Francisco S. Sy

Francisco S. Sy,
MD, DrPH

Dr. Francisco S. Sy is the Director of the Division of Extramural
Activities and Scientific Programs at the National Center on
Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD) at the National
Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland. He was the
Chief, Office of Community-Based Participatory Research and
Outreach, and the Program Director for the Research
Endowment and Loan Repayment Programs at NCMHD.

Dr. Sy earned his Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degree in
Immunology and Infectious Diseases from Johns Hopkins
University in 1984; Master of Science in Tropical Public Health
from Harvard University in 1981; and Doctor of Medicine degree
from the University of the Philippines in 1975.

Prior to joining NIH in 2004, Dr. Sy served as a Senior Health Scientist at the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia from April 2000 to August 2004. He was the
team leader in the Program Evaluation Research Branch in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention,
National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention. In 2003, Dr. Sy participated in the CDC SARS
outbreak investigation team. He led the team’s SARS community outreach efforts in Asian
American communities.

Dr. Sy was a tenured professor at the University of South Carolina (USC) School of Public Health
in Columbia, SC where he taught infectious disease epidemiology for 15 years. Dr. Sy has
published a book, several book chapters and scientific articles on various infectious and tropical
diseases. Dr. Sy is the Editor of the AIDS Education and Prevention - An Interdisciplinary Journal
since its inception in 1988. It is a bimonthly peer-reviewed journal published by Guilford Press in
New York.

Dr. Sy is a Fellow of the American College of Preventive Medicine; a Scientific Fellow of the
American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; and a Fellow of the Royal Society of
Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. He has received several accolades in his career including the
following selected awards:

    • 2005 Most Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of the Philippines Alumni
Association in America (UPAAA);

    • 2004 Department of Health and Human Services Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service
for his outstanding community outreach work during the SARS outbreak in 2003;

    • 2004 CDC/National Center for Infectious Diseases Honor Award for his outstanding service
in the SARS outbreak investigation;

    • 2000 Outstanding Alumnus in Research, University of the Philippines Medical Alumni Society
(UPMAS), Manila Philippines;

    • 1993 Outstanding Alumnus in Medical Education, University of the Philippines Medical Alumni
Society (UPMAS), Manila Philippines;

    • 1991 Excellence in Teaching Award from the University of South Carolina Arnold School of
Public Health.

    • 1990 Outstanding Alumnus Award from the Johns Hopkins University School of Public
Health

Dr. Sy has played very active leadership roles in two national alumni organizations of the
University of the Philippines in the United States including the following key positions at the
University of the Philippines Alumni Association in America (UPAAA) and the University of the
Philippines Medical Society in America (UPMASA):

    • President of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association in America (UPAAA), 2007-
2009;

    • East Coast Liaison Officer and Chair Scientific Program Committee, UPAAA, 2005-2007;

    • Member of the Board of Governors of the University of the Philippines Medical Society in
America (UPMASA) since 2003;

    • UPMASA Corresponding Secretary, 2007-2009;

    • Chair of its Continuing Medical Education (CME) Committee, 2007-2009. As CME Committee
Chair, Dr. Sy is responsible for maintaining the accreditation status of UPMASA with the
Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).

    • Founding member, UPMASA Southeast Chapter which was organized in Atlanta in 2000;

    • Chair of the UPMASA Chapter and Class Liaison Committee, 2005-2007. During his tenure
as Chair of this committee, he was instrumental in the formation of the following three new
UPMASA chapters- the Northern California Chapter in 2005, the Indiana- Kentucky- Ohio-
Tennessee (IKOT) Chapter in 2005, and the Nevada Chapter in 2006. |

    • UPMASA Recording Secretary, 2003-2005;

    • Member of the following national UPMASA committees: the Project Coordination Committee,
Research Committee, Membership and Directory Committee, and External Relations Committee.

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Francisco S. Sy