Dr. Mandy Cohen, new CDC director, left her mark in Baldwin when she was Mandy Krauthamer
Dr. Mandy Cohen during a coronavirus briefing in North Carolina in 2020. Credit: TNS/The News & Observer/Ethan Hyman
When the Baldwin Foundation for Education awarded its first round of scholarships to three high school graduates in 1996, it found a worthy recipient in Mandy Krauthamer.
As a high honors student at Baldwin Senior High School, Krauthamer was named the school’s Sylvan Scholar as the winner of the Century III Leaders competition. She was trained as an AIDS peer educator who spoke to fellow students about the threat of AIDS. She volunteered at a hospital and distributed food packages for Interfaith Nutrition Network.
Her accomplishments stretched on so long, the foundation noted she could win an award "based on any number of criteria," according to a newsletter from 1996 that featured the winners.
Now known as Dr. Mandy Cohen, the Long Island native’s journey has taken her from star pupil to the head of the nation’s top federal public health agency.
The White House on Friday announced Cohen, 44, will be the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She succeeds Dr. Rochelle Walensky, who announced last month she was leaving at the end of June.
Mindy Edwards, a retired music teacher who lives in Glen Cove, recalled Cohen as a “fabulous musician” who played violin in the orchestra and was a soprano soloist in the choir. Cohen even conducted the choir at Edwards’ retirement party, she said.
“Mandy was one of the special ones that I’ll always remember,” said Edwards, who taught for 36 years. “Talented, very bright. … Just an all-around fabulous young lady.”
Cohen, who is married with two children, no longer lives on Long Island, but her family still has strong roots in the area.
Her father, Marshall Krauthamer, was a New York City special education teacher and guidance counselor. Her mother, Susan Krauthamer, worked as an emergency room nurse practitioner.
Cohen has said she drew inspiration from her mother at a young age.
“It’s really through her eyes that I saw both the good and the bad of the health care system,” Cohen said in a 2020 interview on the “1on1 with Joe Evans” podcast. “The cracks of our system show up in the emergency room. But also, the wonderfulness of watching my mom get stopped in the grocery store, saying ‘Oh, thank you so much for helping my mom or sister.' ”
In a 2010 interview with the American College of Physicians, Cohen echoed those thoughts, saying: “My mother was a big influence on me. I wanted to help people like she helped them, in times that were hard for them, even if [it] meant just holding their hands.”
About 25 years ago, the Baldwin Foundation for Education helped the district raise money by selling plaques on chairs in the high school auditorium to commemorate important people in the district. The Krauthamer family purchased one dedicated to music teachers that’s still visible today, according to the foundation.
After graduating high school, Cohen attended Cornell University and then earned a medical degree from Yale and a master’s in public health from Harvard.
She lives in North Carolina, where she was secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services from 2017 until last year. She helped guide the state through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most recently, she was executive vice president and chief executive of Aledade Care Solutions, a health service unit for the Maryland-based consulting company.
President Joe Biden Friday praised Cohen’s leadership during the pandemic and for developing “innovative and nationally recognized programs” while in her role with the North Carolina HHS. “Dr. Cohen is one of the nation’s top physicians and health leaders with experience leading large and complex organizations, and a proven track record protecting Americans’ health and safety,” he said.
Edwards recalled seeing Cohen's name mentioned as a possibility for secretary of Health and Human Services when Biden was forming his Cabinet.
"We knew that she was very influential in medicine down in North Carolina," she said. "And very well thought of, which we were not surprised at."
With AP
When the Baldwin Foundation for Education awarded its first round of scholarships to three high school graduates in 1996, it found a worthy recipient in Mandy Krauthamer.
As a high honors student at Baldwin Senior High School, Krauthamer was named the school’s Sylvan Scholar as the winner of the Century III Leaders competition. She was trained as an AIDS peer educator who spoke to fellow students about the threat of AIDS. She volunteered at a hospital and distributed food packages for Interfaith Nutrition Network.
Her accomplishments stretched on so long, the foundation noted she could win an award "based on any number of criteria," according to a newsletter from 1996 that featured the winners.
Now known as Dr. Mandy Cohen, the Long Island native’s journey has taken her from star pupil to the head of the nation’s top federal public health agency.
The White House on Friday announced Cohen, 44, will be the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She succeeds Dr. Rochelle Walensky, who announced last month she was leaving at the end of June.
Mindy Edwards, a retired music teacher who lives in Glen Cove, recalled Cohen as a “fabulous musician” who played violin in the orchestra and was a soprano soloist in the choir. Cohen even conducted the choir at Edwards’ retirement party, she said.
“Mandy was one of the special ones that I’ll always remember,” said Edwards, who taught for 36 years. “Talented, very bright. … Just an all-around fabulous young lady.”
Cohen, who is married with two children, no longer lives on Long Island, but her family still has strong roots in the area.
Her father, Marshall Krauthamer, was a New York City special education teacher and guidance counselor. Her mother, Susan Krauthamer, worked as an emergency room nurse practitioner.
Cohen has said she drew inspiration from her mother at a young age.
“It’s really through her eyes that I saw both the good and the bad of the health care system,” Cohen said in a 2020 interview on the “1on1 with Joe Evans” podcast. “The cracks of our system show up in the emergency room. But also, the wonderfulness of watching my mom get stopped in the grocery store, saying ‘Oh, thank you so much for helping my mom or sister.' ”
In a 2010 interview with the American College of Physicians, Cohen echoed those thoughts, saying: “My mother was a big influence on me. I wanted to help people like she helped them, in times that were hard for them, even if [it] meant just holding their hands.”
About 25 years ago, the Baldwin Foundation for Education helped the district raise money by selling plaques on chairs in the high school auditorium to commemorate important people in the district. The Krauthamer family purchased one dedicated to music teachers that’s still visible today, according to the foundation.
After graduating high school, Cohen attended Cornell University and then earned a medical degree from Yale and a master’s in public health from Harvard.
She lives in North Carolina, where she was secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services from 2017 until last year. She helped guide the state through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most recently, she was executive vice president and chief executive of Aledade Care Solutions, a health service unit for the Maryland-based consulting company.
President Joe Biden Friday praised Cohen’s leadership during the pandemic and for developing “innovative and nationally recognized programs” while in her role with the North Carolina HHS. “Dr. Cohen is one of the nation’s top physicians and health leaders with experience leading large and complex organizations, and a proven track record protecting Americans’ health and safety,” he said.
Edwards recalled seeing Cohen's name mentioned as a possibility for secretary of Health and Human Services when Biden was forming his Cabinet.
"We knew that she was very influential in medicine down in North Carolina," she said. "And very well thought of, which we were not surprised at."
With AP
Joe Werkmeister covers the towns of Southampton, East Hampton and Shelter Island. He is a graduate of St. Bonaventure University and previously worked as the editor of two North Fork community newspapers.
Sean 'Diddy' Combs indicted ... Can LI roads withstand more flooding? ... Legacy of 8-year-old's cancer fight ... Get the latest news and more great videos at NewsdayTV
Sean 'Diddy' Combs indicted ... Can LI roads withstand more flooding? ... Legacy of 8-year-old's cancer fight ... Get the latest news and more great videos at NewsdayTV
