainings, service delivery, staff development, via direct, social marketing, and digital platforms. He is skilled in design, budgeting, operations, and evaluation of these programs and has developed a broad range of programs, services and outreach projects to enhance the lives and health of boys and men.

He is a long-time member in the American Public Health Association Caucus on Men’s Health and is a member of the Men’s Health Network’s Board of Advisors. He is a frequently invited speaker on the topic of men’s health. He has particular expertise in the area of helping men become engaged in all aspects of fatherhood from planning a family and health to involvement in pregnancy and as a new dad.

Scientific Communications Advisor, Healthy Men, Inc.
Communications and Content Manager, BrightFocus Foundation

Dr. Findley is the manager for externally focused communications and content for the non-profit organization BrightFutures Foundation.  BrightFutures is an organization supporting research and providing public education to help eradicate brain and eye diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Dr. Findley is a versatile science and health writer with expertise in neurologic sciences and neurodegenerative as well as communications strategies, social media platform development and management. She also serves as the Scientific Communications Advisor for Healthy Men, Inc. and Founder of CellStory Communications, LLC.

Dr. Findley has partnered with many nonprofits, enterprises, and startups, including Johnson & Johnson, the American Red Cross, Men’s Health Network, the Science Communication Lab, and Rarebase. She is the first author of 4 peer-reviewed scientific publications and has had her blog articles published at ASBMB Today, the Illinois Science Council, Talking About Men’s Health, and BioSpace. Dr. Findley received her doctorate in pharmacology and neuroscience from Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, and her bachelor’s in psychology from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Her scientific work has been recognized with university departmental awards and grants for outstanding student research and presented at several regional and national conferences.

Jon Gilgoff, LCSW-C and PhD candidate, brings extensive experience supporting boys’ and men’s health through gender and culturally responsive practice, policy, and research. Jon is founder and former Executive Director of the Oakland-based nonprofit, Brothers on the Rise (BOTR), for which he received a Jefferson Award for Public Service. Jon authored BOTR’s curriculum and training manuals, which were used to certify youth workers across four Bay Area counties. He has trained in the U.S. and abroad, including for California School Aged Consortium, National Association of Social Workers, and Sonke Gender Justice.

Jon has been published widely in journals including Afterschool Matters, Journal for Community Engagement and Scholarship, The Changing Faces of College Men, and Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior. He has instructed at Holy Names, UC Berkeley, and University of Maryland.His PhD research has focused on men’s health policy, suicide prevention, and equitable community-academic partnerships. Jon’s current job with the IRIS project is to build capacity for substance use recovery organizations to utilize research to address the opioid crisis. Jon holds a Masters in Social Work from Columbia University and a Bachelors Degree in International Relations from Tufts University. He is a contractor for Men’s Health Network, and a member of Global Action for Men’s Health and the American Public Health Association’s Men’s Health Caucus.

MA, Director of Government Affairs, LUNGevity Foundation

Brandon Leonard is a policy and advocacy professional with significant experience in promoting the health of men and boys, as well as all who are impacted by cancer. He is currently the Director of Government Affairs at LUNGevity Foundation, a leading lung cancer non-profit, where he manages the organization’s legislative policy activities. Prior to coming to LUNGevity, Brandon served as Associate Director of Congressional Relations at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), where he led the organization’s outreach to Congress and managed projects including Hill Days, congressional briefings, and special reports.

Brandon has been actively engaged in men’s health policy and programming for over 14 years. He previously served as Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at Men’s Health Network, leading policy and advocacy activities for the organization. He is also a founding member of the Men’s Health Caucus of the American Public Health Association (APHA) and has held numerous leadership positions with the group, most recently serving as chair of the Caucus. Brandon holds an MA in International Development Studies from the George Washington University and a BA in Foreign Affairs and Spanish from the University of Virginia.

Using a Proactive Prevention paradigm, in which a preventive mindset, natural healing options, and self-care play an integral role, along with advanced wellness and health assessments, she creates very personalized, strategic health action plans with the goal of intervening as insightfully and early as possible, to be able to make the biggest difference in people’s lives.

She is board certified in the fields of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Integrative-Holistic Medicine, is fellowship-trained in Sports and Musculoskeletal Medicine, is a certified Functional Medicine practitioner, and holds a level 2 Coaching Certificate from Precision Nutrition.

As a mother of three young men, and someone who deeply values family and opportunities to enjoy life, her interventions are geared toward helping people sustain the health and strength they need to provide and be available for their families and to enjoy the things they most like to do.

You can learn more about Dr Zablozki-Amir on her practice website www.BrooklynIntegrativeMedicine.com.

Susanne Quallich, Phd., Assistant Professor of Urology, University of Michigan

Susanne A. Quallich, PhD, ANP-BC, NP-C, CUNP, FAUNA, FAANP has been working as a nurse practitioner since 1996, staring her career as a primary care provider in the Detroit Veteran’s Hospital, has worked the Andrology Nurse Practitioner at University of Michigan since 2002. She has focused on raising awareness of men’s sexual and reproductive health needs, and has been engaged in clinically-based research that quickly translates to improvements in their care. Her unique clinical focus in the areas of male sexual and reproductive health have made her a thought leader and expert among her peers in these areas, and she has published numerous of book chapters and journal articles on these topics. In 2008 and 2020 she was awarded the Society of Urologic Nurses and Associates President’s Trophy for her contributions to urologic nursing.

Susanne was inducted as a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners due to her work in both men’s health education, and promotion of the specialty NP role in Urology. She was promoted to Assistant Professor of Urology in 2018, the 1st NP to achieve this academic position in any hospital department at University of Michigan. Her research interests include investigating the role of the NP in urology, and improving care of men with benign urology disease. Dr. Quallich is Editor-in-Chief the peer-reviewed journal, Urologic Nursing. She is an active member in various professional societies, and was the 1st Nurse Practitioner elected into the Society for Male Reproduction in Urology, and 1st Nurse Practitioner elected into the Society for the Study of Male Reproduction.

Secretary, Head and Neck Cancer Alliance and stage 4 HPV-related oral cancer survivor

Jason Mendelsohn is co-founder and President of Ashar Group, LLC, a privately held, nationally licensed firm specializing in the secondary market for life insurance. He is also a stage 4 HPV-related oral cancer survivor and serves as the co-chair for the Patient Education Committee for the Head and Neck Cancer Alliance. He made the decision to share his cancer story publicly so that others could learn about HPV-related oral cancer, oral cancer screenings, including the HPV vaccine. He also created a website, www.SupermanHPV.com which launched on September 1, 2017. to inspire, educate and encourage others diagnosed with HPV-related oral cancer.

Jason also serves on the board of the Florida Hospital Cancer Institute and the Jewish Pavilion of Central Florida. Jason received his B.A. From Emory University in 1990. Jason and his wife, Ronni, have been married for 25 years and have three children: 20-year old son and daughter (twins) and an 14-year old son.