Morgan Diaz, M. Kathleen Murphy, Paul “P.J.” Huff
(PRESS RELEASE) CHICAGO — Prevent Blindness, the nation’s oldest volunteer eye health and safety organization, has announced that M. Kathleen Murphy, DNP, RN, FAAN professor of Nursing at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, has been elected as chairperson of the Prevent Blindness Board of Directors. Additionally, Morgan Diaz, senior vice president, operations and business development of Now Optics LLC, and Paul Huff, senior vice president – Legal at Equity LifeStyle Properties Inc., have been elected to the Board of Directors. The vote was held on Nov. 1 at the 2019 Prevent Blindness Annual Board Meeting in Chicago.
At the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Murphy is faculty in the doctor of nursing practice and global health programs. She earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing from Alverno College, and a Master of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. She also earned a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of Minnesota in 2009. She is a member of the American Nurses Association, American Academy of Nursing, American Organization for Nursing Leadership, Texas Organization of Nurse Executives, American Public Health Association (2009-2019), Texas Public Health Association, National Association of School Nurses, Sigma International Honor Society of Nursing, and International Society for Telemedicine and eHealth.
Murphy has been a volunteer for Prevent Blindness and its affiliates for decades. She began serving Prevent Blindness Wisconsin in 2001, and Prevent Blindness Texas in 2012. At the national level, she has served on the Board of Directors Executive Committee, Public Health and Policy Committee, Strategic Planning Committee, National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness, and as the moderator at the annual Prevent Blindness Focus on Eye Health National Summit in Washington, D.C.
Murphy will be taking over the role of Board Chair from another long-time Prevent Blindness volunteer, Torrey DeKeyser, executive director of the EyeSight Foundation of Alabama (ESFA).
As senior vice president, operations and business development for Now Optics, LLC, Morgan Diaz is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the company’s retail, clinical, franchise, and ecommerce operations, including more than 170 stores across 25 states. Diaz most recently served as Senior Director at CVS Health where she led strategy, operations, and transformative growth initiatives for its Pharmacy and Health Services divisions. Diaz earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Salve Regina University, and a Master’s degree in Integrated Marketing Communication from Emerson College.
As senior vice president – legal and assistant secretary for Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc., Paul “P.J.” Huff is responsible for capital transactions, corporate, regulatory, governance, risk and compliance matters. Huff was previously a partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. He is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, the American Bar Association, a prior fellow with Lamba Legal, and a former board member of the Tokyo English Lifeline. Huff has a Bachelor of Arts degree (Mathematics and Economics) from Northwestern University, and a Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the University of Michigan.
“The year 2020 is filled with so many possibilities for those of us in the vision health world. We are thrilled to have such talented and dedicated individuals on our Board of Directors to help guide us through the coming months and years,” said Jeff Todd, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness. “We welcome Dr. Murphy, Ms. Diaz and Mr. Huff into their new roles, as well as thank our outgoing Board Chair, Torrey DeKeyser, for her tremendous service to our organization.”
For a full listing of members of the Prevent Blindness Board of Directors, please visit https://www.preventblindness.org/prevent-blindness-board-directors. For more information about Prevent Blindness or general eye health information, please call (800) 331-2020 or visit preventblindness.org.