Rochelle Walensky

Birth Name: Rochelle Paula Bersoff

Place of Birth: Peabody, Massachusetts, U.S.

Date of Birth: April 5, 1969

Ethnicity: Ashkenazi Jewish

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Rochelle Walensky is an American physician-scientist. She has been Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, since January 20, 2021. She is known for her role in the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rochelle is the daughter of Carol and Edward H. Bersoff, a chief executive. She is married to physician-scientist Loren D. Walensky, with whom she has three children.

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Rochelle’s paternal grandfather was Brigadier General Irving Bersoff (the son of Solomon Bersoff/Simonowitz and Celia Bernsowski). Irving was born in New York, to Russian Jewish parents.

Rochelle’s paternal grandmother was Minna Cohen (the daughter of Itsik Cohen/Kagan and Pearl Greenwald). Minna was born in New York, to Jewish emigrants from the Russian Empire, with her father being from Salakas, Lithuania. Itsik was the son of Mendel Girsh Kagan/Cohen and Dinka/Diana Tsinman.

Rochelle’s maternal grandfather’s surname was Mayerson.

Source: Genealogy of Rochelle Walensky (focusing on her father’s side) –