Leanne Whiteside-Mansell, Ed.D.
Director of the Research and Evaluation Division (RED)
University of Memphis. Studies home and parenting environments using the Family Map Inventories. She is co-developer of the WISE obesity prevention intervention and has commercialized multiple research-based products to translate to wider dissemination.
Nikki Edge, Ph.D.
Assistant Director of the Research and Evaluation Division (RED)
University of Memphis. Studies children at risk of early social-emotional concerns, including those impacted by trauma, maternal substance abuse and depression. Her research as led to unique national collaborations and interventions to support young children’s mental health.
Lorraine McKelvey, Ph.D.
Michigan State University. Examines the effects of adverse childhood experiences on child development. Her research has also focused on two-generation family supports, such as home visiting and quality early childhood education.
Taren Swindle, Ph.D.
University of Memphis. Studies factors in early childcare and home environments that affect obesity. Co-Inventor of WISE, a prevention program for children under age 7, which has shown significant improvements in child and parents’ nutrition practices using principles of implementation science.
Kanna Lewis, Ph.D.
University of Maryland. Examines early childhood interventions and systemic bias in health care. Her research builds upon a development of longitudinally linked large administrative datasets and application of quasi-experimental research designs.
RED Instructor Faculty
Isis Martel, M.S.
Studies interventions developed for vulnerable populations. Current projects include those designed for individuals with substance use and mental health disorders, those at risk for HIV and human trafficking, and older individuals with other chronic diseases.
LaTunja Sockwell, M.A.
Leads the evaluation of Arkansas’ state-wide HIV Drug Court Education and the AR Anti-Stigma Initiative. The goal of her work is to increase access to HIV screening and care across AR, reduce stigma around HIV, and provide medical, fact-based advocacy for HIV-related criminal law reform.
Dong Zhang, Ph.D.
Dr. Zhang explores how environmental and contextual factors affect family and individual’s mental and physical health, including but not limited to obesity, cancer, depression, and adverse childhood experiences.
RED Retired Faculty
Patti Bokony, Ph.D.
University of Memphis. Dr. Bokony’s areas of interest include developing preventive interventions that promote social-emotional development in early childhood and promoting those interventions through parenting education and professional development for childcare and early education professionals.