The Center for Healthy Communities works collaboratively with partners to transform public health systems and improve the health of communities through assessment, evaluation, and continuous quality improvement. CHC uses a community-based participatory approach to projects and offers expertise in a wide variety of services such as conceptualization, design, data collection and management, data analyses, and facilitation and planning. CHC offers expertise in community health improvement, tribal health and wellness, health impact assessment, and prevention across the lifecourse.
Julia Heany, PhD
Director
Julia Heany (she/her) is the Director of the Center for Healthy Communities at MPHI. Her work focuses on improving family wellbeing and supporting children’s development through systems change. Julia’s expertise includes empowerment evaluation, community-based participatory research, and applying performance management and quality improvement methods in the context of public health and human service organizations. She leads a team focused on using community-driven processes to engage partners, assess community needs and assets, evaluate strategies, and learn and improve. Julia serves as principal investigator on several system building initiatives focused on children and families, such as Michigan’s Early Childhood Comprehensive System grant, Title V needs assessment, and Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting program. Julia completed her doctorate in community psychology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 2005. She has two amazing children and enjoys running, paddle boarding, photography, and travel.
Shannon Laing, MSW
Director of Native Health and Wellness
Ms. Laing has been with MPHI for more than 15 years. She serves as the Director of Native Health and Wellness within MPHI’s Center for Healthy Communities. She has worked with partners to design, coordinate, and evaluate more than 50 projects addressing a variety of health issues with Native American communities. For the past 12 years her work focused on supporting tribal organizations with community health assessment and improvement planning, population health surveys, research, and culturally-tailored health initiatives using community-based participatory evaluation, training, technical assistance, and facilitation. Ms. Laing earned a Master of Social Work in Organizational and Community Practice from Michigan State University and is trained and experienced in using Technology of Participation Facilitation Methods.
Alaina Dequaine
Public Health Improvement Associate
Alaina Dequaine, MPH (she/her/hers) is a Public Health Improvement Associate for the Center for Health Communities at the Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI). In this role, Alaina provides partners with facilitation, coordination, support and content expertise for a variety of projects, at the regional and state level, designed to enhance public health improvement, innovation, and cross-sector collaboration. She also supports agencies with quality improvement efforts through coaching, training and technical assistance using Plan, Do, Study, Act methodology. Alaina is also a Technology of Participation trained facilitator. She has a content focus in maternal and infant health working with partners like WIC, home visiting agencies, and regional perinatal quality improvement collaboratives. Alaina received her bachelor’s degree in Allied Health Science, and Master of Public Health degree from Grand Valley State University.
Allison Morey
Evaluation Specialist
Allison Morey is an Evaluation Specialist in the Center for Healthy Communities. Ms. Morey has ten years of experience working on evaluations and project management. Ms. Morey is passionate about maternal and infant health, with a particular interest in breastfeeding. She is trained in Technology of Participation facilitation methods. Ms. Morey has managed and evaluated projects focused on youth violence prevention, youth sexual education, community-based greening initiatives, and health equity. She led the coordination of several adolescent health projects at CHC for four years. Before MPHI, Ms. Morey worked for five years at the Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center at the University of Michigan. Ms. Morey received her Master of Public Health from the University of Michigan School of Public Health, Health Education Health Behavior Department.
Alyce Hernandez
HFA Specialist, Center for Quality Family Support
Alyce joined the CQFS team in May 2021; however, she began her journey with Healthy Families America (HFA) in 1999 as a local home visitor. Alyce has served in the roles of home visitor, supervisor, and program manager at the local program level, before coming to the CQFS team at MPHI as an HFA Specialist. Alyce’s current role is to support the HFA affiliates in Michigan as they implement HFA programs at the local level. Alyce obtained her Bachelor of Science degree from Central Michigan University, majoring in Sociology, with a double minor in Spanish and Psychology; and later obtained her Master of Arts degree in Family and Consumer Sciences from Western Michigan University in 2017. Alyce has a passion for supporting teams and families so that all children and families have the opportunity to thrive in our communities. She also strongly supports the strength-based model and enjoys building relationships and using humor to connect with others.
Angela Precht
Associate Director
Angela Precht (she/her/hers) is the Associate Director of the Center for Healthy Communities at the Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI). She is a social worker and public health professional with over 15 years of experience across a range of contexts. Angela provides administrative oversight to the Center and supports public health improvement through focused expertise in facilitation, assessment and planning, implementation support, and training and coaching in quality improvement and learning collaborative methods. Angela is a Technology of Participation trained facilitator, has been trained by NACCHO on the MAPP (Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships) process, and has completed the IHI Breakthrough Series College. Angela received her bachelor’s degree in Community Health, Master of Public Health degree, and Master of Social Work degree from the University of Michigan.
Anna Martínez-Hume
Research Associate
Anna Martínez-Hume is a Research Associate in the Center for Healthy Communities. Her work has largely examined how political, socio-cultural, and economic processes contribute to health inequity and unequal healthcare access. She is an applied medical anthropologist with expertise in gender, empowerment, race/ethnicity in health care, and Indigenous health. Her interests lie in the relationship between non-governmental organizations and communities, and how community participation can inform policy and social change. She has experience working with underserved groups both in Michigan and internationally and has developed expertise in qualitative and participatory research methods. Dr. Martínez-Hume earned a Ph.D. and M.A. in Medical Anthropology from Michigan State University for her research examining the health interventions of Indigenous non-profits in marginalized Maya communities in Guatemala. She also holds a B.A. in Biological Anthropology from Northern Illinois University.
Anna Salomonsson
Research Associate
Anna Salomonsson is a Research Associate at the Center for Healthy Communities within MPHI. Ms. Salomonsson supports planning, data collection, and analysis activities on projects including needs assessments, evaluations, and strategic planning. She has a background in survey methodology and data management and several years’ experience in research in various fields. She received both her Bachelor’s degree in communication with a minor in applied statistics and Master of Public Health degree in Epidemiology from the University of Michigan.
Brenda Dietrich
Chiharu Kato
Research Scientist
Chiharu Kato, Ph.D. is a Research Scientist in the Center for Healthy Communities at Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI). Being a researcher by training, a teacher by heart and a blackbelt in Tae Kwon Do, she flexes her various “muscles” to make evaluation meaningful, less burdensome, and approaches all phases of evaluation to support learning of all people involved. As a skilled “data-detective”, she translates various data sources, data points, and materials into cohesive and compelling stories. She holds a M.A. in Communication, and Ph.D., in Educational Psychology and Educational Technology from Michigan State University.
Cynthia Zagar
Center for Quality Family Support Manger
Cynthia Zagar, MSW, LMSW is the Center for Quality Family Support Manager within the Center for Healthy Communities. She earned her Bachelor of Social Work degree in 1984 with a double major in Social Work and Psychology from Central Michigan University and a Master of Social Work degree in 1992 from Wayne State University. She has worked in the field of home visiting since 1985 and has witnessed the transformation and evolution of the field over the decades. In her current role, she is responsible for management of state-wide home visiting training opportunities including Michigan’s home visiting conference and cross-model trainings, the Central Administration for the Healthy Families Michigan affiliates and the State Office for Michigan Parents as Teachers affiliates. She has a passion for supporting the successful scaling up and implementation of home visiting programs and witnessing the differences those programs make in the lives of families.
Dori Pynnonen Hopkins
Evaluation Specialist
Dori Pynnonen Hopkins, PhD, is an Evaluation Specialist in the Center for Healthy Communities at MPHI. She has a background in natural resources, environmental justice, feminist research, and community-based and participatory methodologies. Dori’s expertise lies at the nexus of people and the environment with a focus on racial and gender justice. Using a culturally responsive and equitable evaluation lens, she serves on a variety of projects within the realm of public health on topics related to: climate change impacts on vulnerable communities, tribal work focused on the various aspects of health (mind, body, spirit), and projects related to sexual health and sexual violence prevention. Before starting at MPHI, Dori worked as a consultant on projects addressing the social/justice aspects of natural resource management and taught classes on gender, race, and the environment. Dori enjoys developing pragmatic and emancipatory research and evaluation frameworks and is skilled in qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods research. She is personally invested in the environmental aspects of health, including the relationship between access to nature and a sense of well-being, as well as supporting sustainable food systems and making local food accessible for all.
Jennifer Torres
Manager of the Office of Women’s Health and Birth Equity
Jennifer Torres, PhD is Manager of the Office of Women’s Health and Birth Equity within the Center for Healthy Communities at Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI), where she leads a portfolio of projects that address health equity and social justice within the areas of women’s health and Native health and wellness. Her work focuses on research, evaluation, and facilitation, and uses participatory methods where communities are equal partners at all stages of the process. She is proficient in qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods. Dr. Torres is an alum of the 2019-2020 cohort for Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Leaders in Equitable Evaluation and Diversity (LEEAD) program designed to produce evaluators committed to advancing equity and social justice. She is a Technology of Participation (ToP) facilitator and completed Fundamentals of Facilitation for Racial Justice Work through the Interaction Institute for Social Change. Dr. Torres received her B.S. in Psychology from Michigan State University and her Ph.D. in Sociology from University of Michigan.
Jessie Jones
Manager, Office of Public Health Improvement
Jessie Jones (she/her) manages the Office of Public Health Improvement within MPHI’s Center for Healthy Communities. Her work focuses public health systems, planning, assessment, and building public health agencies’ capacity to meet national public health standards for quality. Jessie leads a team that provides a robust set of training, technical assistance, and facilitation projects for public health practitioners in and outside of Michigan. Additionally, she and her team oversee administration of Michigan’s Local Public Health Accreditation Program. Jessie completed her Master’s Degree in Public Administration at Michigan State University in 2005. Outside of the office, Jessie enjoys spending her time with her husband and three children exploring the outdoors, as well as volunteering in her community.
Julie Moore
Senior Research Scientist
Julie Moore is a Senior Research Scientist in the Center for Healthy Communities at the Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI). Dr. Moore’s early work focused on race disparities in academic achievement. Since coming to MPHI, she has applied her research skills to evaluation work for projects addressing health disparities with a special focus on supporting children and families. She has expertise in creative and equitable evaluation design, data collection and management, statistics, and translating research processes and findings for many audiences. Dr. Moore embraces participatory evaluation methods and works closely with community partners to use data to tell the story of their programs and experiences. She received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Virginia and her PhD in Developmental Psychology from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
Kelly Uhlmann
Parents as Teachers Specialist
With a passion for early care and education to children and families, Kelly has been in the Early Childhood Field for over 20 years. Kelly has spent most of her career working in Head Start/Early Head Start where she spent her time as an EHS classroom teacher (7years), home visitor (2years) and then supervising classrooms and the home visiting program her last 10 years there. She has recently transitioned to her new role with MPHI as a Parents As Teachers Specialist in July 2021. She and has been working with home visitors using the PAT model for the last 12 years.
Libbey Kutch
Research Scientist
Libbey Kutch, PhD (she/her) is a Research Scientist in the Center for Healthy Communities. She specializes in adolescent health, juvenile justice, HIV, health disparities, and maternal health. Dr. Kutch is committed to applying her research and evaluation skills to improve the quality of people’s lives through innovative health research and programs. Her interests are grounded in identifying vulnerable populations and understanding underlying environmental and cultural/behavioral factors associated with this vulnerability to help facilitate better public health policy and alleviate health inequities. Libbey has a PhD from Michigan State University and a Master of Science from the University of North Texas.
Monique Lewis
Research Assistant
Monique Lewis is a Research Assistant with over 6 years of research experience specializing in qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis. Her expertise extends beyond preparation of project reports, presentations, facilitation and all other administrative tasks needed on assigned projects. One example is her work on The Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (CLPPP) at the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). Ms. Lewis serves on the evaluation team for CLPPP. This evaluation focuses on the specific activities funded under the CDC CLPPP grant implemented to support and improve lead poisoning surveillance and their effect on key outcomes of interest. Since starting her work at MPHI she has been focused on Public Health and the systems designed to protect and promote healthy communities. She believes in equitable evaluation and research with community engagement throughout the entire process. Monique earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Program Evaluation from Michigan State University.
Robin VanDerMoere
Manager, Office of Learning and Improvement Methods
Robin VanDerMoere is the Manager of the Office of Learning and Improvement Methods at the Center for Healthy Communities at the Michigan Public Health Institute. She has over 12 years of experience in learning and improvement methods and has worked with a variety of public health and non-profit organizations, early childhood professionals and programs, and direct-service providers providing training, facilitation, coaching, and consultation in quality planning and improvement as well as several other improvement methodologies. In her current role she leads a team of public health improvement staff, designs and delivers a range of trainings, workshops, and learning opportunities on the topic of quality improvement, and provides coaching and consultation in quality improvement. Additionally, she has expertise in developing and implementing performance management systems and using performance management data to improve outcomes. Ms. VanDerMoere is a Certified Quality Improvement Associate through the American Society of Quality, is trained in the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s (IHI) Breakthrough Series Collaborative Model, is trained in the Technology of Participation (ToP) method of facilitation, and served as one of the authors of the second edition of Embracing Quality in Public Health: A Practitioner’s Quality Improvement Guidebook. Ms. VanDerMoere received her Bachelor of Arts in Education and Master of Science in Childhood Development from Michigan State University.
Sara McGirr
Research Scientist
Sara McGirr, PhD (she/her) is a Research Scientist at CHC. A Community Psychologist by training, she has over a decade of experience conducting community-engaged evaluation and applied research alongside nonprofit, private, and government clients. Sara’s expertise is in the space of Gender Justice, specifically at the intersection of gender, violence, and reproductive/sexual health. Past projects have covered topic areas such as domestic and sexual violence, reproductive coercion, HIV and Hepatitis C prevention, reproductive and sexual healthcare, LGBTQ+ communities, and youth-responsive sexual health programming. Sara is passionate about designing and conducting practical, use-focused studies that center marginalized voices and use culturally responsive methods to gain insights for communities and policy makers.
Sarah Birch
PAT Model Specialist
Sarah started her career as an Early Head Start Home Visitor using the PAT curriculum and soon transitioned to a role as Home Based Coordinator. During that time, she supported a team of home visitors and worked to improve practices through Continuous Quality Improvement projects. Sarah then moved on to work with a Head Start program and served as an Area Manager before coming back to home visiting. Sarah is now a PAT Model Specialist in the Center for Healthy Communities at MPHI.
Tricia Drenth, MS, RN, IMH-E
Home Visiting Consultant
Tricia Drenth is the Center for Quality Family Support (CQFS) Model Specialist Coordinator within the Center for Healthy Communities. Tricia has been a registered nurse since 2002 and worked within various hospital systems, as an adjunct nursing instructor at a local community college, a public health nurse at a local health department focusing on maternal child health, and within a local Healthy Families America (HFA) program as a program manager, supervisor and home visitor. A passion for the HFA model led Tricia in October 2019 to MPHI as an HFA Specialist. Tricia’s role has since expanded as the CQFS grows, which serves as both the Central Administration for HFA and the State Office for Parents as Teachers (PAT) Michigan affiliates. Tricia continues to be passionate about supporting local home visiting programs and the important role of home visiting in helping support local families. Tricia received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree, a Master of Science degree with a focus in Community Care Nursing, and a Certificate in International Health and Social Development from the University of Michigan.
Brittney Spitzley, MPH
Public Health Improvement Specialist
Brittney is a Public Health Improvement Specialist in the Center for Healthy Communities at MPHI. In this capacity, Ms. Spitzley provides learning opportunities to public health professionals and early childhood professionals/providers focused on quality improvement, through virtual and in-person trainings and workshops, technical assistance, and coaching. To support this work, Ms. Spitzley develops learning materials for a variety of audiences and ensures the materials and opportunities are accessible. She also provides support to state, local, and tribal health departments in a variety of public health improvement activities to support their readiness for state and national accreditation.
Kim Harris, LBSW, CLC, IMH-E
Model Specialist Coordinator
Kim Harris is the Center for Quality Family Support (CQFS) Model Specialist Coordinator within the Center for Healthy Communities. Kim has decades of experience in home visiting and as a supervisor. She is licensed as a Social Worker with a history of work with HFA, MIHP, and EHS; with Early On as a state-wide trainer and technical assistance provider; and is both a Certified Lactation Counselor and Infant Mental Health endorsed. Kim has a commitment to a strength-based, relationship-centered approach, and strongly believes in and advocates for the effectiveness of home visiting.
Monal Shroff, PhD, MPH
Research Scientist
Monal R. Shroff, PhD, MPH, is a Research Scientist at MPHI since 2011. She grew up in a country with large burden of malnutrition across the society, especially among women and children. She is passionate about making an impact in the community and influence positive changes through her work by informing system-level changes that impact individual health outcomes. She is a trained Public Health professional with expertise in public health nutrition and epidemiological research. She has worked on several epidemiological, community-based intervention, policy, and evaluation research studies to understand relationships between environmental, social, and individual-level factors affecting maternal and child health outcomes. Further, her work involves using a large methodological toolbox that incorporates qualitative, rigorous quantitative and mix methods approaches, with a participatory research lens, to understand gaps in knowledge and understand challenges and opportunities faced by public health programs and system. Monal has a PhD from University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and a Master’s in public health from University of Minnesota.
Tasha Kelley-Stiles, MSW
Research Associate
Tasha Kelley-Stiles, MSW (she/her) is a Research Associate at CHC. Tasha’s areas of expertise and interests include Autism, mental health, and adolescent suicide prevention. Current and past project topic areas have included sexual violence prevention, adolescent suicide prevention, tribal nutrition, tribal substance use, maternal and child health, children with special healthcare needs, community violence prevention, and maternal resiliency. Tasha enjoys developing community-driven and participatory research and evaluation frameworks and utilizing qualitative research methods. Tasha is passionate about developing and utilizing a culturally responsive and equitable evaluation lens in her work.
Stephanie Fluegeman
Health Information Specialist
Steph is the Health Information Specialist at MPHI-CHC. In this position, Steph provides consultation, expertise, and technical support relevant to the application of data visualization theory and principles of good design in creating accessible products for dissemination. She offers expertise in turning data into stories, connecting stories with audiences, and translating information from programs and projects into deliverables. Steph loves working with clients to shape and translate data and information into user-friendly, actionable, and accessible products for target audiences. Steph has worked in public health research and evaluation for over 10 years.
Steph is obsessed with data visualization! Whether it’s creating infographics, finding ways to jazz up data presentation in reports, coaching colleagues on integrating data visualization into their projects, or researching the best practices for communicating data stories to the general public, Steph is all about making the numbers make sense.
In her spare time, Steph applies her data visualization obsession to creating infographics about her travels (fun fact: she once spent a month traveling the entire railway system in Vietnam), crunching the numbers on her daily habits (she took over 3.1 million steps in 2021!), and generally being a huge nerd about visualizing the data from our everyday lives. She also informally studies and evaluates her dog’s ability to ‘talk’ using AAC buttons, which mostly means she hears requests for “WALK” and “DOG PARK” all throughout her workday.
Lindsey DeBoer, MPH
Public Health Improvement Specialist
Lindsey DeBoer is a Public Health Improvement Specialist with the Center for Healthy Communities at Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI). She has a background in tobacco prevention and control, environmental health, and secondary education. Lindsey earned her Master in Public Health (MPH) degree from the University of Arizona Mel & Enid Zuckerman School of Public Health, with a concentration in Health Behavior and Health Promotion. Lindsey is trained in Technology of Participation facilitation methods.
Libbey Kutch, PhD
Research Scientist
Libbey Kutch, PhD (she/her) is a Research Scientist in the Center for Healthy Communities. She specializes in adolescent health, juvenile justice, HIV, health disparities, and maternal health. Dr. Kutch is committed to applying her research and evaluation skills to improve the quality of people’s lives through innovative health research and programs. Her interests are grounded in identifying vulnerable populations and understanding underlying environmental and cultural/behavioral factors associated with this vulnerability to help facilitate better public health policy and alleviate health inequities. Libbey has a PhD from Michigan State University and a Master of Science from the University of North Texas.
Carlyn Arteaga, MSW
Project Coordinator
Carlyn Arteaga, MSW (she/her) is a Project Coordinator in the Center for Healthy Communities at MPHI. She is passionate about leveraging evidence-based programs and policy to positively impact the lives of the most vulnerable and address the root causes of health inequity in communities. She studied at Michigan State University where she earned her BA in Social Relations and Policy, focusing on gender-based violence, and her Masters of Social Work, focusing on policy advocacy and community-engaged research.
Amanda Maertens
Administrative Coordinator
Amanda Maertens (she/they) is the Administrative Coordinator for the Center for Healthy Communities (CHC) at MPHI. Through this role, Ms. Maertens coordinates with CHC’s Directors, and other important staff members at MPHI, to ensure that administrative responsibilities related to facilities, communication, technology, and hiring are well taken care of. With a passion for people, she excels at fostering connection and belonging throughout her Center, and spends intentional energy nurturing partnerships across the organization to orchestrate a harmonious work environment for staff to thrive in. Ms. Maertens also aligns her role with her passions through her work as a ToP-trained facilitator by partnering with organizations to help guide focused conversations, strategic planning processes, and visioning exercises. As a creative at heart, she has transformed her love of art into a useful skill through graphic facilitation – where she uses color and drawings to engage participants and synthesize group discussion into real-time visual representations. Additionally, she uses her passions of creativity and people to help draw connections between data and the community members it represents by using plain language and data visualization to deliver clear and concise communication.
Projects, Resources, & Publications
- The Future of Community Mobilization – Evaluating Community Reactions to Social Media Efforts…
- State of Michigan Taking Pride in Prevention Program Fact Sheet
- Spirit of Community Health Toolkit – Tribal Public Health Practitioners Toolkit…
- Spirit of Community Health Policy Brief – Funding Gaps in Tribal Public Health Systems & Services
- A Practitioner’s Performance Management Primer
- Spirit of Community Health Final Report – Investigating Characteristics of Tribal Public Health…
- Spirit of Community Health – Key Informant Interview & Ecomap Protocol
- Breastfeeding – Following Tradition Works for Working Women
- Embracing Quality in Public Health – A Practitioner’s Quality Improvement Guidebook
- Accreditation Readiness Video
- Michigan Sexual Violence Prevention Survey Report
- ABEST Roadmap Guide
- 2022 Tribal SUD Assessment Final Report
Location & Info
Center for Healthy Communities
2342 Woodlake Drive
Okemos, MI 48864
Ph: 517-324-8363
Fax: 517-324-1220
chc@mphi.org
www.mphiaccredandqi.org
https://twitter.com/MPHIAccredandQI