Michael Shambaugh-Miller, PhD

I spent 11 years employed by the University of Nebraska Medical Centers College of Public Health / Center for Rural Health and Policy Research.  While employed at UNMC I was tasked with building the Universities geographic information systems capabilities.  In 2004 our GIS Center was awarded the ESRI International Communications Award, an indicator of the work we were doing within just three years of our initiation.  In addition to building the GIS capabilities of the Center I was involved in managing simultaneously up to five research programs on a regular basis.  Many of these programs involved working directly with community organizations and governmental offices as we strove to bring equity in health care access and health status to areas and communities across the country.

After seventeen years in academia I chose to leave UNMC in 2010 to pursue a new path in my professional career.  I took an adjunct position with Nebraska Wesleyan so I could maintain a foot in the classroom working with tomorrow’s leaders, and then pursued finding a non-profit that would satisfy my desire to begin giving back directly to those whom I had been working with directly and indirectly for over a decade.  I found that relationship in two non-profits.  One, the Faith Coalition of Lancaster County and the Society of St. Andrew, and organization that works to stop good produce from farms, farmers markets and other sources from going to landfills.  We glean or collect the produce and transport it directly to food pantries and other food distribution programs, such as FoodNet, the Matt Talbot Kitchen and Heart Ministries in Omaha naming just a few.  In addition we work with the local Backpack Program and Family Food Markets in Lincoln Public Schools.