10-24-2021 Women to Watch - Flipbook - Page 12
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WOMEN
TO WATCH
Meet the Baltimore area’s most intriguing
movers and shakers of 2021
BRIG. GEN. JANEEN BIRCKHEAD
52, commander of the Maryland Army National Guard
It wasn’t the usual assignment, rushing to a natural
or other kind of disaster in a Maryland town. The coronavirus pandemic devastation was bigger.
And when vaccines were authorized, not everyone
could get one. Gov. Larry Hogan tapped Maryland National Guard Brig. Gen. Janeen Birckhead to lead an equity task force.
Birckhead had led the guard on Capitol Hill after the
Jan. 6 attack and was working on Maryland’s pandemic
response. She “did not blink an eye” at the new challenge, said Dennis R. Schrader, secretary of Maryland’s
Department of Health.
She “quickly and efficiently stood up the Vaccine
Equity Task Force, established an operational plan, and
executed a critical mission for Maryland,” said Schrader.
“Her leadership and the work of the task force is why
Maryland is a national leader in vaccinating our Black,
Hispanic, Asian and other minority and vulnerable populations.”
Birckhead said she leaned on past experiences, from
her Maryland roots and education to guard work and
her day job in the U.S. Department of Interior’s Office of
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the Special Trustee for American Indians.
“It took me a few days on my own, thinking about
what this should look like,” she said. “I’m from [the]
Eastern Shore, been in the guard for 28 years and I
know the state pretty well. I’ve worked on the Hill. All
my experiences ... helped make something actionable
and enduring.”
There were plenty of hurdles for residents, from lack
of transportation to language barriers. Some had concerns about vaccines, including her own mother who
was helping care for Birckhead’s two children. It took
time and discussions, but ultimately she got a shot.
As the task force was winding down this fall, the
team had provided more than 150,000 vaccinations during 1,000 missions, often coordinated with hospitals and
local health departments. Disparities dropped.
Now that the work is no longer “nonstop,” Birckhead
is finding moments in her Anne Arundel home for her
favorite hobby, making flower wreaths. But as she returns to Interior, she says the work on equity isn’t done
and she’ll continue to be part of the conversation.
— Meredith Cohn