Erika Kirby, who served as the Board Chair for Eat Smart Move More South Carolina (ESMMSC), and served as one of the organization’s founding members has been promoted to Executive Director of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina Foundation, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. As executive director, Kirby is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the organization, as well as policies, programs, and initiatives.
“Erika is so deserving of her new position! I have known Erika for five years, and admire her passion and commitment to improve lives in South Carolina. She recognizes that health disparities exist, and works tirelessly with state and local partners to identify solutions Erika has traveled up and down the state, is committed to working with community partners. She genuinely cares about improving the health of all residents, especially those who are most vulnerable,” said Beth Franco, ESMMSC Executive Director.
Kirby joined the BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Foundation in 2013 as a Senior Research Analyst and Grants Manager. She supported the development and execution of the Foundation’s vision and mission of improving the health of South Carolinians, particularly for the economically disadvantaged, by developing partnerships and collaborations with local and state-wide health organizations, and managing and evaluating grant projects. She previously worked as a division director at the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, providing strategic direction and leadership of a program to address nutrition and physical activity and related chronic health conditions in South Carolina. During this time, she built partnerships and collaborations to create spaces and places supporting healthy eating and active living.
She is a member of the 2018 class of Leadership South Carolina. Kirby is involved with local, state and national efforts on health issues such as mental health, adolescent health, safety net provider networks and childhood obesity; and contributes to advancing strategic grant-making and partnerships to improve health.
Headquartered in Columbia, the Foundation’s mission is to promote and support healthier South Carolinians, particularly the economically vulnerable, by supporting solutions to address gaps in health care and serving as an agent of change to support innovation and value-added public-private partnerships.