Tobi Amosun, MD, FAAP

Assistant Commissioner, TN Department of Health

A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Dr. Tobi Adeyeye Amosun completed her medical training at University of Pittsburgh and a pediatrics residency at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. Most recently, she served as medical director of Academy Children's Clinic from 2014-2021, during which time it grew to become the #1 pediatric PCMH in Tennessee.

Dr. Amosun now serves as the Assistant Commissioner of Health for the state of Tennessee as director for the division of Family Health and Wellness. She oversees reproductive women’s health services, chronic disease prevention and health promotion, injury prevention, the federal Maternal Child Health block grant, early childhood services, and supplemental nutrition/WIC for Tennessee.

She chairs the Maternal Mortality Review Committee and co-chairs the Child Fatality Review Committee. She is a member of the Health Disparities Task Force and serves on the Board of Commissioners for Volunteer Tennessee, a program to encourage volunteerism and community service across the state.

Patricia Brooke Ryne-Dawkins, BS

Breastfeeding Coordinator

Brooke Rhyne-Dawkins graduated with a degree in Nutrition from East Carolina University.  She has been with the WIC program for 18 years where she has worked in North Carolina, Mississippi and now Tennessee.  She was the Breastfeeding Coordinator in NC for 10 years and implemented the Breastfeeding Peer Counselor Program in her county.  Through the years she has worked with mom and baby providing one on one counseling and breastfeeding education. 

She has worked with community breastfeeding groups, local coalitions and assisted with breastfeeding trainings.  She is currently the Breastfeeding Coordinator, Certified Lactation Counselor and Nutrition Educator for Metro Davidson County WIC program in Tennessee. She also works with the WIC outreach program that goes into the different hospitals in Nashville TN helping mom and baby with WIC services, breastfeeding, and baby’s that are in NICU.   She has been passionate about breastfeeding from the start of her career and continues to help mom and baby with their breastfeeding journey.

Flora Ukoli, MD, MPH, IBCLC

Flora A. M. Ukoli, M.D., M.P.H., IBCLC., received her medical degree from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, in 1975, a master’s degree in public health from the University of Glasgow, Scotland, in 1980, and a master’s degree in Epidemiology from the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1998. She became a Fellow of the West African College of Physicians in 1986, specialized in Primary Health Care, and directed four World Health Organization programs at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital: Expanded Program of Immunization, Oral Rehydration Program, Family Planning Program, and the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI). As Department Chair of Community Medicine, she enhanced training of medical students and resident doctors in Community-Based Participatory Research with Education Intervention components.

Dr. Ukoli led the teaching hospital breastfeeding program to receive the coveted BFHI designation in the early ‘90s and became a WHO/UNICEF certified Breastfeeding and Lactation Master Trainer in 1996. Her breastfeeding advocacy in health centers and marketplaces was modified for the School Health Program where students playfully learned about childcare and sang breastfeeding verses she wrote for the purpose.

In 2012 Dr. Ukoli started an initiative to study the breastfeeding habits of African-American women in Nashville funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center for Health Policy at Meharry, was subsequently funded by The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to champion breastfeeding promotion as a strategy to prevent rapid weight gain in infancy, developed a breastfeeding promotion brochure for pregnant women, and provided opportunities for graduate students to develop scientific posters and manuscripts.

The goal of her current pilot projected funded by the NIH is promoting safe breastfeeding during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Ukoli has over eighty articles in peer reviewed journals, has been invited to present her work at local and national conferences, and looks forward to the day when women all over the world will receive full rights and recognition, social support, and paid maternity leave to successfully care for babies. 

Dr. Flora Ukoli served as the first secretary of the Medical Women’s Association of Nigeria, breastfed her daughters, Bibi and Christiana, and supported Bibi to breastfeed her twins, Christopher and Marshall, until they were eleven months old.

Brenda Reyes, RN, CLC

Lead Specialist: Peer Lactation Services for HealthConnect One

Brenda Reyes is a bilingual registered nurse and certified lactation counselor. As the Program Specialist Lead: Peer Lactation Services for HealthConnect One (HC One), she has over 15 years of experience working with diverse organizations to create and implement peer support programs for birthing families. Her work centers and engages communities every step of the way. In 2020, her Op-Ed on Why Community-Based Doulas Are A Lifeline for Latinas was featured in HipLatina.com. Her work was also spotlighted in Prism and WellnessandGood.com article.

Recently, she was also featured in Telemundo’s Mujeres Imparables by Telemundo for her work in maternal and child health. In 2011 – 2012, Brenda worked on Communities Putting Prevention to Work and on Chicago’s Healthy Places initiative and formed part of the team which developed the Hospital Breastfeeding Toolkit for Illinois’ State Perinatal Breastfeeding Quality Improvement Project. She led HC One’s National Birth Equity Leadership Academy (BELA) Community Projects Initiative.  Currently, she serves as HC One’s representative to the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC). She has served as elected board member of USBC and currently serves as a board member at the National Association of Professional and Peer Lactation Support Providers of Color. 

Ms. Reyes participated in the Center for Social Inclusion’s National First Food Racial Equity Cohort; served as a work group expert panel member of the World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative (WBTi) for the United States; and she is an Expert Panel Member for Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), and Bread for the World Institute. She is currently leading the First Food Equity Project Initiative at HC One. She is a frequent speaker on breastfeeding, maternal and child health, racial equity, and supporting Latino birthing families. 

Kameron Dawson, JD

Kameron Dawson is a staff attorney at A Better Balance, where she works on state legislation, litigation, and public education to advance justice for workers in the South on issues ranging from pregnancy accommodations to breastfeeding rights and other policies that support and advance the rights of working families. She believes that by using the power of the law to advance worker's rights in the South, we will not only make our nation healthier and stronger, but also tear down the systemic barriers created by racism and sexism. Kameron graduated from the University of Georgia and received a law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she served as an executive editor of the Tennessee Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice, the candidacy process editor for the Tennessee Journal of Law & Policy, and a student attorney in the Community Economic Development clinic. She also served as chair in the school’s Student Council on Diversity & Inclusion, creating engaging programs that focused on issues of diversity and the law. Prior to joining A Better Balance, Kameron worked as a legal intern specializing in employment law for the University of Tennessee’s Office of Research and Engagement and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Felisha Brooks – Floyd BS, IBCLC

Felisha is an author, speaker, trainer, and consultant, is an award
winning hospital based IBCLC celebrated for her work in the
health/racial equity and food justice fields. She is the owner of
Beyond Breastfeeding and the founder of Our Brown Baby. She
serves as the President of the National Association of Professional
and Peer Lactation Supporters of Color (NAPPLSC) and is an active member of the CSI/Race Forward First Food Racial Equity Cohort.
Her career as a peer counselor and breastfeeding coordinator for WIC led to her work as a consultant with Boston Medical College’s
notable program, Communities and Hospitals Advancing Maternity
Practices program (CHAMPS). She still consults for WIC within the
WIC Loving Support Program. She is well known as the social media
guru who founded Blactavist, an online breastfeeding cultural
support group with a continually growing audience of more than
40,000. Felisha’s passion for advocacy fuels her desire to serve
in multiple roles such as the advisor/group member of the World
Breastfeeding Trends Initiative (WBTI), the Education Director for Mom2Mom Global, the Immediate Past Advocacy Chair for Florida
State Breastfeeding Coalition, and the Board of Directors for United
States Breastfeeding Committee. Her championing of families is
additionally informed by her important roles as an Air Force active
duty military spouse and proud mom of three breastfed children.

Susan Campbell, MD, IBCLC

Executive Director - Mothers' Milk Bank of Tennessee

Susan has been a Neonatologist since 1978, following completion of her Fellowship at Hershey Medical Center in Hershey, Pennsylvania. A graduate of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, PA, she completed her Pediatric Residency in her hometown of Wilmington, Delaware prior to entering the Neonatology Fellowship Program.
 
Following completion of the Neonatology training, she practiced for a time in Jackson Mississippi prior to moving to Nashville, Tennessee in 1986, where she cared for preterm and ill Neonates until her retirement in 2021. Throughout her medical career, she remained very supportive of breastfeeding despite having only mixed success breastfeeding her 3 sons.
 
In 2012, she pursued and obtained International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) status – specifically so that she could help start Mothers’ Milk Bank of Tennessee in an effort to continue helping High-risk babies thrive throughout Tennessee. She currently serves (Volunteers) as Executive Director of Mothers’ Milk Bank of Tennessee, founded in 2014 with plans to open in the summer of 2021.

Amber Price, DNP, CNM, MSN, RN

Chief Operating Officer, Centennial Medical Center, Nashville, TN, HCA TriStar

Dr. Price received a bachelor’s in behavioral science from the University of Maryland, followed by a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Old Dominion University. She completed her graduate degree at the University of Cincinnati, graduating with a Master of Nursing in Midwifery, and a post-master’s certificate in Global Women’s Health.  She received her Executive Doctorate in Nursing from The Johns Hopkins University, with a research focus on Change Leadership. Dr. Price served as President of the American College of Nurse-Midwives in Virginia and serves as a board member for the March of Dimes and Ronald McDonald House, as well as on state maternal mortality and perinatal quality boards. She was nominated for Birth Advocate of the Year in 2015 and for Global Women’s Health leader in 2018. In 2017, she won the prestigious Monarch Award for Innovation in Nursing.
 
Originally from Holland, Dr. Price trained in New Zealand, and has worked in women’s and children’s health clinically and as an administrator for more than 30 years. Dr. Price currently serves as the AVP for Women’s and Children’s Services for HCA’s TriStar Division, and as Chief Operating Officer for the TriStar Centennial Women’s Hospital, and for the Children’s Hospital at TriStar Centennial, in Nashville. She was named a ‘2020 Woman to Watch’ by Nashville Medical News.

Dr. Price is a regular speaker on respectful maternity care and has published numerous articles and book chapters on Women’s Voice in maternal health. Her passion and expertise surrounding consent, and her unique perspective as a Nurse-Midwife and hospital administrator make her an expert on the patient experience for women of childbearing age. Dr. Price works within her corporation and with other organizations on a state and national level to improve outcomes for women and children, and to increase access to respectful woman-centered care.

Jabina Coleman, MSW, LSW, IBCLC

Jabina G. Coleman is a Licensed Social Worker and International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant who has dedicated over a decade of her life to serving women, children, and families in Philadelphia. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biobehavioral Health from the Pennsylvania State University and master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania, School of Social Policy & Practice. She is the owner of Life House Lactation & Perinatal Services, LLC where she provides lactation consultations, facilitates breastfeeding and parenting wellness groups-BAE Cafe, and provides psychotherapy to parents experiencing perinatal mood and anxiety disorders.

Ms. Coleman is the co-founder of Perinatal Mental Health Alliance for People of Color, where the mission is to support professionals and communities of color who are treating and dealing with the complications of perinatal mood disorders. Her work is grounded in trauma-informed care and reproductive justice. Her work has been published in the Clinical Lactation Journal.

Ms. Coleman has also been a local and regional keynote speaker addressing lactation and perinatal mood disorders. Most recently, She has been awarded the Cultural Changemaker Award for the United States Breastfeeding Committee & Convening and is also mentor leader for Health Connect One-Birth Equity Leadership Academy (BELA). She is also the mother of two beautiful children one of which she had the pleasure of breastfeeding for 3.5 years. Her mission is to educate, empower and support families and communities on their journey into parenthood while working on systemic barriers impeding on a culture of health.

Sekeita Lewis-Johnson, DNP, FNP-BC, IBCLC

Dr. Sekeita Lewis-Johnson is a Board-Certified Family Nurse Practitioner, International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and Birth Doula. She is the Lead Nurse Planner and an Instructor for LER.
 

She is one of the Founding Members of Southeast Michigan IBCLCs of Color and Mama’s Mobile Milk. She is owner of Mommy and Me Lactation Consulting, LLC, and serves as a Board Director for The United States Breastfeeding Committee. She sits on The Maternal Infant Health, Health Equity Action Committee for the State of Michigan, and is a member of MI Milk Collective. She serves her community by volunteering on the Beloved Community Initiative Leadership Team in Farmington Hills, Michigan and Birth Detroit in Detroit, Michigan.
 

Dr. Lewis-Johnson has received multiple awards during her career. She is this year’s recipient of the Award of Excellence from the United States Lactation Consultant Association. She also received ‘The Peoples’ Choice Award’ from The Michigan Council of Nurse Practitioners for her poster presentation entitled: Implicit Bias of Health Care Providers and Breastfeeding Disparities amongst African American Women. She is a national speaker with an international audience. Dr. Lewis-Johnson is an avid advocate for equitable and just policies and practices especially related to black maternal-child health inequities.

Bill Chun, MD, FACOG

Dr. Chun has 30 years of experience as an OBGYN and currently treats patients at Women’s Healthcare of Woburn, where he provides comprehensive women's healthcare. Dr. Chun is also a skilled surgeon who performs minimally invasive robotic surgeries, and he is a Fellow of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.  Driven by a goal to improve outcomes for women and raise healthcare standards, Dr. Chun founded Doc & Doula, a private Facebook group that provides education and support to birthing people and their families.  He can be found on Facebook, twitter, and LinkedIn posting about healthcare and sharing his experience and perspective as a grateful Immigrant American.

 Valerie Lai-Rivera
Montgomery County WIC Peer Counselor

Kristin Mejia

Homeland Heart

Cicely Wilson

Nashville Coalition Chair &

Nashville Strong Babies - Metro Public Health Department

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Cicely Wilson is a devoted and caring professional with over 20 years of combined experience in family and pregnancy support. I respect and supports each family’s beliefs and values. Educating new parents in every aspect of caring for their newborn and themselves is a crucial part of my offerings as a Pregnancy Support Specialist. My methods of practice include primarily evidence-based research, hands on experience, educational trainings, and counseling from my peers.

Shukura Ayoluwa Umi, MPH

Shukura (shoe-cur-ra) Ayoluwa Umi (oomee) is a University of Memphis graduate student who began her doctorate program in Health Communications in fall 2018. With one year left, before graduation, her research interest includes Maternal and Child Health, breastfeeding narratives /images and social norms and the impact on women of African descent along with implicit bias/social determinants of health that effect a mother’s ability to nurse her child with support and success. Her background includes a Master of Public Health degree, concentrating in Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Dr. Umi interned in the Community Health Bureau, Clinical Services Section of the Shelby County Health Department, where she focused on barriers of breastfeeding, such as going back to work and strives to increase the awareness and education that surrounds the importance of social, peer, partner and employer support for mothers actively breastfeeding in Shelby County, Tennessee.
 Shukura likes to volunteer, engage with community members, read, cook sing, dance, relax, sleep, exercise and travel. She is an accomplished Golden Key Scholar, Advisory Board member for Water for Women Inc, (Non-profit in Sacramento, CA) Secretary for the Shelby County Breastfeeding Coalition, secretary for the Tennessee Breastfeeding Coalition, Community Outreach representative for the Breastfeeding Sisters That Are Receiving Support (BSTARS) and Vice president for the United Campus Workers Union.