The CDC Leaders

“Chronic disease prevention and control is a relatively new frontier in public health practice and offers the potential for dramatic improvements in quality of life and the elimination of health disparities."

—Janet Collins, PhD

Janet Collins, PhD

Director, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Janet Collins, PhD, was recruited to CDC in 1990 as a scientific branch chief in the Division of Adolescent and School Health, where she worked for 10 years, before being selected as the deputy director for the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. As deputy director, Collins assisted in the oversight and management of that center, which focuses on the prevention and control of some of the leading causes of death and disability.

In April 2004, Dr. Collins was asked to serve as the acting director for the National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention. During her tenure as acting director, she began a cross-center working group on adolescent sexual and reproductive health to examine CDC’s role and investments in preventing HIV, STD, and unintended pregnancy among youth. In July 2005, she was named director of the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.

Doctor Collins is a behavioral scientist with a PhD in educational psychology from Stanford University and a master′s degree in clinical psychology from San Diego State University. Prior to coming to CDC, she taught and worked at UCLA in the area of educational measurement.

Doctor Collins has published extensively in the area of adolescent health and has given numerous addresses on health promotion and disease prevention issues across the lifespan. Much of her work has focused on the surveillance of adolescent health risk behaviors and the development and evaluation of school-based programs to prevent tobacco use, poor nutrition, physical inactivity, and sexual risk behaviors.