Outstanding Recent Graduate Award 2011

2011 Recipients

Nikolas R. Buescher, A&S ’02, SPH ’04
After his graduation from JHSPH in 2005, Nikolas Buescher returned to Fairview Southdale Hospital in Minneapolis, where he completed his Master of Health Sciences (MHS) field placement as director of oncology. In this new role, he was responsible for the business development and strategic growth of the hospital’s cancer program. In addition to increasing the oncology service line outpatient revenue from $6 million to $44 million, under his leadership the program grew from 9th to 4th largest in the Twin Cities. Within 18 months, he led an unaccredited program with multiple deficiencies to “accreditation with commendation” status. In 2006, Fairview Southdale received the Surgeons Outstanding Achievement Award and ranked in the top 6 percent of cancer programs. In 2008, Nikolas became vice president of oncology for Mountain States Health Alliance (MSHA) in Johnson City, Tennessee. At MSHA, he is responsible for oncology service lines at an integrated delivery system comprised of 15 hospitals in Tennessee and Virginia. He led the creation of new outpatient business model and oversaw the construction of two new comprehensive cancer centers offering medical oncology and ancillary services at existing radiation therapy locations. Nikolas is also the president of the American Cancer Society Tri Cities’ Leadership Council and was recognized by The Business Journal as a member of the 2010 class of 40 Under Forty. Nikolas is an active alumnus of the Johns Hopkins Master of Health Sciences program. He is currently a program mentor to a student in the Class of 2011 and hosted her visit to MSHA earlier this year. Top

Rosa M. Gonzalez-Guarda, Nurs ’05 (MSN/MPH)
Dr. Gonzalez-Guarda has focused her attention on improving the health of minorities and other at-risk communities throughout the world. Rosa has authored numerous articles and presented her work at a national summit. She is currently an assistant professor at University of Miami. She has been selected to serve on the Institute of Medicine and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Committee with University of Miami President Donna Shalala. Top

Lara S. Ho, Nurs ’00, SPH ’03, ’07 (PhD)
Dr. Lara Ho works with the International Rescue Committee and heads the health team that provides support and capacity building to NGOs providing health services in a post-conflict environment on the Ivory Coast. She is the author and co-author of numerous articles and has participated in a number of presentations of her work. She is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer and a board member for Friends of Mongolia in Washington. Top

Benjamin J. Kim, Peab ’04
Benjamin Kim was born and raised in Portland, Oregon, where he began studying piano at age five with Dorothy Fahlman. He made his solo debut at age 8 and his orchestral debut at 12. After finishing high school, Leon Fleisher accepted him as a student at the Peabody Conservatory – one of the very few undergraduates ever accepted into Fleisher’s studio. At age 20, Ben completed an accelerated bachelor of music program. He continued his studies with Mr. Fleisher and Yong Hi Moon as a candidate for the Artist Diploma program, the school’s highest distinction. During this time he was also selected to attend the International Piano Academy Lake Como in Italy from 2005-2007, an exclusive program for seven pianists, headed by Martha Argerich and William Grant Naboré. Ben Kim’s budding career became the focus of international attention after he won First Prize in the 55th ARD Munich International Music Competition in 2006. He has garnered critical acclaim for his engagements at such venues including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Berlin Konzerthaus, and the Warsaw Philharmonic Hall, and at renowned festivals including Aspen, Ravinia, and Klavier-Festival Ruhr. Ben's performances have been broadcast on NPR’s “Performance Today”, and featured in “Frontline/World” on PBS. His debut recording of Chopin, Debussy, and Mozart for the Sony Classical label was released in May 2007 and Sony Japan in July 2009. Germany’s illustrious Klavier-Festival Ruhr also issued a portrait CD of Ben after his performance at the festival became a surprise highlight of the summer in 2007. Ben currently resides in Berlin, working with Klaus Hellwig at the University of Arts Berlin. He recently completed a 13-concert tour through Japan with the Brno Philharmonic, had many debuts with German Philharmonies and performed a series of concerts with the Jupiter String Quartet, one of America’s leading young quartets. Top

Westley W. O. Moore, A&S ’01
Westley Moore graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the Johns Hopkins University Zanvyl Krieger School of Arts and Sciences in 2001 with a bachelor’s degree in International Studies. He was named a Rhodes Scholar and earned a Masters of Letters in International Relations from Oxford University in 2004. He was a paratrooper and captain in the United States Army, serving a combat tour of duty in Afghanistan with the elite 1st Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division in 2005–2006. Mr. Moore spearheaded the American strategic support plan for the Afghan Reconciliation Program that unites former insurgents with the new Afghan Government. He is recognized as an authority on the rise and ramifications of radical Islamism in the Western Hemisphere. Mr. Moore was a White House Fellow from 2006–2007, serving as a special assistant to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. He then joined Citigroup in Manhattan, where his work focuses on global technology and alternative investments. In 2009 he was selected as an Asia Society Fellow; he was named one of Ebony magazine’s “Top 30 Leaders Under 30” for 2007; Crain’s New York Business included him in “40 Under 40 Rising Stars” in 2009. Mr. Moore was a featured speaker at the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver. He is the author of the nationally acclaimed book, The Other Wes Moore, which received a starred review from Publishers Weekly and which Oprah Winfrey choose as the subject for an episode of her popular talk show. Mr. Moore has been an active volunteer with Johns Hopkins, serving on the school of arts and sciences advisory board and the board of trustees. Top

Caitlin Russell Reed, SPH ’09
Caitlin Reed is a former Sommer Scholar, an exclusive scholarship named after Dean Emeritus Alfred Sommer given to the top thirty students showing innate leadership skills in diverse areas. After graduation, Caitlin went on to found ‘Maiti Nepal’ a non-profit organization based in Nepal that takes in hundreds of girls and women who have been cast away by their families and communities because of their involvement in sex work. This year, Caitlin Reed received the good news that Maiti Nepal had been awarded a $500,000 grant by the U.S. State Department Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. Along with four other alumni, Dr. Reed traveled to Nepal where they performed a stakeholder assessment of the organization, provided grant-writing training to Maiti Nepal’s staff involved in HIV treatment review, and performed clinical work. In Baltimore, the team organized a fundraiser, hosted speakers and screened a documentary at the undergraduate campus. With colleagues, she drafted Maiti Nepal’s first strategic plan, mentored the staff, developed a funding proposal, and investigated and reported on cases of organ- and sex-trafficking. Maiti Nepal can now offer improved HIV treatment regimens, cervical cancer screening, and rehabilitation programs for the girls who have been abused, some since the age of 9 years old. In addition, Dr. Reed has focused on infectious diseases and international medicine, specifically the intersection of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. She has presented at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and has had several papers published in peer-reviewed publications. Top