Hollander Receives Public Health Honor
By: Peggy Hintzman, Margaret Schmelzer, and Debra Beck - Posted on: 5/20/2005

Gary Hollander, Ph.D. is the Executive Director of Diverse and Resilient, Inc., and a clinical faculty member of the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee and the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine. A licensed psychologist, Gary provides consultation on program development, community interventions, evaluation, and prevention programming. He teaches in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Studies Program at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. Gary is also past president and board member of the Wisconsin AIDS Fund in the Greater Milwaukee Foundation.

Since 1995, the Diverse and Resilient organization - through its Executive Director and staff - has focused on its commitment to the health of LGBT people in Wisconsin through capacity-building efforts. Its signature youth programming has fostered a new generation of LGBT young adults who aspire to big lives. Diverse and Resilient serves as a catalyst to help LGBT youth groups get started, and continue to thrive, by providing mini-grants, consultations, adult and youth leadership training, and leadership coaching.

Dr. Hollander has been an effective and sustained partner to the public health system by effectively translating Wisconsin’s public health priorities as presented in Healthiest Wisconsin 2010 into actions that improve health, eliminate health disparities, and provide leadership to transform our public health system for the 21st Century.

Committees and contributions too numerous to mention all, include: Member of the Healthiest Wisconsin 2010 Community Review Team for the Southeast Region; Member of the State Health Plan Oversight Workgroup (2003-2004) for implementation of the state health plan, which was formally sponsored by the Wisconsin Division of Public Health under the aegis of the Wisconsin Turning Point Initiative; Developed and facilitated a convening conference to link the state health plan to local communities and respond to the current and emerging needs of the LGBT community. The findings and recommendations from this conference are contained in the following report: Healthiest Wisconsin 2010 – A Special Supplemental Report: Engaging and Sustaining Selected Community Stakeholders in the Transformation of Wisconsin’s Public Health System (DHFS June 2003). Appointed to the Wisconsin Turning Point Initiative’s Transformation Team by Secretary Joe Leann (1999), where he became a trusted and instrumental partner to the Wisconsin Turning Point Initiative. This effort alone manifests his true commitment to community building and transforming out public health systems at both the state and local levels to create conditions in which people can be healthy.

It is fitting to recognize Dr. Hollander’s distinguished efforts in addressing health and quality of life issues in the LGBT community through this award. In so doing he has tangibly linked Healthiest Wisconsin 2010 to his organizational policy development and community operations. He is a true public health system partner.