Past Presidents 

Nicholas Cummings, PhD, ScD, 1981-1994

Dr. Cummings is Distinguished Professor, University of Nevada, Reno; President, Cummings Foundation for Behavioral Health; and Past President of the American Psychological Association. He was founding President in 1981 of the National Academies of Practice, one of 26 enduring organizations he founded in his career. He designed and wrote the nation's first prepaid psychotherapy insurance benefit for Kaiser Permenente in 1959, and served as its Chief of Mental Health for over 20 years. He was Founding President of the four campuses of the California School of Professional Psychology, and Founding CEO of American Biodyne (now Magellan Healthcare).

Dr. Cummings is the author or co-author of 34 books and has published over 400 scientific and professional articles in refereed journals. He is the recipient of five honorary doctorates and psychology's highest award, the Gold Medal for a Lifetime of Contributions to Practice. Among several appointments in Washington, he served on two Presidential Mental Health Commissions, those of John F. Kennedy and Jimmy Carter., and has testified 18 times on healthcare issues before the Congress of the United States.

William Felts, MD, 1994-1996

Dr. Felts served on the NAP Council since 1991. He graduated from the University Of Arkansas College Of Medicine. He was a Professor of Medicine at the George Washington University in Washington, DC where he conducted arthritis research. He served on a number of national organizations, including the National Arthritis Advisory Board, the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, a World Health Organization task force on rheumatology in developing countries, and a White House Conference on aging. He was awarded the American College of Physician's Mastership Award in 1998. Dr. Felts died in 2003.

Ron G. Fair, OD, 1996-1999

Dr. Fair was elected as a Distinguished Practitioner of the NAP in 1986, and served as the chairperson of the Optometry Academy from 1990-1993. A graduate of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry, Dr. Fair is a partner in Brighton Vision Clinic Eye Associates in Brighton, CO. He served as President of the Colorado Optometric Association in 1968 and in 1976-1977 as President of the American Optometric Association. Dr. Fair has published and lectured extensively, and has served as a consultant to several state and federal government agencies. In 1995, Dr. Fair was honored as Brighton Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Citizen of the Year and by the American Academy of Optometry with its prestigious Carel C. Koch Memorial Medal Award.

Hurdis Griffith, PhD, RN 1999 -2002

Dr. Griffith was elected as a Distinguished Practitioner in 1985, and has served as Chairperson of the Nursing Academy from 1992 - 1996. She graduated from the University of the State of Washington and the University of Maryland. She was the Dean and Professor of the College of Nursing at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey during her term as NAP President. Prior to that position, she served in the office of the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 1997 she was the recipient of the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellowship.

Dan Laskin, DDS, MS, DSc (hon.), 2002-2004

Dr. Laskin received his DDS degree from Indiana University School of Dentistry and his Master of Science degree from the University of Illinois. He was formerly Professor and Head of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in the College of Dentistry (1973-1983), Clinical Professor of Surgery in the College of Medicine (1961-83), and Director of the Temporomandibular Joint and Facial Pain Research Center (1963-83) at the University of Illinois Professional Colleges. He currently holds the rank of Professor Emeritus. From 1984 until 2002 he was Professor and Chairman of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in the School of Dentistry and Chairman of the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in the School of Medicine at Medical College of Virginia/Virginia Commonwealth University. He is currently Professor and Chairman Emeritus. Since 2003 he has remained in the department as Professor and Chairman Emeritus. He was also Director of the Temporomandibular Joint and Facial Pain Research.

Dr. Laskin is Past-President of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, and also served as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery from 1972-2002. He is Past-President and former Secretary-General of the International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons and also served as the Executive Director of that organization. He has also been President of the American Dental Society of Anesthesiology. He is a member of Omicron Kappa Upsilon, Sigma Xi and a Fellow of both the American and International College of Dentists. He is also an honorary Fellow in Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. His other honors include the Distinguished Service Award from the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, the Distinguished Alumni Service Award from Indiana University, the William J. Gies Oral Surgery Award, the Heidbrink Award, the Donald B. Osbon Award for Outstanding Educator, and the Virginia Commonwealth University Award of Excellence.

Dr. Laskin has made over 900 contributions to the literature in the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery and in dental research, including 16 books on the various aspects of oral and maxillofacial surgery, including the temporomandibular joint. He is the recipient of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons Research Recognition Award and the W. Harry Archer Achievement Award for his studies on the temporomandibular joint, and in 1993 he received the Norton M. Ross Award for Excellence in Clinical Research from the American Dental Association.

Jane Ball, RN, DrPH, 2004-2006

Dr. Ball graduated from the Johns Hopkins Hospital School of Nursing. She obtained her masters and doctorate in Public Health from John Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health. She is also a certified pediatric nurse practitioner. She is the Executive Director of the National Resource Center (NRC) at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, DC. The NRC provides support to two federal programs in the Department of Health and Human Services' Health Services and Resources Administration: the Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) Program and the Trauma - EMS Program. Through this center, consultation is provided to all state health departments and to health professionals about ways to improve the system of emergency and trauma care for children and adults.

Dr. Ball has authored numerous articles and publications as well as several health care textbooks, including Mosby's Guide to Physical Examination, Pediatric Nursing: Caring for Children; and Child Health Nursing: Partnering with Children and Families. One of these texts, Pediatric Nursing: Caring for Children, received the1999 and 2001 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Last Acts Coalition "Outstanding Specialty Book" Award.

Prior to serving as the President of the NAP, Dr. Ball served as its Treasurer and as the Chairperson of the Nursing Academy.

David A. Rodgers, PhD, 2006 – 2008

David A. Rodgers, Ph.D., is Emeritus Staff of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, where he established the Section of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry and Psychology in 1966. Following his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago and V.A. post-doctoral training through Stanford University, he joined the Psychology Faculty at the University of California in Berkeley. He later moved to an NIMH Research Fellowship at the Brain Research Institute at UCLA and has since held adjunct faculty appointments at several universities, including an Adjunct Full Professorship at the University of California in San Diego. Before transferring to the Cleveland Clinic, he established the Section of Medical Psychology in the Dept. of Psychiatry at Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation in La Jolla, Calif. He has been Principal or Co-principal Investigator for research grants from NSF, NIH, USPHS, and FAA. He has authored numerous papers and book chapters.

Dr. Rodgers has served on the Council of Representatives and on major Boards and Committees of the American Psychological Association, including the Policy and Planning Board and two Blue-Ribbon Commissions to review the structure of APA. He was instrumental in writing the Ohio Psychology Licensing Law, twice served as President of the Ohio Psychological Association and served as President of the Ohio Psychology Regulatory Board. He served on the Executive Committee of the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards and on many other boards and committees. With Ronald Fox, a Founding Member of NAP, he was instrumental in establishing the School of Professional Psychology at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. He has received many awards for scholarly and professional achievement.