Press
January 8, 2023
GAIA VACCINE FOUNDATION APPOINTS TIFFANI CRIPPIN AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Providence, RI – GAIA Vaccine Foundation, a leading non-profit organization committed to global health and vaccine research, is delighted to announce the promotion of Tiffani Crippin to the position of Executive Director.
Tiffani Crippin has been an invaluable member of the GAIA Vaccine Foundation team for 5 years, consistently demonstrating exceptional leadership, dedication, and a passion for the organization's mission. During her tenure, she has played a crucial role in expanding GAIA's programs and advancing initiatives to address some of Mali’s most pressing health challenges.
"We are thrilled to announce Tiffani Crippin's well-deserved promotion to the position of Executive Director," said Anne De Groot, Founder of GAIA Vaccine Foundation. "Tiffani's exemplary track record of success and her unwavering commitment to improving global health make her the ideal candidate to lead the foundation into the next phase of growth and impact."
In her previous role as Program Coordinator, Tiffani exhibited extraordinary leadership in establishing strategic partnerships with key stakeholders, fostering collaborations with research institutions, and advocating for increased access to life-saving vaccines in underserved communities.
As Executive Director, Tiffani Crippin will be responsible for spearheading GAIA’s overall strategic vision and overseeing day-to-day operations. Her leadership will play a pivotal role in strengthening GAIA's position as a frontrunner in global health initiatives and continue to build upon the organization's legacy of making a positive impact on public health in Mali.
"I am deeply honored and excited to take on the role of Executive Director at GAIA Vaccine Foundation," said Tiffani Crippin. "Together with our exceptional team and partners, we will strive to accelerate the accessibility of life-saving vaccines, with the ultimate goal of creating a healthier and more resilient world."
The Board of Directors and the entire GAIA Vaccine Foundation community extend their warmest congratulations to Tiffani on her promotion and express unwavering support for her leadership in this new capacity.
About GAIA Vaccine Foundation:
GAIA Vaccine Foundation is a US-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that sponsors and collaborates with the community clinics in peri-urban communities of Bamako, Mali. GAIA was founded by US citizens to support collaborative efforts devoted to the development of globally relevant and globally accessible vaccines, to the promotion of vaccine education, and to the prevention, detection, treatment and access to care for infectious diseases disproportionately affecting developing economies, primarily focusing on Mali.
For media inquiries and further information, please contact:
Tiffani Crippin
Executive Director
tcrippin@gaiavaccine.org
November 2020
Dr. Anne De Groot, founder of GAIA Vaccine Foundation, receives AAAS’s Pharmaceutical Global Health Award.
December 2019
A conversation with GAIA Vaccine Foundation and Dining for Women.
Learn more about Dining for Women's first grantee of the decade, GAIA Vaccine Foundation, from its founder Dr. Anne De Groot and Program Manager Julia Nemy.
October 2019
Dining For Women Grant Announcement
January 2019
“The Global Alliance to Immunize Against AIDS Vaccine Foundation’s work with textiles and HPV in Mali offers one example of the ways in which people and organizations around the world are using the arts to transform communities.”
OUPblog / Read Full Article
June 2018
“Over the last 35 years since graduating from medical school, she has worked on field campaigns to vaccinate against measles in the Congo (former Zaire), performed nutrition surveys in the segregated slums of Soweto and Alexandra Township, worked in villages in The Gambia on malaria vaccine research and has travelled many times to Mali, West Africa, with the GAIA Vaccine Foundation, for projects related to vaccine acceptance and vaccination promotion. “
URI Today / Read Full Article
July 2015
“The bright yellow African storytelling cloth designed by a University of Rhode Island researcher and nonprofit director is helping prevent cervical cancer in Mali.”
URI Today / Read Full Article
December 2014
“The next step in GAIA’s HPV vaccine initiative in Mali is to build awareness and encourage women to get vaccinated. The new funding from the Gates Foundation is enabling the nonprofit to produce Squibb’s textile design in Mali, which will create jobs for local businesses and tailors and add to what DeGroot calls ‘the fashion buzz about the cloth.’”
RISD News / Read Full Article
November 2014
“Immunology expert Dr. Annie De Groot and recent Rhode Island School of Design graduate Eliza Squibb have developed a storytelling cloth that can be used to educate women in Mali about the link between HPV (human papillomavirus) and cervical cancer. Their project, conducted through the GAIA Vaccine Foundation, was awarded a $100,000 Grand Challenges Grant Tuesday from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.”
Providence Journal / Read Full Article
October 2014
“Ebola is overwhelming health-care systems in West Africa, and as a result, people are dying on doorsteps of hospitals from treatable diseases (malaria), because the hospitals are overwhelmed by a contagious disease (Ebola) that should have been contained months ago. What is the solution? I have two to offer...”
Providence Journal / Read Full Article
September 2014
“De Groot named one of most influential people in vaccine industry”
Providence Business News / Read Full Article
Research
Conference Presentations 2015-2018
Assessment of HPV and cervical cancer knowledge, attitudes, practices and willingness to participate in an HPV vaccination program in Bamako, Mali. By: Karamoko Tounkara, Ibrahima Teguété, Eliza Squibb, Ben Aboubacar, Youssouf Kone, Kotou Sangare, Sarah Beseme, Jennifer S. Smith, Ousmane Koita, A. S. De Groot. Presented at 30th International Papillomavirus Conference and Clinical and Public Health Workshops in Lisbon, Portugal. September 17-21, 2015.
A large scale cervical cancer screening campaign in Bamako, Mali. By: Ibrahima Teguété, Ousmane Koita, Karamoko Tounkara, Ben Aboubacar, Kotou Sangare, Eliza Squibb, Sarah Beseme, Jennifer S. Smith, A. S. De Groot . Presented at: 30th International Papillomavirus Conference and Clinical and Public Health Workshops in Lisbon, Portugal. September 17-21, 2015.
Impact of community-led education on knowledge of HPV, cervical caner and willingness to participate in HPV vaccination in Bamako, Mali. By: Eliza Squibb, Ibrahima Teguété, Karamoko Tounkara, Ben Aboubacar, Kotou Sangare, Sarah Beseme, Jennifer S. Smith, Ousmane Koita, A. S. De Groot. Abstract: HPV15-0991. Presented at: 30th International Papillomavirus Conference and Clinical and Public Health Workshops in Lisbon, Portugal. September 17-21, 2015.
Development of community-led education about Human papillomavirus vaccination as a model for future HIV vaccination campaigns. By: Karamoko Tounkara, Ibrahima Teguété, Eliza Squibb, Ben Aboubacar, Kotou Sangare, Sarah Beseme, Ousmane Koita, A. S. De Groot. Presented at: 15th European AIDS Conference in Barcelona, Spain. October 21-24, 2015.
Development of Community-led Education Interventions for Human Papillomavirus Vaccination as a Model for Future HIV Vaccination Campaigns. By: Karamoko Tounkara, Ibrahima Teguété, Eliza Squibb, Ben Aboubacar, Kotou Sangare, Sarah Beseme, Ousmane Koita, A. S. De Groot. Presented at: International Symposium for HIV and Emerging Infectious Diseases in Marseille, France. May 25-27 2016.
Achieving Zero: 12 years of successful Mother to Child HIV Transmission Prevention (MTCTP) in a community health center (CSCOM) in Bamako, Mali. Presented at the 9th IAS Conference on HIV Science (IAS 2017) at the Palais des Congrès de Paris, Paris, France, 23 – 26 July 2017. Presented by Dr. Karamoko Tounkara.
Healthy Moms and Healthy Infants: 12 years of Successful Mother to Child HIV Transmission Prevention in a Community Health Center in Bamako, Mali. Presented at the 19th International Conference on AIDS & STIs in Africa (ICASA 2017) in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 04 - 09 December 2017. Presented by Dr. Lassina Yaya Diarra.
The “Storytelling Cloth” Community based Education Intervention for Human Papillomavirus Vaccination in Bamako, Mali: A Model for Future HIV Vaccination Campaigns? Presented at the 19th International Conference on AIDS & STIs in Africa (ICASA 2017) in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 04 - 09 December 2017. Presented by Dr. Karamoko Tounkara.
Barriers to pre-adolescent vaccine delivery: Polling mothers to determine best practice for vaccine trials and vaccination campaigns in Bamako, Mali. Presented at the 19th International Conference on AIDS & STIs in Africa (ICASA 2017) in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 04 - 09 December 2017. Presented by Dr. Karamoko Tounkara.
Healthy moms and healthy infants: 12 years of successful mother to child HIV transmission prevention in a community health center in Bamako, Mali. Presented at the 22nd International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2018) at RAI Amsterdam, the Netherlands, 23-27 July 2018. Presented by Dr. Lassina Yaya Diarra.
Barriers to vaccine delivery: Polling mothers to determine best practice for vaccine trials and vaccination campaigns in Bamako, Mali. Presented at the 22nd International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2018) at RAI Amsterdam, the Netherlands, 23-27 July 2018. Presented by Dr. Lassina Yaya Diarra.
Impact on patient health outcomes after the implementation of free and anonymous HIV care at a community-run clinic in Bamako, Mali. Presented at the International Symposium for HIV & Emerging Infectious Diseases in Marseille, France, 16-18 May 2018. Presented by Dr. Karamoko Tounkara.
The “Storytelling Cloth” Community-based Education Intervention for Human Papillomavirus Vaccination in Bamako, Mali: A Model for Future HIV Vaccination Campaigns? Presented at the International Symposium for HIV & Emerging Infectious Diseases in Marseille, France, 16-18 May 2018. Presented by Dr. Karamoko Tounkara.
Healthy Moms and Healthy Infants: 12 years of Successful Mother to Child HIV Transmission Prevention in a Community Health Center in Bamako, Mali. Presented at the International Symposium for HIV & Emerging Infectious Diseases in Marseille, France, 16-18 May 2018. Presented by Dr. Karamoko Tounkara.
The Storytelling Cloth: Textile Design for Community Engagement during Health Campaigns in West Africa. Presented at Unite for Sight’s 2018 Global Health and Innovation Conference in New Haven, Connecticut, 14-15 April 2018. Presented by Eliza Squibb.