Vignetta Charles, PhD, is chief executive officer at ETR. Prior to her appointment as CEO, Dr. Charles was chief science officer at ETR, focused on unifying and translating ETR's science-based approaches to training and research. Her professional work and scientific emphasis have focused on the intersection of HIV/AIDS, sexual health, and mental health. She came to ETR from AIDS United, where she served as senior vice president, guiding strategic programming for the organization; garnering public and private resources for programs; leading efforts to measure and document program outcomes; and developing an expanded portfolio on the translation of science to community.
Prior to her work at AIDS United, Dr. Charles developed and rigorously evaluated innovative, theory- and evidence- based sexual and reproductive health and HIV prevention programs. She has focused her professional work on issues that disproportionately impact politically disenfranchised communities.
Dr. Charles served on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS from 2014-2017, advising the White House and the US Department of Health and Human Services on HIV/AIDS domestically and globally. In addition to her board service for The Well Project, she currently serves as the board chair of BEAM (Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective), and on the board of directors of OCHIN. She is an alumna of the University of California at Berkeley for undergraduate work, the Harvard School of Public Health for a master's degree in health and social behavior, and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health for her PhD in the Department of Population, Family, and Reproductive Health.
