Donovan Cousan

Donovan Cousan is a Louisiana native, public health worker, and scholar who currently lives in Maryland. Donovan is a Senior Associate on the Prevention Team for the NASTAD (National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors). NASTAD is a leading non-partisan non-profit association that represents public health officials who administer HIV and hepatitis programs in the U.S. Their singular mission is to end the intersecting epidemics of HIV, viral hepatitis, and related conditions. Donovan supports the implementation of community engagement technical assistance (TA) associated with Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) plans within the Capacity Building Assistance (CBA) program. Before NASTAD, Donovan served as a graduate research assistant for the College of Human Environmental Sciences at The University of Alabama. Additionally, he interned with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the Office of Policy, Planning, and Evaluation through the Project Imhotep program at Morehouse College. Donovan also governed as the Project Director for the Black Male Initiative and Fellows Program at the University of Central Oklahoma while being an undergraduate student. Alongside his ongoing efforts to work with communities, Donovan has devoted time to conduct research that aims to improve and sustain the lives of those living in Black communities. He recognizes his privilege and is dedicated to educating his community using the best practices learned through his study field. It is with intentionality that Donovan uses the tools of Public Health to inspire and elevate. A graduate from the University of Central Oklahoma and The University of Alabama, Donovan holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Community/Public Health and a Master’s of Public Health with a Health Education and Promotion concentration. During his collegiate years, he was appointed a President’s Leadership Council Scholar, Ronald E. McNair Scholar, Eta Sigma Gamma Honor Society, and other Executive Director positions. With gratitude, Donovan is a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. byway of the Zeta Sigma Chapter. He lives by his life motto from James Baldwin, “not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”