The Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) is in the election process for our 2023 National Board of Directors! Since you're an OAC member, you have the privilege of helping to build our incredible leadership.

Below, you will find our 2023 National Board of Directors slate. Please review this slate and take action, if needed. Alternate candidates may be presented, but they must receive FIVE percent of the vote to be on the slate. If you do not have any alternative candidates or objections, no action is needed at this time. Details about this process may be found below the slate of presented candidates.

Patty Nece, JD 

Patty Nece, JD, is the current Chair of OAC's National Board of Directors and serves as Chair of the Weight Bias Task Force.  As an avid advocate for sound obesity treatments and eradication of weight-based bias, Patty encourages change by sharing her own experiences of living with lifelong obesity with legislators, healthcare providers, government officials and others. She has participated in several projects sponsored by the STOP Obesity Alliance and is the 2015 winner of OAC’s Barbara Thompson Award for Advocacy. Patty has chosen to address her obesity through non-surgical medical treatment.

Nikki Massie, MA 

Nikki Massie, MA, is a member of the OAC National Board of Directors and Co-Chair of the Membership Committee. She is a writer and marketer living in Baltimore, Maryland, who underwent gastric bypass surgery in 2008 for the treatment of obesity. She loves to take OAC Action by strategically leaving recently-read copies of Weight Matters Magazine everywhere she can. She is also the Task Force Chair of the Inclusivity and Diversity Task Force.

Scott Kahan, MD 

Scott Kahan, MD, is a physician trained in both clinical medicine and public health. Dr. Kahan serves as Director of the National Center for Weight and Wellness in Washington, DC, Medical Director of the George Washington University Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity Alliance, and Chair of the Clinical Committee for The Obesity Society. He is on the Board of Directors for the American Board of Obesity Medicine (ABOM) and Obesity Action Coalition. He has received numerous awards, including the OAC Healthcare Provider Advocate of the Year and The Obesity Society's 2017 Clinician of the Year. Dr. Kahan is the Chair of the Convention Program Agenda Committee.

Melinda Watman, BSN, MSN, MBA

As President and Founder of “THE F WORD FAT,” Melinda J. Watman, BSN, MSN, MBA, is nationally recognized for her political, public policy and educational work to eliminate weight bias, discrimination and fat shaming. She was honored with the 2013 “OAC Bias Buster of the Year” award for her efforts in combating weight bias. Ms. Watman serves on the OAC’s National Board of Directors and is Co-Chair of the OAC Long-range Planning Committee.

According to OAC's bylaws, the above slate will officially be elected on December 30, 2022, unless FIVE percent of OAC's membership submits an additional individual to be considered within 30 days of when this slate is presented. 

If you wish to submit a nominee to be considered for the Board of Directors, please email [email protected] with your name, nominee name, and the nominee's contact information. Anyone proposed must be a current member of the organization. If additional nominees are submitted, an official election ballot (including the above slate and any additional nominees) will be sent to OAC's membership. If you have no objections and/or suggestions for additional nominees, no action is needed. 

The above members of the slate, if elected, will become Directors for 2023. To view the current list of OAC's National Board of Directors, Click Here. 

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