Carolyn Sullivan
Summary
Strategic community engagement and public health leader with more than 25 years of experience building partnerships, leading collaborative initiatives, and advancing community-centered solutions across healthcare, academic, nonprofit, and government settings. A trusted leader and organizational ambassador known for identifying strategic opportunities, cultivating influential partnerships, and aligning people, resources, and organizations around shared goals that transform diverse perspectives into actionable strategies and sustainable results for both organizations and the communities they serve.
Overview
37
37
years of professional experience
Work History
Research Navigator for Community Engagement, Center for Interdisciplinary and Population Health and the Northern New England Clinical Translational Research Network
MaineHealth Institute for Research, MaineHealth
01.2021 - Current
- Led efforts to scale community engagement across a multi-state healthcare and research enterprise by expanding partnerships, advisory structures, engagement methods, and researcher support, resulting in more than 200 community members contributing to research and healthcare improvement initiatives.
- Co-led a federally funded, community-driven planning initiative involving more than 70 organizations and served as lead author of an evidence-based strategic plan establishing a shared vision and recommendations for youth and family well-being across rural Maine communities.
Senior Director for Programs & Grants 2020; Executive Director, 2018-2020; Assistant Director, 2016
Restorative Justice Project Maine
01.2016 - 01.2020
- Collaborated with executive leadership and the board of directors to strengthen governance, expand organizational capacity, and guide strategic growth initiatives.
- Spearheaded a multi-year organizational transformation strategy that expanded services, strengthened sustainability, and secured a $1 million federal grant to support future growth.
- Directed $1.5 million in annual operations and supervised a nine-member team delivering services across a four-county region.
CoDirector & Researcher, Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention, University Health Services
University of Wisconsin Madison
01.2007 - 01.2015
- Secured a $1.8 million federal grant and helped transform the Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention from a traditional resource distribution center into an innovative statewide learning network that used storytelling, peer exchange, and community-based lessons to advance prevention efforts.
- Co-directed implementation of a $23.5 million federally funded statewide health initiative, rapidly building organizational capacity within a complex academic institution to administer community grants, manage cross-sector partnerships, and support 25 Wisconsin communities in advancing population health projects and outcomes.
Senior Outreach Specialist
UW School of Medicine
01.2007 - 01.2009
- Successfully managed several highly visible projects and events including grand openings for academic research centers, national conferences, public hearings and community forums.
- Coordinated the Wisconsin Symposium on Emotion, an annual research meeting featuring world renowned scientists and hosted by Richard Davidson, PhD and Ned Kalin, MD
- Co-managed the Healthy Wisconsin Leadership Institute, a statewide program to build community prevention skills among the public health workforce.
Senior Program Associate, TTAC, Rollins School of Public Health, 2005-2007; Program Consultant, TTAC (Tobacco Technical Assistance Consortium), 2003 - 2005
Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health
01.2003 - 01.2007
- Provided strategic consultation, training, and coaching to state health departments and tobacco control coalitions nationwide on the effective use of tobacco settlement funds in a nationwide effort funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the American Cancer Society.
- Developed and launched Communities of Excellence Plus, a coalition-based planning and capacity-building program that became a core revenue-generating training product.
- Selected from a national pool of consultants to join TTAC staff in recognition of expertise in coalition development, community engagement, and tobacco control.
Executive Director and Founder, SmokeFree Wisconsin
SmokeFree Wisconsin, Inc. (RWFJ SmokeLess States Project)
01.1998 - 01.2003
- Founded and led SmokeFree Wisconsin, a statewide nonprofit organization that united more than 350 organizations, advocates, and stakeholders to advance tobacco prevention and control efforts across Wisconsin.
- Led a statewide coalition effort that secured a $23.5 million state appropriation to establish Wisconsin's first comprehensive tobacco prevention and cessation program.
- Directed organizational startup and growth, including fundraising, strategic planning, public relations, governance, board development, and staff recruitment.
- Served as organizational spokesperson and media representative, with regular coverage in print, television, and radio outlets.
Project Director, WI SmokeLess States
American Cancer Society
01.1998 - 01.2000
- Developed and sustained strategic partnerships among more than 150 statewide organizations, bringing together diverse and often competing stakeholders around a common vision for tobacco prevention and creating the foundation for SmokeFree Wisconsin.
- Secured and managed a $1.5 million Robert Wood Johnson Foundation SmokeLess States grant, with Wisconsin receiving the full requested award amount; raised an additional $1.7 million in matching funds to expand statewide prevention efforts.
Coordinator for Outreach and Communications
Minnesota SmokeFree Coalition
01.1996 - 01.1998
- Planned legislative and communication strategies that contributed to the passage of one of the nation's strongest laws preventing illegal tobacco sales to youth.
- Improved the quality and effectiveness of the Coalition, including re-vamping all printed materials, coordinating a comprehensive outreach campaign, launching and staffing a media and communications committee.
Administrative Fellow, Cancer Center
University of MN Twin Cities
01.1996 - 01.1996
Assistant to the Director of State Relations
University of Minnesota
01.1992 - 01.1996
- Acted as liaison and information coordinator between the Director and Central Administrators during legislative sessions. Coordinated projects to build legislative relations between deans & legislators.
- Translated complicated, technical information into effective materials for legislative and lay audiences. Produced the U of M Legislative Network's monthly newsletter with over 3,000 subscribers.
Health Communication Graduate Intern
National Cancer Institute
01.1995 - 01.1995
- Worked with team of national experts to disseminate research findings on BRCA1 Cancer Gene
- Wrote & reviewed NCI publications (What You Need to Know and Cancer Facts)
- Designed communication plan for the CIS Information Resource Task Force
- Received NIH Director's Award for work that brings special credit and distinction to the National Institutes of Health, June 1996
Health Educator, UNM Wellness Center
University of New Mexico
01.1989 - 01.1992
Education
Masters in Public Health Administration -
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN01-2002
Bachelor of Science - Community Health Education
University of Wisconsin at La Crosse
01-1989
Skills
- Skilled Facilitators Intensive Training, 2015
- Certified Facilitation Guide for Circles Peer Learning System, 2021
Key Highlights
- Scaled community engagement across a multi-state healthcare and research enterprise, resulting in more than 200 community members contributing to research and healthcare improvement initiatives.
- Founded and led SmokeFree Wisconsin, aligning more than 350 organizations around a shared vision that secured Wisconsin's first $23.5 million comprehensive tobacco prevention and cessation program.
- Co-led a federally funded planning initiative involving more than 70 organizations and authored a regional strategic plan advancing youth and family well-being across rural Maine communities.
Timeline
Research Navigator for Community Engagement, Center for Interdisciplinary and Population Health and the Northern New England Clinical Translational Research Network
MaineHealth Institute for Research, MaineHealth
01.2021 - Current
Senior Director for Programs & Grants 2020; Executive Director, 2018-2020; Assistant Director, 2016
Restorative Justice Project Maine
01.2016 - 01.2020
CoDirector & Researcher, Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention, University Health Services
University of Wisconsin Madison
01.2007 - 01.2015
Senior Outreach Specialist
UW School of Medicine
01.2007 - 01.2009
Senior Program Associate, TTAC, Rollins School of Public Health, 2005-2007; Program Consultant, TTAC (Tobacco Technical Assistance Consortium), 2003 - 2005
Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health
01.2003 - 01.2007
Executive Director and Founder, SmokeFree Wisconsin
SmokeFree Wisconsin, Inc. (RWFJ SmokeLess States Project)
01.1998 - 01.2003
Project Director, WI SmokeLess States
American Cancer Society
01.1998 - 01.2000
Coordinator for Outreach and Communications
Minnesota SmokeFree Coalition
01.1996 - 01.1998
Administrative Fellow, Cancer Center
University of MN Twin Cities
01.1996 - 01.1996
Health Communication Graduate Intern
National Cancer Institute
01.1995 - 01.1995
Assistant to the Director of State Relations
University of Minnesota
01.1992 - 01.1996
Health Educator, UNM Wellness Center
University of New Mexico
01.1989 - 01.1992
Bachelor of Science - Community Health Education
University of Wisconsin at La Crosse
Masters in Public Health Administration -
University of Minnesota