California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed a Black woman to be the state’s first surgeon general on Monday, according to the San Francisco Examiner.
Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, 43, is a San Francisco-based pediatrician and CEO of the Center for Youth Wellness in the city.
“Looking forward to rolling up my sleeves as CA’s first Surgeon General,” Burke Harris wrote on Twitter. “Thank you @GavinNewsom for your bold vision for health for all Californians. #preventscreenandheal!.
Newsom’s office said that he chose her to help California’s children. Burke Harris has worked toward helping children who experience trauma, which is “one of the most serious, expensive and widespread public health crises of our time,” according to a short biography on her, per the Examiner.
In addition to running the Center for Youth Wellness, Harris is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ National Advisory Board for Screening and heads the Bay Area Research Consortium on Toxic Stress and Health.
Burke Harris received support online from politicians such as Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
She will be sworn in on Feb. 11 and receive a salary of $200,000, writes the Examiner.
