Building Bridges: Breaking Barriers
A Campaign For All

About

BUILD TRUST

ENSURE COMPLIANCE

ENHANCE COMMUNITY VOICE
STRENGTHEN FAMILIES & WORKFORCE

UNINCORPORATED, RURAL REPRESENTATION

Erica has lived in Douglas County for over 40 years, raising two children in unincorporated Douglas County—Baldwin City—with her husband, Dustin Rothwell, who is a small business owner in the area. Married for more than 20 years, they have a daughter who works as a Clinical Nursing Associate in the Medical ICU at KU and a son who is a high school senior at Baldwin High School this fall. Their son also works at Hy-Vee and installs awnings. In her limited free time, Erica enjoys gardening (she's a Master Gardener through the K-State Extension), canning, and, for their 20th wedding anniversary, she and Dustin have taken up rock sculpting, learning from several local sculptors in the county. Additionally, Erica will be completing her first Ultra Marathon this October, a goal she set for herself several years ago.

LIFE-LONG LEARNER

Erica holds a B.S. in Business Administration, an M.S. in Public Affairs, and a Ph.D. in Public Health. While pursuing her postgraduate studies, she balanced raising a family, working full-time, advocating for policy change, and mentoring both youth and adults to become tobacco prevention advocates at the county, state, and national levels. Throughout her career, Erica has been involved in policy development, striving to bring diverse perspectives to the table for challenging conversations that lead to consensus.

Erica has had the privilege of partnering with many amazing organizations over the years to develop pilot programs aimed at improving health outcomes and testing innovative healthcare solutions. The initiatives have included Mobile Integrated Health, Community Health Workers, weight monitoring for Congestive Heart Failure, and social health access referral platforms to inform closed-loop referrals and a social longitudinal record. Additionally, she led the Veterans Reflection Exhibit, Uniting to Combat Hunger, More Healthy Days initiative with blood pressure monitoring cuffs in libraries, Laundry Love, and informed the establishment of Mobile Markets across the nation.

Her dissertation examined veteran suicides, exploring their relationship to mental health funding, social isolation, loneliness, and methods of suicide.

ADVANCING HEALTH

Erica serves on the Strategic Advisory Board for the Healthcare Institute for Innovations in Quality. In 2023, she was an Advisor for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), specifically on the Arthritis Expert Advisory Panel and Design Team. She has held various elected and volunteer roles with the Kansas Public Health Association (KPHA), including:

President
Ex-Officio Board Member
Treasurer
Conference Chair
Chair for Tobacco and Mental Health

Additionally, Erica was the inaugural recipient of the Regional Health Equity Council (RHEC) Champion Award, which recognizes outstanding partnerships, strategies, and interventions that bring together diverse perspectives to enhance patient-centered care and access.

EMPLOYMENT

Erica worked her way through school by serving at Paradise Cafe, bartending at the Jazz House and the Pool Room, and working at Old Chicago and the Hereford House. During her time in the hospitality industry, she had two children and became aware of the impacts of secondhand smoke, which inspired her advocacy for clean indoor air policies, food as medicine, and safe routes to schools. Furthermore, Erica is a leader in the Medicare and Medicaid health insurance sector, focusing on enhancing community health linkages and driving local health improvements. Currently, she has the privilege of supporting Community Health Assessments (CHA), Community Health Improvement Planning (CHIP), and implementing APLs for Health Plans.

HISTORY OF GIVING BACK

Erica has been actively involved in community volunteering since her youth. She served as a Junior Volunteer at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, volunteered with the Suicide Crisis hotline at Headquarters, and acted as a student advocate on campus for survivors of sexual assault. She has also been actively involved in Junior Achievement, volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and Harvesters, and served on several LiveWell and Lawrence Coalitions.

Building Bridges: Breaking Barriers A Campaign For All