Rita Watson Bio
Rita Watson
Rita Watson is a writer, editor, and policy specialist. She has been a guest on numerous radio and television programs, including two appearances on the NBC Today Show, began her career at The New York Times. Today she is a daily syndicated blogger, a monthly Sunday editorial page columnist for The Providence Journal — writing about relationships – an associate fellow at Yale’s Ezra Stiles College and an editorial consultant for special projects at NOVA ScienceNow, PBS.
You may contact her directly at RitaEWatson@gmail.com.
Yale years: During her 10 years with The Times, she also attended Yale where she received her MPH from the School of Medicine, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, and remained at Yale as a public policy advocate for children and families. She was Spokesperson for child care legislation through Yale’s Bush Center in Child Development and Social Policy and later Director of Policy and Education for the Department of Psychiatry. There she worked on issues of family health, housing, child care, as well as media and community relations through their Substance Abuse Treatment Unit.
At Yale, she was also a lecturer for the School of Management and edited Yale’s first book for the department: Cases in Health Policy and Management. She also taught grant writing for the Fogarty International Scholars Program and served as the Bass Writing Tutor at Ezra Stiles.
Rita Watson has been an associate fellow of Yale’s Ezra Stiles College since 1989. Here is the 2008 Commencement photo with 2009 photos to be posted shortly. Paul McCartney, Rita, Dr Ruth ‘She Loves Me’ Photo and her story of Yale Commencement and Paul Newman. Paul Newman: He IntroducedHimself to Me as “Paul”
Landmark legislation: Ms. Watson was one of the architects of landmark state legislation that provided for childcare services at treatment centers and a continuum of care model that was adapted nationally. She was a member of the State Commission on Children and was the only State appointee to the special North American Commission for the Child Welfare League of America. Through her work at Yale she worked with many Connecticut legislators including Senator Chris Dodd and Governor Lowell P. Weicker, Jr. to set policies for children and families.
The TACT® Strategies: Designer of The TACT® Strategies, she has taught decision-making and coping skills to men and women in business in high stress positions. These are discussed more fully in two of her books: Sisterhood Betrayed and The Art of Decision-Making.
Consortium of Harvard teaching hospitals: Ms. Watson was Director of Communications and manager of the Annual Briefing event from December 2002 to August 2006 for CIMIT, Center for the Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technologies, a multidisciplinary collaborative of leading Harvard teaching hospitals with industry and government, where she set up the first media office that resulted in national coverage. The group focused on biodefense, nanotechnology, neurotechnology, simulation, and tissue engineering. Through this group she handled press relations for a Biodefense Initiative with the State Department.
She left to join an award winning on-line medical magazine and become Senior Editor of www.epilepsy.com and Director of Education for their parent group. Epilepsy.com,, with its 200,000 unique visitors and one million page views per month, is approximately 6,000 pages deep. They were the 2007 recipients of the Silver E-Healthcare Award.
Rita Watson’s Published Books:
— Reaching In, Reaching Out: Treating HIV/AIDS in the Correctional Community, editors: Frederick Altice, MD, Peter Selywn, MD, MPH, and Rita Watson, MPH; NCCHC and Kaiser Family Foundation, 2002. A policy guide outlining treatment in prison as a practical community approach
— A Serenity Journal, Rita Esposito Watson, Paulist Press, December 2000, A simple guide to a peaceful day A Serenity Journal
— The Art of Decision-Making, Rita E Watson, Lowell House, Los Angeles, 1994; Professional to personal decision-making based on The TACT® Strategies
— Sisterhood Betrayed: Women in the Workplace, Jill Barber and Rita E. Watson, St. Martin’s Press, New York, 1990; Professional working relationships between men and women
— Cases in Health Policy and Management, Yale University, editors, Richard Smithy and Rita E. Watson, Richard D. Irwin Press, Homewood, Ill, 1985; Case studies in health care management and the DRGs
— New Choices, New Chances, A Woman’s Guide to Conquering Cancer, Rita Esposito Watson and Robert C. Wallach, MD, St. Martin’s Press, New York, 1983; A lay person’s guide very favorably reviewed in the New England Journal of Medicine
Here is what they are saying about: “A Serenity Journal: 52 Weeks of Prayer and Gratitude” by Rita Esposito Watson, www.amazon.com
No matter where you are on your spiritual path — a clear, elegant guide for beginner and veteran alike.
– Jac Campbell, CSP, International Director of Landings
In a hectic world, this is a simple guide to some serenity.
– William Carely, the Wall Street Journal
Finally, a journal for those who are busy and searching for serenity. A beautiful way to refresh your soul. Rita Watson teaches us to nurture our souls in five minutes a day.
– Rose Offner, author of Journal of the Soul”
Serenity and gratitude may well be the added benefit to medicine and science. This book shows how to attain it.
– Frederick Altice,MD, Yale School of Medicine, Recipient of the 1999 Young Investigator Award from National Institutes of Health
This amazing little book tells you how to get started on the road to serenity and the life you always wanted but eluded you before.
– Lorraine Dusky, author, Still Unequal: The Shameful Truth about Women and Justice in America
Rita Watson provides a practical way to live at peace with the inner self, effective both for the active, productive individual as well as for those suffering with significant emotional or physical disability.
– E. James Stanley, MD, Department of Psychiatry, University of California, Irvine
EARLY BEGINNINGS
The website came about through the efforts of Ferol Vernon, my Communicators Associate at CIMIT. While he has left for graduate school at Duke for an MBA and pursuing entrepreneurial projects, this reflects our early beginnings.
Rita Watson, decision maker, relationship columnist at The Providence Journal, and author has been writing and speaking about Decision Making throughout her career at Yale and The New York Times. You can read her books and articles, or simply click through this blog to find tips that are most helpful to you. Let her help you get through difficult decisions. Her insightful advice will set you thinking about the different aspects of the decisions you face each day. She is the designer of The TACT® Strategies, a coping skills tool for effective decision making. You may have seen her talk about her work on the NBC Today Show or a host of news shows. Her book “The Art of Decision Making” was based on a model she taught for special projects at Yale University. Now this simple strategy: Take a Minute, Assess the Situation, Consider the alternatives, and Take a stand (TACT) can help you become a more confident and effective decision maker. / by Ferol Vernon, MBA on Campus
Ferol Vernon, a Communications specialist, turned MBA, worked with me at a consortium of Harvard Teaching Hospitals where I served as Director of Communications. He later became a Business Development Strategist for a group within our organization that was spearheading innovative technology to protect our soldiers. He started his own company in 2005 after realizing that smaller businesses and non-profits had nowhere to turn for their marketing and communications needs. Deeply interested in web visibility and the future of communications online, Ferol believes there is no better way to start a campaign than on the Internet. A graduate of Boston University in 2002, he is interested podcasting, running and entrepreneurial projects. When he knew that his goal was to attend Duke University for his MBA, he took it upon himself to set up this blog so that we might continue to exchange ideas and help others in the process. / by Rita Watson — Mother, Writer, Incurable Romantic, and Columnist
