Association of Immunization Managers Announces the 2022 AIM Award Winners

The Association of Immunization Managers (AIM), representing the 64 federally funded state, territorial and urban area immunization programs, announces the winners of its annual AIM Awards:

• The Natalie J. Smith, MD Award for Excellence in Program Management recognizes the contributions of an immunization program manager who has demonstrated the high ideals, innovation, and commitment to excellence in immunization practices that characterized Dr. Smith’s career. The award recognizes accomplishments and visionary leadership that have had a significant impact on achieving city, state, territory, and/or national vaccine-preventable disease goals and is the highest form of recognition for immunization program managers.

This year’s award recipient has over 19 years of work in the field of immunization and is an active member of AIM. Her efforts to increase HPV rates in rural North Dakota have resulted in male/female up-to-date rates of 70.3% while the national average vaccination rate is only 58.6%. Under her leadership the North Dakota Immunization Information System (NDIIS) has become one of the top registries for provider and public participation, with 100% of North Dakota’s adult population (19+ years of age) documented in the IIS.

Winner: Molly Howell, Immunization Director, North Dakota Immunization Program

• The AIM Partnership Award recognizes an AIM partner who has worked with AIM to address an issue important to AIM members. This year’s recipient worked together with AIM to keep its members and program staff informed and up-to-speed on the constantly changing information about the COVID-19 vaccine program.

Winner: Chris Duggar, Senior Public Health Advisor and COVID Unit Lead, Immunization Services Division, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

• The AIM Rising Star Award recognizes a new program manager who demonstrates effective leadership and potential for growth within AIM. This year’s recipient is a program manager who is an active AIM member and is always willing to lend a hand and volunteer when needed. This program manager started in March of 2020 and jumped right in.

Winner: Emily Messerli DNP, APRN, FNP-C, State Immunization Branch Manager, Kentucky Department for Public Health

• The AIM Impact Award recognizes a program manager who has dedicated significant time, expertise, and experience toward achieving AIM’s organizational goals—such as fostering member connection and contributing to sound immunization policy. This individual is unwavering in her support; she is always willing to help and is usually one of the first people to volunteer. She has been very involved with her AIM region, served on multiple AIM committees, has served as an AIM mentor, and is someone to turn to for programmatic advice.

Winner: Michele Roberts MPH, MCHES, Assistant Secretary, Prevention and Community Health Division, Washington State Department of Health

• AIM’s new Hall of Fame Award recognizes an individual’s leadership, commitment, and outstanding contributions to the immunization program manager community and the vision of a nation free of vaccine-preventable disease. This individual served with CDC for 34 years and throughout his career always sought solutions and worked to implement visionary change in collaboration with immunization programs.

Inductee: Brock Lamont, Retired CDC Chief, Immunization Services Division, Program Operations Branch

• The AIM Leading Through Adversity Award recognizes program managers who have shown fearlessness and perseverance under pressure and have risen to the challenge of managing an immunization program through difficult circumstances. This year, AIM awarded all the immunization program managers that worked during the COVID-19 pandemic and thanks these program managers for their extraordinary efforts.

Winner: All AIM Members

Congratulations to the recipients of the 2022 AIM Awards!

Visit the awards webpage on the AIM website for additional information regarding the awards, and to learn more about the inspiring work of this year’s recipients.

About Association of Immunization Managers:

The Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) is a non-profit membership association comprised of representatives from 64 federally funded state, territorial and local National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases awardees. AIM is dedicated to working with its partners nationwide to reduce, eliminate, or eradicate vaccine-preventable diseases. AIM also works to ensure the success of its members by providing support in their programming interests. Since 1999, AIM has enabled collaboration among immunization managers to effectively control vaccine-preventable diseases and improve immunization coverage in the United States. For more information on AIM, please visit www.immunizationmanagers.org/.

About Association of Immunization Managers

The Association of Immunization Managers (AIM), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit association, is dedicated
to establishing a nation free of vaccine-preventable disease. AIM members are the leaders of
state, local, and territorial immunization programs—directing the public health efforts designed to
keep children and adults vaccinated and protected against disease. Since 1999, AIM has
provided a national voice for immunization programs and a forum for program managers to learn
from each other, confront challenges, and achieve success. Since its inception, AIM has gathered
and shared information with its members on policy implementation, legislative issues,
programmatic successes, and more. For more information on AIM, please
visit www.immunizationmanagers.org.

Note: The inside story of the race to save lives and end a pandemic is featured in a new book
entitled Vaccinating America, available now from the American Public Health Association Press.
Brent Ewig, AIM’s Chief Policy and Government Relations Officer, is a co-author.