A group of more than 100 elected officials, community leaders and clergymen are mounting a grassroots campaign aimed at pressuring Gov. Phil Murphy to name Dr. Chris Pernell as the new president and CEO of University Hospital in Newark.
Dr. Shereef Elnahal, a former state Commissioner of Health, left in March after President Joe Biden nominated him to serve as Undersecretary of Veterans Affairs for Health for the Veterans Health Administration.
While the pick belongs to the hospital board of directors, the governor has traditionally made the hire.
Pernell, a career public health professional, currently heads up University Hospital’s health equity and inclusion strategy.
Among the endorsers of Pernell are Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (D-Newark), Ramos, former Gov. James E. McGreevey, Assemblywoman Shanique Speight (D-Newark), two county commissioners and three city council members from Newark, the mayors of Irvington, Montclair, Bloomfield and Hillside,
“Dr. Pernell is – at her core – a daughter of Newark. She is as comfortable in a church, community center, or local health clinic as she is in a boardroom,” the signatories said. “Her lived experience as a woman of color has given her a unique perspective and will allow her to lead with the people and communities of greatest need at the forefront of her decision making.”
The campaign on behalf of Pernell is being organized by Be Ready, a political action committee run by Shennell McCloud to advocate on behalf of Black women.
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