North Cross School honored Dr. Linda Valleroy as its recipient of the 2022 Distinguished Alumna Award.
The annual award recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their chosen field, and in doing so, have brought distinction and honor to North Cross School. Dr. Valleroy is also the first recipient of both the North Cross Distinguished Alumni Award and the North Cross Alumni Service Award which she received in 2009.
On February 25, Dr. Valleroy accepted her award virtually, and, as the keynote speaker, spoke to all North Cross Upper School students at the School’s annual Symposium. Dr. Valleroy shared her personal and professional experiences with the students and encouraged them to become involved wherever they are and whatever they do. She told students they can do something that positively impacts the world. She said, “My god, the world needs saving … different people can save the world — artists, chefs.”
For 30 years, Dr. Valleroy has been with the CDC. Over these 30 years, she has been focused on the controlling and preventing HIV/AIDS spread in the United States and internationally and has advanced in leadership and management positions within the CDC. Her work has included groundbreaking and impactful lab and field research, training, and program development across the United States. She plans to retire soon.
Dr. Valleroy has published 87 papers and has spent her life in service in Epidemiology and public health. In her own words she was drawn to this work as she was “smitten with Epidemiology and entranced by the idea of helping people prevent disease through science and public health measures. Dr. Valleroy held a Congressional Science Fellowship as a scientific advisor to the US House of Representatives. She held a Science and Diplomacy Fellowship with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, with the U. S. Agency for International Development, and worked in the Epidemic Intelligence Service with the Division of STD/HIV Prevention, at the US Center for Disease Control.
Dr. Valleroy graduated from North Cross School in 1968 and went on to earn her Bachelor’s degree from Swarthmore College in Sociology and Anthropology. From 1972 through 1986, she was at the University of Pennsylvania, where, through a variety of teaching, lecturing, and research assignments and opportunities she focused on epidemiology and public health issues. She earned both her Master’s degree and a PhD in Biological Anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania.
