The Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington (SPH-B) is honored to announce that Jessica Leston, founder of The Raven Collective, is the recipient of the 2025 Ryan White Distinguished Leadership Award. Established in 2009 by the school’s Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention (RCAP), this award recognizes individuals who are "exemplary bearers of the standard of excellence and commitment needed to combat HIV/AIDS."
Previous recipients include AIDS quilt visionary Cleve Jones, photojournalists Michael A. Schwarz and Steve Sternberg, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Greg Louganis, Dr. Joycelyn Elders, Dr. C. Everett Koop, Dr. James Curran, and Ryan’s mother Jeanne White Ginder.
"Jessica has extraordinary skills and commitment that have made a significant difference in Indigenous communities, and her leadership has led to an increase in health equity and healthcare access, particularly with HIV and STIs," says William L. Yarber, H.S.D., Indiana University provost professor and senior director of RCAP. "She has been impactful as a leader and spokesperson in this community and has been able to very effectively—even in challenging environments—motivate leaders across different groups to be allies and encourage people to get involved."
HIV/HCV/STI Branch,
Indian Health Service
"What stands out most about Jessica Leston is her extraordinary combination of kindness, inclusion, and determination," says Richard Haverkate, M.P.H, Chief of the HIV/HCV/STI Branch at the Indian Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "She brings people together in a spirit of respect, ensuring that every voice is heard in shaping policies, services, and programs. Jessica leads with compassion and clarity, creating a roadmap for communities to achieve our shared vision of ending the HIV epidemic."
Jeanne White Ginder will present the award to Leston, who will have a "fireside chat" with Dr. Yarber during the award ceremony. The event is scheduled for Saturday, December 6 at noon in the Indiana Memorial Union’s elegant Tudor Room. The event is free and open to the public, and attendees will be treated to lunch.
"Receiving this award in Ryan White’s name is deeply humbling. His story—of courage, truth-telling, and confronting stigma—reminds me why we must never stop fighting for equity in the HIV response," says Leston. "I come from a people whose stories are often left out of national conversations, including around HIV. So, to be recognized in this way, as an Indigenous woman committed to public health justice, is a powerful moment of visibility. Carrying Ryan’s legacy forward means continuing to center the voices of the most marginalized—especially Native people living with or at risk for HIV—and creating systems that honor community knowledge, sovereignty, and strength."
An enrolled member of the Ketchikan Indian Community, Leston is recognized for her national leadership in advancing HIV prevention and health equity in Indigenous communities. Through her work to dismantle structural barriers, challenge stigma, and center Indigenous knowledge, she has built training pathways and policy solutions that uplift Tribal sovereignty and create lasting change in the HIV response across Indian Country.
Ryan White, for whom the award is named, was an Indiana teen diagnosed with HIV in 1984 after receiving tainted blood products. He was subsequently banned from public school despite assurance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Indiana State Department of Health that he posed no risk to students and staff. His legal battle to return to school made international news. He died April 8, 1990, at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis at the age of 18.
Established in 1994, RCAP promotes prevention of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases in rural America. It has been largely supported through partnership with the CDC.
To learn more, visit rcap.indiana.edu.