Friedman School Dean
Christina Economos, Ph.D. is the Dean of the Friedman School, the New Balance Chair in Childhood Nutrition, and a Professor of Public Health and Community Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine. At the Friedman School, she co-founded and served as Director of ChildObesity180, a nationally renowned research initiative focused on evidence-based interventions, multi-sector partnerships, and stakeholder networks to address the complex drivers of child health and promote equity. She has served as the Dean for Research Strategy and as Chair of the Nutrition Interventions, Communications, and Behavior Change Division at Friedman.
Dr. Economos currently serves as the principal investigator on multiple large-scale, community-based interventions that examine childhood nutrition and physical activity with the goal of improving the health of all of America's children.
Dean for Faculty Affairs
As the Dean for Faculty Affairs, Sara oversees faculty search strategies, hiring, appointments, reappointments, and evaluations. She also leads the development and implementation of policies related to faculty, including policies on mentoring and tenure and promotion. She works to provide professional development opportunities for faculty of all career stages. Her leadership extends to facilitating the implementation of the School's growth and sustainability strategies and serving as a liaison to the provost’s office.
Dean for Educational Affairs
Timothy Griffin is Teri and Barry Volpert Family Professor in Nutrition, Agriculture, and Sustainable Food Systems at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University. He serves as the Dean for Educational Affairs, and also teaches classes on U.S. agriculture, agricultural science and policy, and the linkage between food system domains. In 2018, he was named as the inaugural recipient of a professorship in Nutrition, Agriculture, and Sustainable Food Systems. His current research focuses on the assessment of sustainability across environmental, social and economic metrics, regional food systems, and climate change impacts on agriculture.
Executive Administrative Dean
Elizabeth Nahar recently served as the Executive Director of the Fenway Institute, the research, education and advocacy division of Fenway Health. As leader of the Institute’s strategic priorities, she honed her many skills in operations, management, finance, and staff development and is a key member of the Fenway Health Leadership Committee. Before joining Fenway Health in 2018, Liz’s previous work included diverse management positions at organizations focused on health and education, most recently ten years at the Friedman School. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in Anthropology, and earned a Masters of Social Work and a Masters of Business Administration from Boston College.
Liz serves the Friedman School in a chief-of-staff position to Dean Economos and manages the School’s financial, sponsored research, and marketing and communications departments.
Leadership Staff
Benny Belvin
Benny is serving as the Director of the Block Career Services Center and is working with the Friedman School Community to continue connecting students to opportunities, engaging our organizational and alumni partners to develop relationships and resources, and equipping students and alumni with the tools and strategies to successfully navigate the world of work. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Elmhurst College and a Master’s of Science in Student Affairs Administration from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He completed the Harvard University Administrative Fellowship Program and the University of Oxford’s Executive Leadership Programme. He is designated as a Certified Professional Career Coach by the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches (PARWCC) and a Master Career Development Professional (MCDP) by the National Career Development Association (NCDA).
Annie DeVane
Annie is responsible for major content strategies, marketing initiatives, planning the Friedman digital landscape, and communications programming for the school. She serves as the main liaison to the central Tufts Communications and Marketing team and works closely with Public Relations, the Office of Student Affairs, and the Senior Director of Development and Alumni Relations to align strategic messaging and promote important school-wide initiatives and events.
Matt Hast
As Assistant Dean of Student Affairs, Matt supervises the Office of Student Affairs which includes Admissions, Student Life, and the Office of the Registrar. Matt ensures that the student experience is a smooth one from the point of first contact with the Friedman School through graduation. He also serves as a liaison to the University for Office of Equal Opportunity, the Threat Assessment and Management Program and the Diversity and Inclusion Working Group.
Venus Israni
Venus works with the University and Friedman to achieve a community of inclusive excellence. Venus has worked with deans and senior leadership to design and lead ongoing implementation of diversity strategic plans from the ground up (outlining short-term/long-term goals, key priorities, strategies to achieve goals, and metrics to track). She has advised leaders on embedding numerous DEIJ efforts, resulting in more equitable, welcoming campuses. Venus has experience from work at Boston College, Harvard Chan School of Public Health, and Princeton University. She holds a BA in English from the University of Massachusetts Lowell, a Master’s in Policy, Planning, and Administration from Boston University, and a PhD in Higher Education Administration from Boston College.
Courtney King
As the Director of Business Operations, Courtney manages school-wide, day-to-day operational functions and services. She is responsible for the development and execution of projects, strategies, and programs that help to effectively manage and run the Friedman School, including budget and finance; procurement and contracts; faculty administrative support; facilities management; space management; school-based human resource-related activities; computers, copiers, printers and telecom; information management and data security; events coordination and support; and emergency response and business continuity planning. She serves as the operations liaison to the Budget Center, Tufts Technology Services (TTS), Tufts Support Services (TSS), Tufts Human Resources, Public Safety, and other central divisions as appropriate.
Seedang Simonin
Seedang oversees the Friedman Office of Sponsored Research Administration, which provides School-wide leadership on all matters related to sponsored research. Seedang and her team work closely with faculty, researchers, staff, and administrators across the University in both pre- and post-award administration ensuring compliance with all applicable policies and regulatory requirements. Prior to Friedman, Seedang worked at Harvard Chan School of Public Health and Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. She holds a Bachelor of Accounting from Chulalongkorn University and an MBA from Kent State University. She is a Certified Research Administrator. Learn more about research at the school or find research resources on our website if you are currently part of the Friedman School community.
Cindy Briggs Tobin
As the senior director, Cindy develops and leads the team’s outreach and fundraising strategies and tactics, working closely with the dean, other academic leaders, and volunteer leadership in order to achieve the school’s philanthropic goals. While she focuses on raising capital and major gifts, her staff members manage annual giving, alumni relations, special events, development communications, and donor relations. Cindy also coordinates with the university’s Central Advancement team and other university offices on activities, such as corporate and foundation relations, and planned giving. Read more about her team's work.