BIOGRAPHIES
J. Ricardo Guzman, M.S.W., M.P.H.
Chief Executive Officer
Ricardo Guzman
has more than 36 years experience working with health and human service
programs targeting the southwest Detroit Hispanic community. Since 1983,
Mr. Guzman has served as Chief Executive Officer of the Community Health and
Social Services Center (CHASS), a comprehensive Federally Qualified Health
Center (FQHC) with three locations in Detroit that provide a full range of
culturally competent primary health care and social services. During his
tenure as CEO of CHASS Mr. Guzman has increased funding from $650,000 to over $5
Million dollars annually. Mr. Guzman has been successful in obtaining federal,
state, and local governmental and foundation grant funding to plan and implement
several major community-level interventions addressing chronic disease and
Intimate Partner Violence in
Detroit
. He serves as Program Director for REACH Detroit Partnership (a CDC-funded
initiative addressing diabetes among African Americans and Hispanics) and for
'LA VIDA' (a multi-component community intervention addressing domestic violence
against Latina
women). Through his involvement with the
Detroit
Community-Academic
Urban
Research
Center
, Mr. Guzman serves as a leading advocate for community participation in the
planning and implementation of health programs relevant to minority communities. Mr.
Guzman’s publications include co-authoring articles in The American College
of Obstetricians and Gynecologist, Health Education and Behavior, and
Ethnicity & Disease just to name a few. Mr. Guzman is an active
member in the National Association of Community Health Centers, the Michigan
Primary Care Association and the National Alliance for Hispanic Health. He has
also received numerous awards including the National Hispanic Health Leadership
Award in Washington, D.C., the
Zenobia Payne-Drake Humanitarian Award from the Detroit Black Family
Development, Inc. agency and most recently, the Excellence in Community
Development Award from the Michigan Hispanic Business Association in 2005 and
the Helping Hands Award from the Michigan Head Start Association in 2006.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Phone:
313-849-3920
Fax:
313-849-0824
Email:
rguzman@chasscenter.org
Erminia Ramirez, M.S.W.
Chief Operating Officer
Ms. Erminia Ramirez is a native Detroiter
who presently resides in
Southwest Detroit
. She received her B.A. from the
University
of
Michigan
,
Ann Arbor
in Psychology and her Masters in Social Work (M.S.W.) from
Wayne
State
University
. After earning her M.S.W., Ms.
Ramirez returned to
Detroit
to serve her community. Ms. Ramirez currently serves as the Chief Operating
Officer for
CHASS
Center
. At present, she also serves as one
of the five members of the Detroit Police Commission. Ms. Ramirez has
demonstrated her commitment to improving the quality of life in
Southwest Detroit
by involving and participating on various boards and organizations including
the Latino Action Network, Detroit Health Department Lead Advisory Committee,
and the Southwest Detroit Improvement Association.
Some of Ms. Ramirez’ most recent awards include the Chief’s Merit
Award and an Award of Appreciation for commitment from the Detroit Police
Department 13th Precinct.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Phone:
313-849-3920
Fax:
313-849-0824
Email:
eramirez@chasscenter.org
Felix Valbuena Jr., M.D.
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Felix Valbuena Jr.,
M.D. completed his Family Medicine Residency at
Henry
Ford
Hospital
. He is currently a Senior Staff Physician in the Department of Family Medicine
at
Henry
Ford
Hospital
and Chief Medical Officer of the Community Health and Social Services (CHASS)
Center. Dr. Valbuena has been active
in the
Southwest Detroit
community for many years having worked at SER-Metro, Latino Family Services,
CHASS
Center
and
Wilson
Middle School
(now
Phoenix
Academy
). He also served on the Governing
Board of Directors of Southwest Detroit Community Mental Health (now Southwest
Solutions) and Latino Family Services. Dr. Valbuena completed undergraduate
studies in Psychology at the University of Notre Dame and received his Medical
Degree from Universidad El Bosque in
Bogotá
, Colombia.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Phone:
313-849-3920
Fax:
313-849-0824
Email:
fvalbue1@hfhs.org
