The Jersey City Medical Center’s new Director of Diversity & Inclusion hails from Nutley.
Adrienne Austin was recently appointed to the position at the JCMC, part of RWJBarnabas Health, a network of independent healthcare providers in New Jersey.
Austin has spent years working on diversity and inclusion programs in public education in New York City, and she will continue advancing health equity initiatives at the JCMC.
“I am delighted to welcome Adrienne to the JCMC family,” Michael Prilutsky, president and CEO of the JCMC, said. “In her work with the New York City Department of Education, Adrienne created several opportunities to implement programs in the diversity, equity and inclusion arena, and I am confident she will advance our diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at Jersey City Medical Center to the benefit of our team and the communities we serve.”
Austin most recently as the deputy chancellor and as chief operating officer in the Division of Community Empowerment, Partnerships and Communications for the NYC DOE; and chief of staff to the Office of General Counsel. Austin also worked as a program associate at the Vera Institute of Justice and a staff attorney at the Bronx Defenders.
The Nutley resident said she’s excited to bring her diversity, equity and inclusion expertise to the healthcare realm.
“I appreciate this opportunity, and I look forward to continuing to build on the diversity and inclusion work that Jersey City Medical Center has successfully initiated,” Austin said. “The diversity of the team and patients provides an opportunity to learn specific health care needs that enhance and promote wellness.”
Austin received a bachelor’s degree in poly-sci from the University of California and a juris doctorate from the New York University School of Law.w
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.