Meet Denisse Oller
Denisse Oller is a multi-talented powerhouse: Emmy Award-winning journalist, documentarian, author, chef, and advocate of healthy living. Through her professional work with organizations such as AARP, HealthCorps, American Diabetes Association, and the Joseph A. Unanue Latino Institute at Seton Hall University, Denisse supports educational initiatives that are at the forefront of the Latino community.
A Voice for the Latino community
As Vice President of Media Relations and Engagement for SOMOS Community Care – a non-profit network that serves more than 650,000 Medicaid recipients in underserved communities in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens – Denisse develops communications and public relations initiatives to advocate for healthcare reform on behalf of SOMOS' network providers and the communities they serves.
She also leads SOMOS Community Care’s DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) outreach programs that inform, educate, and empower individuals and families about the importance of preventive health care and making healthier lifestyle choices. As an ambassador and ‘madrina’ of SOMOS in the Latino community, Denisse spearheads community outreach to improve health literacy about nutrition as prevention in underserved communities where chronic illnesses such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity are prevalent.
Outside of the health care sector, Denisse also serves as one the prominent Food and Nutrition Experts for AARP’s online Spanish language food channel. Her work with AARP has positioned her to reinvent Latino cuisine, bringing healthy eating to thousands of families. Denisse, who has taught classes at The Institute of Culinary Education in New York City, is working on her first cookbook.
DECADES in the media
Denisse has appeared on Fox Good Day NY, The Today Show, Martha Stewart Living, the Food Network’s “Throwdown with Bobby Flay” and CNN en Español. She has been a featured chef at Macy’s Summit Wine and Food Festival, in Summit, New Jersey and has made repeated appearances as guest chef at Puerto Rico’s premiere food festival, Saborea.
During a distinguished 20-year career as an acclaimed national news anchor for the Univision and Telemundo Networks, Denisse not only interviewed a variety of prominent public and political figures worldwide, but covered events such as Pope John Paul II’s visit to Cuba and the September 11th terrorist attacks.
Denisse has received widespread recognition for her work as a journalist including five Emmy Awards and nine nominations, five A.C.E. Awards, two Gracie Awards, and the Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Investigative Reporting. She was also named one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanic Personalities in the United States by Hispanic Business Magazine.
Learning and Giving Back
From 2010 to 2015, Denisse was Executive Director of the Joseph A. Unanue Latino Institute at Seton Hall University where she worked closely with higher education administration and students to extend the Intitute’s reach beyond the Seton Hall campus. Particularly noteworthy was her success in establishing partnerships with the corporate sector, private philanthropists, and community-based organizations.
Denisse received a Bachelor of Arts in Finance from the University of Puerto Rico, and a Bachelor of Arts Summa Cum Laude in Media Studies and Interpersonal Communications from Hunter College. At Seton Hall, she obtained her Graduate Certificate in Non-Profit Management. Most recently, Denisse acquired a certificate in Health Coaching from Emory University, and a certificate from the University of Navarra’s IESE Business School’s Graduate Developing Leadership Competencies Program.