A Warm Welcome to Our New General Director for the United States of America
November 21, 2023

Dr. María Celia Antognoli has been appointed as the new General Director of COPEG by USDA APHIS and assumed the position in August 2023.**

Dr. María (Celia) Antognoli is an accomplished veterinary epidemiologist who has dedicated her career to animal health research and protection. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the prestigious University of Buenos Aires. She later pursued and completed a Ph.D. in Epidemiology at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, United States.

Her career with USDA APHIS began in 2008, and since then she has held various leadership roles and areas of expertise in the field of epidemiological surveillance. In January 2015, she became the Director of the Surveillance Design and Analysis Unit at APHIS, where she significantly contributed to the development and evaluation of surveillance strategies for livestock and poultry diseases at both national and international levels.

Her commitment to swine health led her to join the swine health team in March 2019, where she excelled in implementing surveillance activities, including active monitoring for foreign animal hemorrhagic fevers. Her extensive knowledge and experience have established her as a recognized expert in swine disease prevention and control.

Dr. Antognoli has also played a key role in emergency response and outbreak management. As a member of the APHIS Foreign Animal Disease Emergency Response Team, she was deployed several times to the Dominican Republic to help coordinate the response to the African Swine Fever outbreak. Her expertise in classical and African swine fever has positioned her as a valued contributor to international working groups, including those of the FAO-GEMP and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).

Since September 2022, Dr. Antognoli has served as the Deputy Incident Commander for the APHIS Incident Management Team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, overseeing multiple operational aspects of emergency response management.

It is a true honor to extend a warm welcome to **Dr. María Celia Antognoli** to the **#TeamCOPEG**. We are excited to have her leadership and expertise within our organization. Join us in welcoming this outstanding professional as she becomes acquainted with our operations and the dedicated team that makes up COPEG.

A Warm Welcome to Our New General Director for the United States of America
November 21, 2023

Dr. María Celia Antognoli has been appointed as the new General Director of COPEG by USDA APHIS and assumed the position in August 2023.**

Dr. María (Celia) Antognoli is an accomplished veterinary epidemiologist who has dedicated her career to animal health research and protection. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the prestigious University of Buenos Aires. She later pursued and completed a Ph.D. in Epidemiology at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, United States.

Her career with USDA APHIS began in 2008, and since then she has held various leadership roles and areas of expertise in the field of epidemiological surveillance. In January 2015, she became the Director of the Surveillance Design and Analysis Unit at APHIS, where she significantly contributed to the development and evaluation of surveillance strategies for livestock and poultry diseases at both national and international levels.

Her commitment to swine health led her to join the swine health team in March 2019, where she excelled in implementing surveillance activities, including active monitoring for foreign animal hemorrhagic fevers. Her extensive knowledge and experience have established her as a recognized expert in swine disease prevention and control.

Dr. Antognoli has also played a key role in emergency response and outbreak management. As a member of the APHIS Foreign Animal Disease Emergency Response Team, she was deployed several times to the Dominican Republic to help coordinate the response to the African Swine Fever outbreak. Her expertise in classical and African swine fever has positioned her as a valued contributor to international working groups, including those of the FAO-GEMP and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).

Since September 2022, Dr. Antognoli has served as the Deputy Incident Commander for the APHIS Incident Management Team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, overseeing multiple operational aspects of emergency response management.

It is a true honor to extend a warm welcome to **Dr. María Celia Antognoli** to the **#TeamCOPEG**. We are excited to have her leadership and expertise within our organization. Join us in welcoming this outstanding professional as she becomes acquainted with our operations and the dedicated team that makes up COPEG.