JBA's experienced and highly skilled senior staff are well-equipped to address the informational needs of public and non-profit organizations across a broad range of content areas. With advanced degrees in fields including psychology, public health, education, child development, anthropology, and political science, JBA's senior consultants combine substantive knowledge of Federal and state health and human services programs with competency in both quantitative and qualitative research methods.

James Bell, M.A. Founder and President

Mr. Bell has more than 30 years of experience designing and conducting national multidisciplinary evaluations that have focused on innovative models of health care service delivery or programs that enable biomedical research, such as protections for human research subjects and shared-use clinical research resources. Over the past two decades, he has directed more than 20 evaluations for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and has developed an in-depth understanding of the NIH's intramural and extramural program operations, as well as the process of biomedical and behavioral sciences research carried out in American academic medical centers.

Mr. Bell was the Project Director for the Coordinating Center on the HIV/AIDS Treatment Adherence, Health Outcomes and Cost Study, a multi-site cooperative research program jointly sponsored by NIH, SAMHSA, and HRSA that investigated integrated treatments for persons living with HIV/AIDS and co-occurring psychiatric and addiction disorders. For the NIH Office of Extramural Research, he designed and directed the only recent, full-scale national evaluation of the U.S. Human Research Subjects' Protection Program. Previously, Mr. Bell directed evaluations of the Shared Use Scientific Instrumentation and General Clinical Research Centers Programs for the National Center for Research Resources. He also assisted the National Cancer Institute with a congressionally mandated evaluation of the National Cancer Research Program (Measure of Progress Against Cancer) and the National Cancer Advisory Board with a related strategic plan for cancer research (Cancer at a Crossroads.) His experience with applied evaluation includes studies focused on service integration, cost analyses, outcome measurement, and child welfare service effectiveness, as well as on the facilitation of steering committees and expert advisory panels.

Before founding JBA in 1979, Mr. Bell was a Research Associate at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C., where he was a senior member of the Program Evaluation Studies Group that developed a highly regarded method of planning and implementing multidisciplinary program evaluations that employ logic models and combine quantitative and qualitative methods (evaluability assessments). Mr. Bell received his M. A. in Political Science from California State University at Northridge and his B.A. from the University of California at Los Angeles.

Elyse Kaye Executive Vice President

Ms. Kaye founded JBA's children and family services practice area in 1988. She has had over 25 years of experience directing program evaluation, applied research, and technical assistance projects for Federal and state government agencies. Ms. Kaye has directed studies on foster care, adoption, child abuse and neglect, family preservation and support, and service integration and collaboration. For the past ten years, she has directed JBA's project to provide Evaluation and Technical Assistance for the Title IV-E Child Welfare Waiver Demonstrations for the Children's Bureau, a component of the Administration for Children and Families. For this project, Ms. Kaye has provided guidance and support to states in developing rigorous program evaluations and has prepared several documents that synthesize evaluation findings from state Title IV-E waiver demonstrations.

Ms. Kaye directed JBA's six-year study on the Implementation of Family Preservation/Family Support Programs (later renamed the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program). In this capacity, she conducted case studies in 10 states and 20 counties to assess planning and collaboration efforts, program implementation issues, and system- and individual-level outcomes. She prepared a synthesis report and topical papers on collaboration and consumer involvement. In addition, she previously directed the National Survey of Current and Former Foster Parents.

Senior Staff

James P. DeSantis, Ph.D. Vice President

Dr. DeSantis has more than 20 years of research and evaluation experience and for seven years has served in JBA's child welfare practice area. His efforts have focused on child welfare, child and adolescent development, prevention services and integration of services across the child welfare, substance abuse treatment and criminal justice domains.

Dr. DeSantis currently directs JBA's contract for the Office of Family Assistance to provide Adaptable Evaluation Training and Technical Assistance for Healthy Marriage, Promoting Responsible Fatherhood and Tribal/TANF Child Welfare Grantees. He also leads two evaluation technical assistance projects for the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families. One project delivers technical assistance to build the evaluation capacity of agencies implementing demonstration projects in the areas of foster care and adoption, child abuse and neglect prevention, abandoned infants, training child welfare workers and promotion of healthy marriages. The other project is titled Evaluation Technical Assistance and Cross-Site Evaluation for Early Head Start/Child Welfare Services Demonstration Grants. For the Arizona Department of Economic Security, he directed the statewide Evaluation of the Arizona Families in Recovery Succeeding Together (F.I.R.S.T) Program. Dr. DeSantis was trained as a developmental psychologist and has a particular interest in adolescent development and the issues facing youth as they transition out of the child welfare system.

Cheryl McDonnell, Ph.D. Director

For eight years, Dr. McDonnell has served in JBA's public health practice area. She has over 22 years of experience in applied research and program evaluation and has expertise in managing large-scale, multi-site evaluation, data collection, and analysis activities. Dr. McDonnell's project experiences span the program areas of substance abuse/mental health, child and adolescent development, prevention services, health care services, and research program administration. She is the Principal Investigator of the Coordinating Center for the Family Management of Diabetes Study sponsored by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). Dr. McDonnell also serves as the senior analyst for the Mental Health Care Providers Education in AIDS Program (MHCPE) and as the senior analyst for the Evaluation of Educational Activities for the Office of Human Research Protections. Dr. McDonnell recently served as the Co-Director of the Coordinating Center on the HIV/AIDS Treatment Adherence, Health Outcomes and Cost Study and as the Project Director for the ASPE Evaluation Review Panel.

Previously, Dr. McDonnell served as Coordinating Center Director for several large multi-site studies, including the National Cancer Institute's Agricultural Health Study and the Psychiatric Genetics Initiatives Management Center funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. McDonnell has extensive experience with statistical software programs such as SAS and SPSS and serves as an adjunct professor in the graduate program at Argosy University where she teaches research and design methods.

Elliott Graham, Ph.D. Director

With nearly 15 years of experience in applied research, program evaluation, and evaluation technical assistance, Dr. Graham serves in the JBA's child welfare practice area. He is Deputy Project Director of Evaluation and Technical Assistance for the Title IV-E Child Welfare Waiver Demonstrations which is funded by the Children's Bureau. In addition, Dr. Graham supports two nationwide technical assistance projects for the Children's Bureau. One project builds evaluation capacity among social service organizations implementing demonstration projects in the areas of foster care, adoption, child maltreatment prevention, abandoned infants, training for child welfare workers, and healthy marriage promotion. Through the second project, Dr. Graham provides technical assistance to grantees that are implementing Early Head Start/Child Welfare Service collaborations and synthesizes evaluation findings across grantees.

Dr. Graham's other areas of professional experience include: evaluating community-based child maltreatment and substance abuse prevention services; creating logic models; and developing technology applications in evaluation, including State Automated Child Welfare Information Systems (SACWIS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Dr. Graham received a Doctorate in Education, with a concentration in evaluation studies, and a Masters of Planning from the University of Minnesota.

Carol Hafford, Ph.D. Senior Research Associate

Carol Hafford, who joined JBA's child welfare practice area in 2002, has more than 17 years of experience in applied research, program evaluation, and technical assistance. Dr. Hafford works primarily in the program areas of child welfare, prevention services, and service collaboration, coordination, and integration. She manages the National Evaluation of the Quality Improvement Centers for the Office of Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN) in the Children's Bureau and the Evaluation of the Court Teams for Maltreated Infants and Toddlers for the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Dr. Hafford also serves as a senior analyst for the National Cross-Site Evaluation of the Replication of Demonstrated Effective Prevention Programs. She has worked on program evaluations related to state court improvement, tribal family preservation and support, independent living programs, and states' Child and Family Services Reviews.

Prior to joining JBA, Dr. Hafford conducted ethnographic research on the children of immigrants, youth homelessness, transitional living services, and community-based arts programs. With a background in youth and community development, she has also served as a Federal project officer for evaluations on service learning, national and community service, and non-profit capacity building. Dr. Hafford received her degree in applied anthropology from Columbia University and has a particular interest in cultural competency and community engagement in human service delivery.

Kim Keating, M.Ed. Senior Research Associate

Kim Keating joined JBA's child welfare practice area in 2006. Ms. Keating has 14 years of experience in program evaluation and social science research. She has managed and contributed to several national research projects that address program performance and evaluate the achievement of intended outcomes for low-income and at-risk children and families. Ms. Keating's areas of expertise include child welfare and Head Start program research, large-scale data collection, training, and project management. As the Project Manager for the Cross-Site Evaluation of the Infant Adoption Awareness Training Program, she provides oversight and planning for a cross-site evaluation of the process and outcome goals achieved by six grantees funded by the Children's Bureau. Ms. Keating currently offers program evaluation technical assistance and support to Office of Family Assistance discretionary grantees through JBA's contract to provide Adaptable Evaluation Training and Technical Assistance for Healthy Marriage, Promoting Responsible Fatherhood and Tribal/TANF Child Welfare Grantees. In addition, Ms. Keating is a member of JBA's Evaluation Technical Assistance for Children's Bureau Discretionary Grantees project team. In this capacity, she provides evaluation technical assistance to grantees participating in the Collaboration between TANF and Child Welfare to Improve Child Welfare Program Outcomes.

Prior to joining JBA, Ms. Keating managed the Program Information Report (PIR) data collection on behalf of the Administration for Children and Families' Office of Head Start. Ms. Keating managed all phases of the reporting process, including instrument development, ensuring alignment of the survey content with the Head Start Program Performance Standards, participating in working groups with senior Federal officers, and providing recommendations for modifications to Federal staff. Ms. Keating's analyses and summaries of the annual PIR data were used to inform program policy and funding decisions and were reported to Congress, the public, and a wide variety of stakeholders. Ms. Keating received a M.Ed. in Counseling and Human Development from George Mason University and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Virginia.

Michelle Beaulieu Pillen, Ph.D. Senior Research Associate

Michelle Beaulieu Pillen joined JBA's HIV/AIDS practice area in 1998 and offers a combined 19 years of experience in program development and evaluation at the community, state and Federal levels. She is skilled in qualitative data collection, analysis, and synthesis, and has worked with administrators, clinicians, and consumers to evaluate behavioral health interventions for people living with HIV/AIDS who are dually diagnosed with mental illness and substance abuse. As a Senior Management Team Member for the Mental Health HIV/AIDS Services Collaborative (MHHSC) Program, she leads qualitative evaluation activities involving 16 community-based organizations expanding capacity to provide coordinated mental health and other support services to racial/ethnic minorities experiencing HIV/AIDS. Dr. Pillen has also worked on program evaluations related to treatment adherence, health outcomes, and service utilization. She represents JBA as a Program Reviewer for SAMHSA's National Registry of Programs and Practices (NREPP) Program and serves as a Behavioral and Social Science Volunteer (BSSV) as part of a national HIV prevention technical assistance program directed by the American Psychological Association (APA) Office on AIDS.

Prior to joining JBA, Dr. Pillen developed, implemented, and monitored evaluation activities for applied research projects focusing on substance abuse treatment and child welfare interventions. With a Doctorate in Clinical and Community Psychology, Dr. Pillen has conducted psychotherapy for adults, children, and families, and has a particular interest in cultural competency and collaborative research.

Guy E. DeWeever, Ph.D. Senior Research Associate

Guy E. DeWeever joined JBA 's child welfare practice area in 2001. With more than 12 years of experience in applied research, program evaluation, and policy analysis, Dr. DeWeever currently works in JBA's program areas of child welfare and child and adolescent development He provides technical assistance to support and build evaluation capacity among agencies implementing demonstration projects in the areas of healthy marriage promotion, foster care, adoption, and child welfare worker training. In addition, Dr. DeWeever works on JBA's contract to provide Evaluation Technical Assistance and Cross-Site Evaluation to the Early Head Start/Child Welfare Grantees. Under a previous contract with the Children's Bureau, Dr. DeWeever served as Project Manager for an implementation study that examined ways in which American Indian tribes utilized funds under the Promoting Safe and Stable Families (PSSF) Program. Dr. DeWeever is trained as a political scientist and has a particular interest in African-American youth, as well as the Fatherhood and Healthy Marriage Initiatives and their impact on family stability. Dr. DeWeever received a Doctorate in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland.

Jill H. Filene, MPH Senior Research Associate

Jill H. Filene joined JBA's child welfare practice area in 2004. Ms. Filene has more than a decade of experience in applied research, program evaluation, and technical assistance. She has primarily worked in the areas of child welfare, child and adolescent development and, prevention services. Ms. Filene currently manages the National Cross-Site Evaluation of the Replication of Demonstrated Effective Prevention Programs. In addition, she works on a cross-site evaluation of four child welfare Quality Improvement Centers and on JBA's project to provide evaluation technical assistance to agencies implementing demonstration projects in the areas of adoption, child abuse and neglect prevention, and training of child welfare workers. Ms. Filene holds a Masters in Public Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, with a focus on maternal and child health. She has particular interests in the prevention of child maltreatment and in the replication of evidence-based social service programs.

Kate Lyon, M.A. Research Associate

Ms. Lyon recently joined JBA's child welfare practice area. She has six years of experience in program evaluation, applied social science research, and evaluation technical assistance. She currently works on JBA's project to provide Evaluation Technical Assistance to Child Welfare Discretionary Grantees, for which she serves as an evaluation advisor to Children's Bureau grantees implementing demonstration projects in the areas of adoption, child abuse and neglect prevention and child welfare worker training. She also provides evaluation technical assistance to Office of Family Assistance discretionary grantees implementing healthy marriage, responsible fatherhood and Tribal child welfare/TANF coordination projects. In addition, Ms. Lyon contributes to multi-site evaluation studies, including the National Cross-Site Evaluation of the Replication of Demonstrated Effective Prevention Programs and the National Cross-Site Evaluation of the Zero to Three Court Teams for Maltreated Infants and Toddlers Project. Ms. Lyon received a Masters degree in Applied Cultural Anthropology from Northern Arizona University.

Nicole M. Miller, MSW Research Associate

Nicole Miller joined JBA's child welfare practice area in 2007. Ms. Miller has 12 years of experience in child and family services focusing in the areas of child welfare, child protection and child and adolescent mental health. Ms. Miller currently provides support to two projects for the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families: Technical Assistance and Evaluation of the Title IV-E Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Projects and the Cross-Site Evaluation of the Infant Adoption Awareness Training Program. Prior to joining JBA, Ms. Miller worked for the D.C. Child and Family Services Agency, where she provided oversight and technical assistance to foster care service providers. In addition, she spent six years supporting the Children's Bureau's federally mandated Child and Family Services Reviews and Title IV-E Foster Care Eligibility Reviews. With a background in clinical social work, Ms. Miller also has experience providing counseling and crisis intervention services to children and adolescents with mental health needs and women with high risk pregnancies. Ms. Miller holds a Masters degree in Social Work from Simmons College.