Nancy Knight, MD

Director of the Division of Global Health Protection (DGHP), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Captain Nancy Knight, MD, has worked for CDC for the past ten years. Currently, she serves as Director of the Division of Global Health Protection (DGHP). Previously, Dr. Knight was the Country Director for CDC-South Africa from July 2012 to April 2017.

Prior to her arrival in South Africa, Dr. Knight served as the Director of CDC’s Division of Global HIV and TB (DGHT) in Kenya and as CDC’s Assistant Director for Clinical Programs for PEPFAR and then as CDC Country Director in Nigeria, where she also provided medical care to the mission community at the Embassy Health Unit in Abuja. She provided oversight and direction to the interagency PEPFAR program in each of these countries, responsible for the effective planning of approximately $450-$500M annually.

Throughout her international career, Dr. Knight has led the development, coordination, and implementation of key public health policies and programs. She has extensive experience advancing public health priorities through leadership and close collaboration with government officials and partners.

Dr. Knight began her career with the U.S. government in HRSA’s Bureau of Health Professions in 2001, serving in several different roles, including Branch Chief of the Primary Care Medical Education Branch, Division of Medicine and Dentistry, and Acting Deputy Director, Division of Medicine and Dentistry. Her work in the division focused on improving the quality of primary care medical education and services in the United States, and included management of a budget of $93M and more than 450 grants annually. She has also supported public health at the local government level with the City of Cincinnati Health Department, providing primary healthcare services and working on a number of response teams responsible for local and regional disaster response planning and coordination.

Dr. Knight received her Bachelor of Arts in biology and psychology from Washington University and her medical degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she graduated with honors. She completed her family medicine residency at the University of Cincinnati and is board certified in Family Medicine. Prior to medical school, Dr. Knight served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Lesotho, where she worked as a secondary school science teacher.