Meet The Team
Board of Directors
Nsa Dada, MSc, PhD
Secretary
Dr. Dada is a Research Fellow at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where she investigates the role of disease vector-associated microbes in shaping host physiology and ecology, and an American Committee of Medical Entomology Future Leader in International Entomology Fellow. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Zoology from the University of Calabar, Nigeria in 2007, and her MSc degree in Biology and Control of Parasites and Disease Vectors from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, England, in 2009. She subsequently enrolled in a doctoral research program at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway, where she earned her PhD degree in Microbiology in December 2014. Prior to joining the CDC, Dr. Dada held two postdoctoral positions at the University of Oslo, Norway, and the Institute for Research and Development (IRD), Montpellier, France. Drawing upon this multidisciplinary background, her interests lie at the interface of the (micro)biology and control of parasites and disease vectors, encompassing basic and applied research that inform disease control programs. Her work broadly focuses on parasites and disease vectors across multiple countries in West Africa, Southeast Asia, Latin America and East Africa, resulting in prestigious international awards and recognitions. In addition to research, she is very passionate about mentoring and capacity building and actively seeks to develop and foster international research and educational exchange—particularly across countries that fall under different income classes. When she is not researching tropical bugs, she loves to take long walks in nature, volunteer within her community, create new recipes and travel the world.
Management Team
Bonheur DOUNEBAINE, MD, MPH
Founder/Program Manager
Dr. Bonheur Dounebaine is a medical epidemiologist with several years of experience working in developing countries with international institutions such as Doctors Without Borders, International Medical Corps, UNICEF and the World Health Organization. He has field experience working on Polio Eradication Program, HIV/AIDS, Immunization/Disease Surveillance, Health Communication and Reproductive Health Program. He also has experience in teaching and oral presentations, he was Teaching Assistant at the Georgia State University, and Part Time Instructor in field Epidemiology at the Emory. He obtained his Medical Degree from the University of Bamako, MALI (West Africa), and his MPH from Georgia State University. He also holds a certificate in Field Epidemiology from Emory University/CDC, and another certificate in Sexual and Reproductive Health/Research Method from the Geneva Foundation for Medical Education and Research (GFMER). He is a registered member of the American Public Health Association.
Dr. Dounebaine is passionate about community health, and making lasting impacts in people’s life.
Judith MOGODE, Pharm. D.
National Project Coordinator (Field Team)
Dr. Judith Mogode is a trained pharmacist with more than ten years’ experience in private and public health sector in Chad. she currently works for the Ministry of Health, she was previously the Advisor’s Assistant in public health to the Prime Minister, before that, Dr Mogode was the head of Pharmacy at the Hopital de la Liberte. Her private experience includes short term assignments with the WHO, the Global Fund, and Clinic SOS.
Dr. Judith Mogode is the Founder and CEO of the Pharmacie du Salut (located in Chad). She earned her Doctorate degree in Pharmacy from the University of Bamako, MALI. She also holds a certificate from the University of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, and another certificate in Public Administration from the University of Miami, Florida where she received the prestigious Mandela Fellowship Award.
She is a member of the National Council of Pharmacy in Chad. She is actively involved in community health among women of reproductive age in Chad.
Ivana PARKER, PhD
President
Dr. Parker is currently a Fulbright Fellow to South Africa studying the effects of BCG vaccine on mother to child HIV transmission. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship in Infectious Disease Microbiology at the American Society for Microbiology/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Ivana received her PhD in Bioengineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University in 2015. Her thesis investigated the effects of pro-atherogenic shear stress, HIV proteins, and antiretroviral therapies on the vasculature using in vivo and in vitro models. During her time at Georgia Tech she received the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and was an NIH Cell and Tissue Engineering trainee. She was also awarded a Whitaker International Grant to develop artificial aortic valves in Cape Town, South Africa and facilitated the set-up of a wet-lab in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to investigate biomarkers for antiretroviral adherence among HIV positive patients. Ivana earned her BS in mechanical engineering from the University of Florida, and MS in mechanical engineering from Georgia Tech. She is actively involved in community health and education.
Yolanda KENNEDY, Ed. D. (candidate)
Treasury
Yolanda Kennedy, a Gates Millennium Scholar, is a Doctoral Candidate in the Ed.D Leadership program– Higher Education track. In 2016 she was awarded the Philip Morris Educational Leadership Award during the fall for her exemplary scholarly efforts in research and leadership. She obtained a Masters of Science degree in Educational Research from Georgia State University where she was named as the 2014 Educational Policy Studies Department Outstanding Research, Measurement, and Statistics Student of the year.
She is from North Carolina and attended The University of North Carolina at Charlotte as an undergraduate student earning her Bachelor’s in Accounting with a minor in Management of Information Systems. She is currently working on her dissertation which examines different educational pathways to STEM bachelor degrees for minorities groups in the STEM fields.
Herve Oufalba MOUNONE, MD
National Medical Coordinator (Field Team)
Dr Mounone, is a trained medical doctor, he has experience working in community health with Nonprofit Organizations. He previously worked as Medical Coordinator with BASE, he also held the position of Medical Officer and Deputy Head of the department of Pediatrics at the Hopital de l’Amitie.
Dr. Mounone earned his Medical degree from the University of Ndjamena, Chad. He also holds a certificate in Health District Management. He is currently the Head of one health district in Chad.
Francois ZEBNONE
National Finance Coordinator (Field Team)
Mr. Zebnone is a Banker, he is one of the rare young Chadians that have successfully launched their career in private sector domestically. He started his career in 2010 as Credit Admin and Monitoring Officer with the United Bank for Africa (UBA) in Chad, he is currently Senior Accountant at the Bank of Central African States in Chad.
Mr. Zebnone hold a Master degree in Finance from EM Lyon Business School, Lyon, France, and a Bachelor degree in Accounting/Finances from the University of Moundou, Chad. He is actively involved in community development projects with local organizations.