Connie Mendel

Environmental Health Manager

Louisville Metro Health Department

Environmental Health and Protection

Louisville, KY 40202

Biography

Connie Mendel is a 1991 graduate of the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Science. She spent 6+ years with food and flavoring manufacturers in Louisville KY, supervising their chemistry and microbiology laboratories.

In 1997, she joined the Jefferson County, now Louisville Metro Health Department as an Environmental Health Specialist in the Food Hygiene, Mosquito Control and Hazardous Materials Programs. From Supervisor of the Mosquito Control and Hazardous Material Programs to currently Environmental Health Manager, she is continually striving, along with coworkers, to improve the quality of their services, effectiveness of their programs and assuring a competent environmental health staff.

What I Learned at EPHLI

Participating in the Environmental Public Health Leadership Institute has been a very worthwhile experience for me. After having such a great experience in the Kentucky Public Health Leadership Institute, I knew I wanted to be part of a national program devoted toward improving Environmental Health, a branch of Public Health that is usually unnoticed and under funded until a disaster occurs.

EPHLI exceeded my expectations in areas I did not anticipate, particularly in personal growth. I had anticipated valuable and meaningful networking with other dedicated Environmental Health professionals and I was certainly not disappointed, these Fellows and mentors are the best in their fields and I am inspired by their dedication to their craft. I had also anticipated the support I needed to develop and continue my project, thanks to my mentor, Craig Shepherd, and mentor Team, Jessica Shelly and David Jones (especially David, who has helped me immensely throughout the development of the project). What I had not anticipated was the meaningful personal growth and valuable skills gained in communication and developing leadership.