Director

Claude Jacob Career

Dr. Claude A. Jacob has over two decades of administrative experience in public health. Since July 2021, Dr. Jacob has been the Public Health Director of the nationally accredited San Antonio Metropolitan Health District (Metro Health).

In his role, Dr. Jacob directs over 50 programs and initiatives across Metro Health’s Communicable Disease, Community Health & Safety, and Environmental Health & Operations divisions and oversees a $100 million budget aimed at modernizing the work of the department.

Prior to joining Metro Health, Dr. Jacob was Chief Public Health Officer for the City of Cambridge in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Dr. Jacob’s previous professional experiences also include serving as the Deputy Director for the Office of Health Promotion at the Illinois Department of Public Health, Bureau Chief with the Baltimore City Health Department’s Bureau of Disease Prevention and Control, and Director of Community Affairs at the Sinai Community Institute affiliated with the Sinai Health System in Chicago.

Education

  • Doctor of Public Health, University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health
  • Master of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health

Accomplishments

  • Spearheaded the launch of SA Forward in 2022, a multi-year plan addressing the priority areas and social conditions the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted.
  • Established the Office of Mental Health & Community Resilience and the Policy & Civic Engagement Office as part of SA Forward.
  • Awarded the 2022 Dr. Hildrus A. Poindexter Award for distinguished service in public health by the American Public Health Association’s (APHA) Black Caucus of Health Workers.
  • Completed fellowships with the W.K. Kellogg Emerging Leadership in Public Health and the CDC’s National Public Health Leadership Institute.

Professional Memberships

  • Board Member, APHA
  • Board Member, Public Health Accreditation Board
  • Board Member, Texas Association of City and County Health Officials
  • Past President, National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
  • Past President, APHA’s Black Caucus of Health Workers