Staff & Board
Our staff works from offices located within the Institute for Health & Aging (IHA), at the School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco.
- Glenna Dowling, RN, PhD, FAAN
Co-DirectorGlenna Dowling is Professor & Chair in the Department of Physiological Nursing, Director of the Institute on Aging Research Center in San Francisco, and the Associate Director of the John A. Hartford Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence. She has recently joined our team as the new Co-Director of LHRC. Dr. Dowling primarily advises and mentors students in the doctoral program but also teaches in the Gerontology Nursing Specialty Masters Program. She serves on a variety of public committees and boards that support patient education, advocacy, geriatric support services, healthcare maintenance and preventive services. Academically, her service primarily supports advanced nursing education and research.
- Ellen Haller, MD
Co-DirectorEllen Haller, MD is a Professor in the UCSF Department of Psychiatry where she is the Director of the Residency Training Program. A full-time member of the UCSF School of Medicine faculty since 1988, her main areas of interest are women's and LGBT mental health. Dr. Haller is passionate about teaching the general public, primary care practitioners and others about mental health issues for these populations, and she was delighted to join LHRC as a Co-Director in July, 2006. Dr. Haller has served as Secretary of the Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists and President of the Northern California Psychiatric Society, and she chaired the UCSF Chancellor's Advisory Committee on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Issues from 2005-2007.
- Zina Mirsky, RN, EdD
Co-DirectorZina Mirsky, RN, EdD, Associate Dean for Administration at UCSF School of Nursing, was appointed as co-director of LHRC upon the retirement of LHRC co-founder, School of Nursing Professor Emerita Sue Dibble. Zina has been an administrator and faculty member at UCSF since 1972, and has served the campus and School in most of their missions, most principally in teaching and service. Given the Martin Luther King, Jr. award for staff in 2004 for her commitment to diversity, she is concerned about equality in access to healthcare and professional education, and is honored to have been named to this new role.
- Diane Sabin, DC
Executive DirectorDiane Sabin, DC has been a community activist for over three decades. She is the Executive Director of the Lesbian Health & Research Center as well as the Associate Director for the National Center of Excellence in Women's Health. Before joining UCSF, Dr. Sabin was devoted to serving the community through her chiropractic clinic in San Francisco for 17 years. Diane has been on the board of directors for several key organizations including the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice, and Woman Vision, in addition to being one of the co-founders of 100 Lesbians and Our Friends, a lesbian philanthropic community initiative. A radical lesbian feminist cultural worker since 1974, she has produced concerts, participated in community collaborations, planned demonstrations, and persevered. She is thrilled to be so actively engaged and deeply dedicated to the LGBTIQ movement community.
- María Cora, MA
Associate DirectorMaría Cora is the Associate Director of the Lesbian Health & Research Center at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Over the course of the last 30 years, her leadership and cultural activism have been put to use in pursuit of the health and wellbeing of our communities. María has been the Program Director for the Aqua Foundation for Women in Miami and the Coordinator of the Office of Women’s Health of the San Francisco Department of Public Health. She has served as a Member of the Board of Directors of the San Francisco LGBT Community Center and is a Founding Member of several lesbian of color organizations including Ellas En Acción and the NIA Collective. She holds a BA from Harvard University and a MA from San Francisco State University. As an artist, María is a gifted filmmaker, poet and musician; she was the recipient of a Lesbian of Achievement and Vision Award in 1995. She is known for her unique contribution as the lead vocalist with various women’s salsa and Latin jazz ensembles including Azúcar y Crema, Different Touch and Orquesta Sabrosita.
- Suzanne Dibble, DNSc, RN
Co-Founder and Founding Co-DirectorSuzanne Dibble, DNSc, RN is Professor Emerita of Nursing at the Institute for Health & Aging, School of Nursing, UCSF, and co-founder of the Lesbian Health Research Center, which is concerned with the health and wellness of lesbians, bisexual women and transgender individuals and their families. Her research has focused on the care of individuals with chronic illnesses.
- Patricia Robertson, MD
Founding Co-DirectorPatricia Robertson, MD is Professor of Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California at San Francisco. She co-founded Lyon-Martin Women's Health Services in 1978, while doing one of the earliest studies on STDs in lesbians. She has been providing medical care to lesbians for many years, as well as lectures to clinicians. She is also a perinatologist, taking care of high-risk pregnant women, as well as Director of Medical Student Education for her department.
- Dixie Horning
Co-FounderDixie Horning is the Executive Director of the National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health at UCSF, the Executive Director, Finance and Administration, in the Department of Obstetrics/Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, and Co-Founder of the Lesbian Health & Research Center. She has extensive experience organizing communities, designing public policy, managing organizations, motivating staff and administering complex programs. Through work in various organizations, such as the Gray Panthers, the Southern Mutual Help Association, and UCSF, including serving as co-chair of the university community partnership council, Dixie has been recognized for key accomplishments at the local, state, national and international levels. She is a national and state leader in the field of wellness, health and leisure services. Dixie is the past chair of two national nonprofits, SeniorNet and the National Women's History Project.
LHRC National Advisory Board
Some 80 women of diverse backgrounds and professional expertise throughout the U.S. bring a national perspective to LHRC’s leadership and help provide a broader social, legal and cultural context to our work.
- Katherine Acey
- Marcy Adelman
- Amy Andre
- M.V. Lee Badgett
- Nancy Lynn Baker
- Patricia Berne
- Doris Bersing
- Linda Blackmore
- Deborah J. Bowen
- Judy Bradford
- Jeanette Brown
- Mandy Carter
- Cheryl Clarke
- Cathy Cohen
- Maria Cora
- Brenda Crawford
- Pam David
- Kathleen DeBold
- Baylee DeCastro
- Darlene DeManicor
- Allison Diamant
- Suzanne Dibble
- Catherine Dodd
- Marylin Dodd
- Anne Sterling Dorman
- Bonnie Feinberg
- Mary E Foley
- Jill A. Foster
- Rebecca Fox
- Marcy Fraser
- Barbara French
- Susan Freundlich
- Barbara Garcia
- Vanessa George
- Andrea Gillespie
- Sheryl Goldberg
- Cynthia Gomez
- Roma P. Guy
- Ellen Haller
- Evelynn Hammonds
- Carlina Hansen
- Dawn Harbatkin
- Sandra R. Hernandez
- Marjorie Hill
- Amber Hollibaugh
- Dixie Horning
- Katherine Hsiao
- Tonda Hughes
- Martha Jimenez
- Lani Ka’ahumanu
- Joo-Hyun Kang
- Marion H.E. (Mhel) Kavanaugh-Lynch
- Kate Kendell
- Surina Khan
- Audrey S. Koh
- Aimee Levine
- Elizabeth Lorde-Rollins
- Leni Martin
- Alicia Matthews
- Zina Mirsky
- Joyce Newstat
- Ana E. Nunez
- Kate O’Hanlan
- Sheila O’Rourke
- Katie Oppenheim
- Rev. Trinity A. Ordona
- Cheri Pies
- Marj Plumb
- Achebe Powell
- Patricia Anne Robertson
- Jovida Ross
- Leslie K. Ross
- Esther Rothblum
- Caitlin Ryan
- Diane Sabin
- Alexandra E. Shields
- Shane Snowdon
- Karina Walters
- Tracy Weitz
- Blanca D.M. Wilson
- Judy Young
- Jan Zivic
