Charles Brokopp, Director, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene Elected President of Association of Public Health Laboratories

SILVER SPRING, MD--(Marketwire - Jul 16, 2012) -  The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) is excited to announce that Charles Brokopp, MPH, DrPH, director of the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, has been elected president of the Association. A long-time public health leader, Brokopp will serve as president from July 1, 2012 - June 30, 2013.

Brokopp has served as director of the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH) since September 2006. Prior to joining the WSLH, Brokopp served as director of the Division of Select Agents and Toxins at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta and was laboratory director for the state public health laboratories in Utah, Oregon and Idaho. Brokopp started his public health laboratory career as a public health microbiologist and laboratory consultant at the Wisconsin Division of Health.

He received bachelor's degrees in biology-zoology from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and in medical technology from Freeport (IL) Memorial Hospital School of Medical Technology. He received his master's and doctor of public health degrees from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill.

Dr. Brokopp's research interests include the application of laboratory sciences to support public health and environmental health programs, as well as the development of information technologies to effectively manage and share laboratory and surveillance data to improve public health, environmental health and occupational programs.

"Dr. Brokopp brings a true national perspective to APHL," says Scott J. Becker, executive director of APHL. "His wealth of experience covering all facets of laboratory practice will allow him to provide great insight in the coming year."

The Association of Public Health Laboratories is a national nonprofit located in Silver Spring, MD, that is dedicated to working with members to strengthen governmental laboratories with a public health mandate. By promoting effective programs and public policy, APHL strives to provide public health laboratories with the resources and infrastructure needed to protect the health of US residents and to prevent and control disease globally.