Children and Families Commission of Orange County Elects Kimberly Chavalas Cripe as New Chairperson; Julie Poulson Elected as Vice Chair of Commission.

Business Editors

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 11, 2003

The Children and Families Commission of Orange County elected as its new chairwoman Kimberly Chavalas Cripe, with Julie Poulson named as the new vice chair of the Commission.

"I am grateful for my colleagues' confidence in me as I take on this responsibility and look forward to continuing our work on behalf of Orange County's children as we move ahead with the Commission's aggressive agenda," Cripe said. "I share my colleagues' enthusiasm for the various initiatives we currently have underway including our emphasis on issues as diverse as asthma, school readiness, language development, injury prevention and health access."

Cripe has been a member of the Commission since its inception in 1999. She also serves as president-elect of the California Children's Hospital Association and is affiliated with several health-related organizations including the Child Health Corporation of America and the Healthcare Association of Southern California.

"Kim is an excellent choice to serve as chair for the Commission and implement many of the programs we have focused on, especially our children's health initiatives, which she is uniquely qualified to shepherd along," said Crystal Kochendorfer, outgoing chair of the Commission. "I am confident her leadership and extensive managerial experience will serve Orange County's children well."

Cripe has long been an advocate for children, focusing her efforts on expanding health care access to underserved children in the community. Those efforts earned her the 1999 Mentor in Medicine Award from the March of Dimes. She is currently president and chief executive officer for Children's Hospital of Orange County.

She did her undergraduate studies at the University of Southern California and the University of South Florida earning her bachelor's degree. She went on to receive a master's degree in public administration with an emphasis in health services management from Golden Gate University. She is the mother of three sons and lives with her family in Newport Beach.

Julie Poulson, elected as vice chair for the Commission, is a registered nurse specializing in mental health and substance abuse. She is the director of the Orange County Health Care Agency (HCA), which oversees a number of critical social programs including the California Children Devices, Child Health, Mental Health Children's Services, and Field Nursing programs.

She has spent much of her professional life focusing on healthcare programs for children. Ms. Poulson developed a school-based counseling program early in her career along with a residential program for youth in crisis and community-based parent education programs. More recently, she has worked to expand behavioral health services at the Orangewood Children's Home. She earned her degree in community mental health from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Appointed by the County Board of Supervisors, the nine members of the Children and Families Commission include leaders in government, pediatric health and education.

The Children and Families Commission of Orange County was created as a result of Proposition 10, the California Children and Families Act of 1998. The proposition added a 50-cent sales tax on tobacco products sold in California and requires that funds raised be used to support education, health and childcare programs promoting healthy early childhood development from the prenatal stage to age five. The Children and Families Commission of Orange County is responsible for overseeing the allocation of tobacco tax revenues received annually from the State Commission. For more information, please see the Commission website at www.occhildrenandfamilies.com.