Jack is a doctoral student in Public Health at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. His research interest is in using mixed methods to better understand neighborhood factors, such as housing and food systems, and how these impact connection to place, community, and social support of families and youth across the life course. His most recent work includes interning with the Center for Urban Population Health to help develop a youth needs assessment and conducting a program evaluation for Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin. Jack holds a Master’s in Public Health from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee and received his Bachelors in Health Science from the University of Missouri.

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Yuanyuan holds a master’s degree in public policy from New York University and is currently pursuing her doctoral degree in social work at Washington University in St. Louis.

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Isa is a social work student pursuing clinical licensure and a trauma-informed certification at UW-Milwaukee. Her interests include mental health, healthcare systems, working with Spanish-speaking communities, and community-engaged program evaluation. In her undergrad, Isa worked as a research assistant for a relationship violence lab and guaranteed income project.

Isa holds a BA in Psychology and Chicano/a/e and Latino/a/e Studies from UW-Madison.

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Her research interests encompass areas such as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), child and adolescent developmental outcomes, racial and ethnic disparities, poverty, and intersectionality. Following her internship with the Division of Milwaukee Child Protective Services, where she was involved in initial assessment and quality improvement, her research focuses on the intersection between ACEs, race/ethnicity, and poverty. Xiyao holds a PhD in Social Welfare and Master of Social Work (MSW) from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a MSW from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

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Theresa is a doctoral student in Sociology at UW-Milwaukee. She is interested in sociology of mental health, environmental sociology, and mixed methods research, as well as conducting research in community settings. Prior to this role, she instructed courses in statistics and social psychology. She has previous experience working in nonprofit settings, including assisting with research and supporting clients in accessing a variety of community resources.

Theresa holds a BA in Religious Studies from St. Norbert College and an MA in Social and Applied Philosophy from Marquette University.

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Dr. Romain Dagenhardt has previous experience as a victims’ advocate working with domestic violence victims to meet their safety, housing, and referral needs. She has assisted on evaluations of programs aimed at increasing juvenile’s perceptions of police, as well as examining disparities in prosecutorial and judicial case processing in Midwestern and Southwestern jurisdictions. Her dissertation examined sanctioning decisions in domestic violence probation review hearings along the intersections of gender, race/ethnicity, and family status. Dr. Romain Dagenhardt holds a Ph.D. in urban studies  and a master’s degree in criminal justice both from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee.

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Allison earned a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Grinnell College and a Master of Arts in public service – nonprofit leadership from Marquette University.

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As a postdoctoral associate at Duke University Medical Center, her research agenda focused on understanding the development-relevant psychosocial risk factors such as economic strains/poverty, deviant peers, and negative parenting practices leading to substance initiation and use/abuse among youth and young adults. During her time at Brigham Young University, she studied the long-term impact of childhood adverse/traumatic experiences on substance use in young adulthood.

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Luke has dedicated his career to child well-being in Europe, South America and his native Milwaukee where he has worked with children adversely impacted by immigration, homelessness, family violence, and abuse and neglect. He has nearly two decades of experience in the non-profit sector working in the fields of domestic violence, childhood trauma and well-being, homelessness, and education and prevention, with a particular focus on engagement and innovative solutions to personal and community challenges. Luke has trained hundreds of child well-being professionals in the areas of domestic violence, toxic stress, adverse childhood experiences, and childhood resilience. Prior to joining ICFW’s leadership team, Luke led the Family Support Program, which serves families involved with the child welfare system by providing strengths- and evidence-based interventions.

Luke earned his Master of Science in cultural foundations of education from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2015. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and Spanish from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

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Leah earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in Spanish, and graduated with honors from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. She later earned a master’s degree in social work with a focus in children and families from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

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Meghan has spent most of her career in the nonprofit sector, working with people who have experienced acute or ongoing trauma including abused children and adults, refugees and families living in poverty. Meghan’s interests lie in translating research on the effects of trauma on the developing brain into practical ways of using evidence-based interventions with her clients. She’s particularly interested in the role resilience plays in protecting against and transforming negative neurophysiological changes.

Along with her direct practice, Meghan enjoys exchanging perspectives and knowledge with fellow helping professionals by way of communities of practice, case consultation and facilitating workshops relating to neurodevelopment, responsive relationships and resilience.

Meghan received her master’s degree in social work in 2009 from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She earned her bachelor’s degree in social work from the same institution in 2006.

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Prior to joining Children’s, Peter worked as a researcher on evaluation projects at the University of Chicago’s policy research center Chapin Hall Center for Children. Other experiences include more than ten years administrative work with a non-profit adoption agency based in New York City. He also served for four years on the executive committee of the North American Council on Adoptable Children, an adoption advocacy group in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Peter received his master’s degree in social work from the School of Social Work at the University of Connecticut, and an MBA from Suffolk University in Boston.

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Herbst holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. She went on to earn a master’s degree in social work from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her devotion to her work has driven her to partake in various organizations within the community. Herbst holds the position of vice chair of the board and membership committee chair with Children’s Home Society of America, board chair with Wisconsin Association of Family & Children’s Agency, board member with the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater social work department, and member of 100+ Women Who Care Milwaukee.

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As part of ICFW, Dr. Janczewski has overseen several evaluations of the child welfare system in Wisconsin including the evaluation of alternative response and the Wisconsin Public Child Welfare and Home Visiting Data Project, a rapid cycle analysis to inform child welfare service planning. Dr. Janczewski holds a Ph.D. in social welfare from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a master’s degree in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University.

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Gabriel brings more than 20 years of experience in child and family services, spanning direct care, supervision, quality improvement, and executive leadership. He began his career working in group homes and prevention programs, then joined Milwaukee’s child welfare system in 2003 as a case manager. He later moved into supervisory roles and then led performance and quality improvement, where he developed dashboards and analytics tools to guide practice and policy. Before co-founding ICFW, Gabriel served as Director of Family Case Management for Children’s Wisconsin’s child welfare program, overseeing operations and strategy across child protection, foster care, and family support services. In that role, he helped establish a culture of data-driven decision-making, led the implementation of evidence-based interventions, and introduced a system-wide focus on child and family well-being.

Gabriel holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

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Dr. Mersky applies his expertise to the design, application, evaluation, and dissemination of effective practices, programs, and policies. He is currently the lead evaluator of the Family Foundations Home Visiting program, a partnership between the and that supports evidence-based home visiting programs statewide. He also heads the Healthy Families Study, a randomized trial of multiple home visiting programs at the Milwaukee Health Department. In addition, Dr. Mersky is principal investigator of the Families and Children Thriving (FACT) Study, a longitudinal investigation into the health and well-being of at-risk children and families across Wisconsin.

Dr. Mersky and Dr. James Topitzes directed Project Connect, a randomized trial of a novel group-based model of parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT) for children in foster care. integrated the model into its community services array based on results demonstrating that this intervention enhances the parenting skills of foster care providers and the mental health of children in foster care.

Through his collaborative work at ICFW, Dr. Mersky continues to promote the use of empirically validated interventions such as PCIT and TF-CBT as well as effective and innovative screening and assessment practices within the context of usual care.

Dr. Mersky holds a master’s degree in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Ph.D. in social welfare from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he also earned an advanced certificate in prevention science.

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Dr. Topitzes teamed with Dr. Mersky to co-direct Project Connect, a randomized trial of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) adapted for use with foster families. Based on study results,  integrated the modified PCIT model into its community services array. In his role as an ICFW associate director, Dr. Topitzes contributes significantly to the sustainability and expansion of PCIT models within CHW. In addition, he continues to translate other promising approaches to the problem of early trauma, such as brief treatments or group interventions, within child welfare service settings and beyond. He directs the Trauma-Informed Care Graduate Certificate Program at 51ÁÔĆć and teaches three courses within the certificate program.

Dr. Topitzes holds a master’s degree in social work and a doctoral degree in social welfare from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he also earned an advanced certificate in prevention science.

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