Melva Covington

With more than 14 years of leadership in public health, clinical research and behavioral analysis, Melva Covington works to address issues impacting the health and well-being of individuals, especially those who suffer disproportionately from poor health outcomes. She has research and work spans across a broad array of conditions, namely maternal and child health, diabetes, hypertension, Alzheimer's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, obesity and others. She is currently a project leader for the North American Research and Development Hub for Sanofi, based in Bridgewater, New Jersey. Since starting at Sanofi in 2010, she served as director for the comparative effective research, evidence translation and operations on the Health Economics and Outcomes Research department prior to taking over her current role in the NA R&D Hub in August 2013. In addition, Dr. Melva Covington serves as a principal a consultant firm, AGAPE Strategic Solutions, LLC, located in Union, New Jersey. This works focuses on empowering community leaders and organizations through the building of strategic plans and core competencies to address the needs of constituents in their communities.

Prior to Sanofi, Dr. Melva Covington was director of health outcomes for Eli Lilly and Company, based out of Indianapolis, Indiana. She was there for six years and strategically led both global and US teams in the area of metabolic outcomes, Women's health and urology. Prior to that, Melva developed her foundational skills in the science of health outcomes at Roche Labs, Inc., in Nutley, New Jersey, where she simultaneously served as adjunct professor at New York Medical College in Valhalla, New York teaching maternal and child health to graduate students in public health.

In her spare time, Melva enjoys going to the theater, reading, and high impact sports. She recently started taking an acting clasess to hone her persentation and public speaking skills. She also is an avid traveler and considers the changing of the seasons on the East coast to be one of her favorite sights. She remains active in volunteering, with more than 20 years of experience doing so at her church.