Government Agency Fellows

Kate Dobler, MEd serves as the Arizona State Opioid Treatment Authority (SOTA) and the Women’s Services Coordinator (WSC). She earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of Arizona in Family Studies with an emphasis in Child Development, a Certificate in Public Management from Arizona State University, and a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership – Community College and Higher Education from Northern Arizona University. Kate is an endorsed infant toddler mental health professional driven to improve the odds for our state’s mothers, babies, and their families. She is a change agent committed to making this world better for kids. Kate is a systems thinker, passionate about creating meaningful, real, and relevant change, working to build systems that meet people where they are, with what they need, when they need it, and in ways that feel like help. At the core of her work, is the belief that babies live in families, families live in communities, and that it takes all of us to support healthy, happy, and safe families.

Rachael Salley, MPH is the Maternal Child Health/EPSDT Manager at the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS), Arizona’s Medicaid agency, since 2021. In this capacity, she oversees programming and policy impacting the women, birthing people, and children across Arizona who are covered by Medicaid. Her passion for maternal health began in Washington, D.C. where she earned a Master of Public Health in maternal and child health from George Washington University. It was during graduate school that Rachael became a mother herself and learned firsthand the impact of maternal mental health conditions after experiencing severe prenatal and postpartum depression that went undetected and untreated. Years later, in her current role at AHCCCS, she is able to use this experience as a motivator to drive change in the agency through efforts such as increased access to group prenatal care, doula services, and Perinatal Mental Health Certified (PMH-C) providers, all of which have been shown to have positive effects on maternal mental health. 

Jenny Erdman, LMHC is the Bureau Chief of Quality/Innovation and Medical Policy Bureau in the Iowa Medicaid division of Iowa Health and Human Services. Jenny is also a Licensed Mental Health Therapist who has over 20 years of experience working with children and adults with disabilities and mental illness.  Previously, Jenny was practicing therapy at a local county hospital. Jenny has her Masters in Mental health and Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling from Drake University.

Juliann Van Liew, MPH is the Director of Wellness & Preventive Health at Iowa Department of Health and Human Services where her portfolio includes the agency’s maternal and child health programs, oral health, WIC, nutrition and physical activity, violence prevention, and related work.  Previously, Juliann was the director for a local city/county health department in the Kansas City metro region and managed community-based population health programs for a safety net health system in the Twin Cities.  Juliann has her Masters in Public Health with a Maternal and Child Health concentration from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. 

Lindy Fike, M.S. works for the Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services as a Substance Use Disorders Project Coordinator, and oversees the designation of Women’s Programs for SUD treatment as well as the Pregnant and Postpartum Women grant for the state. Lindy received her bachelors and masters from Pittsburg State University in Family and Consumer Sciences, and has experience in prenatal development, family studies, lifespan development, and parenting education.  

Kelsee Fout, MPA is the Maternal and Child Behavioral Health Director in the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Bureau of Family Health. Kelsee currently serves as the Project Director Kansas’ psychiatric access programs: Kansas Connecting Communities and KSKidsMAP. Kelsee also supports the development, implementation, and coordination of programmatic activities within Title V Maternal and Child Health programs related to behavioral health. Kelsee was the recipient of the Association of MCH Programs’ 2020 Emerging MCH Professional Award for Region VII.

 Joseph Stratton, DBA is an experienced healthcare & human services administrator. He has more than 30 years of administrative experience, plus having taught in higher education at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He is the Executive Project Manager in the Office of the Secretary for Kansas Department of Health & Environment, which includes the Division of Medicaid Services where he is a member of the Executive Oversight Committee. He holds undergraduate degrees from the University of Northern Colorado in Communication and Humanities, a Master of Science in Education Administration from Kansas State University, and a Doctor of Business Administration from the California Southern University.  Additionally, Dr. Stratton is board certified as a healthcare administrator in the American College of Healthcare Executives.

 Angela (Angie) W. Parker, RHIT is the Director of Quality and Population Health for the Kentucky Department for Medicaid Services. She has been with Kentucky Medicaid for 6 years. For the first 4 years, as the Director of Program Quality and Outcomes, she provided oversight of the managed care organization contractual obligations and the external quality review organization contract. In 2022, she established a new division, Quality and Population Health, to provide more focus on quality, population health, equity and determinants of health and research and analytics. She previously worked as Director of Healthcare Operations and Director of Clinical and Quality Outcomes at a commercial and Medicare Advantage managed care organization, Baptist Health Plan (formerly Bluegrass Family Health). She led healthcare operations of Utilization Management, Case Management, Quality, Health Promotion and Reinsurance. She successfully orchestrated the health plan’s first NCQA accreditation.

Judith Ann Theriot, MD, CPE, is the Medical Director for the Kentucky Department for Medicaid Services and has served in that capacity since May 2019. Prior to that, she was the Commission for Children with Special Health Care Needs’ Medical Director from July 2013 through May 2019. Dr. Theriot attended medical school at the University of Louisville (UofL) then went on to complete her Pediatric residency and a chief resident year before joining the faculty at UofL. Dr. Theriot served as the director of the General Pediatrics Clinical Research Unit and as the medical director of the Children and Youth Project; a multidisciplinary primary care clinic serving the inner-city high-risk children of Louisville Kentucky. Dr. Theriot’s research experience has focused primarily on the needs of underserved children. She has also been involved in curriculum development including needs assessments around caring for underserved children and training our medical students and residents to recognize the needs of the patients and help identify resources. Her range of educational, research, and leadership experience allows her to function as an excellent resource for MCH in engaging rural and underserved communities. Dr. Theriot is a certified physician executive and is a professor of Pediatrics at UofL.

Karen Stubbs, JD joined the Louisiana Department of Health in 2013 and serves as the Assistant Secretary for the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) Office of Behavioral Health (OBH).  As head of the state Office of Behavioral Health, Karen leads policy decisions addressing prevention and treatment of mental illness, substance use disorders, and addictive disorders.  Her office acts as monitors and subject matter consultants for the children’s Medicaid Coordinated System of Care program and the Medicaid Healthy Louisiana managed care plans, which manage behavioral health services.  Karen’s career spans leadership roles in the Office of Juvenile Justice and a Governor administration as well as being a former criminal prosecutor. Karen is an attorney who graduated from the LSU Law School.

Kimberly L. Sullivan, JD  is the Medicaid Executive Director at the Louisiana Department of Health. She has been with the department for over 20 years. Prior to serving in her current role, Mrs. Sullivan held various roles in the department’s Bureau of Legal Services where her primary practice was in the area of the Louisiana Medicaid program. Ms. Sullivan received a B.S.in Biology from the University of Mississippi and her J.D. from the LSU Law School.

Tangela Womack, MBA is the Assistant Secretary of the Office of Women’s Health and Community Health, dedicated to educating and empowering women with the resources needed to make informed decisions regarding their overall health and wellbeing. She has extensive experience serving the Louisiana Medicaid population, having spent five years within the agency serving in various roles, including Medicaid Deputy Director of Policy, Waiver and Public Affairs. During her tenure, she served as a member of the Louisiana Developmental Disabilities Council, advocating for the state’s most vulnerable populations. Tangela’s expertise and commitment drive her efforts to improve health outcomes for women across Louisiana.

Amy Belisle, MD, MPH, MBA is the Chief Child Health Officer for the Maine Department of Health and Human Services.  She has practiced as both a general pediatrician and pediatric hospitalist.  Prior to this position, she worked for eight years as a Senior Medical Director at Maine Quality Counts/Qualidigm, and the Director of Child Health Quality Improvement at Maine Quality Counts and the Maine Child Health Improvement Partnership (ME CHIP).  She attended Harvard University and the University of Vermont College of Medicine.  She received her MBA from Lehigh University and her MPH from the University of New England.  She completed her Pediatric Residency at the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital at Maine Medical Center.

​​Maggie Vaughn Jansson, MPH, RN, CLC is the Maternal and Infant Health Coordinator for the Office of MaineCare Services with the State of Maine. Maggie has worked in the maternal and child health field for over twenty-five years, as a public health educator, nurse, and patient advocate. She holds a BA from Carleton College, and a BSN and an MPH from Johns Hopkins University. Prior to her work at MaineCare, Maggie spent four years coordinating the MaineMOM and Healthy Generations programs for pregnant and parenting people with substance use disorder at the Addiction Resource Center, part of the Mid Coast-Parkview Health/MaineHealth system, in Brunswick, Maine.

Swathi Damodaran, MD, MPH is a child/adolescent and perinatal psychiatrist in Boston, MA. She currently serves as Associate Medical Director of Psychiatry for MassHealth, where she provides clinical expertise on policy to improve behavioral health care in Massachusetts. Dr. Damodaran is originally from Madison,WI, where she studied neurobiology and political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She received her medical degree from the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, and her Masters in Public Health from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She completed her adult psychiatry residency and child/adolescent psychiatry fellowship training at Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) in Cambridge, MA. Prior to joining MassHealth, Dr. Damodaran was an attending physician at CHA, where she led the development of perinatal integrated behavioral health services in OB/Gyn and primary care. She is also an experienced clinician educator and served as Director of Medical Student Education in Psychiatry at CHA for Harvard Medical School.

Alyssa Greene, LCPC (she/hers) is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor in Minnesota, having worked at one point in time all levels of care with eating disorders and co-morbid disorders. After working with individuals and families, she moved into working in the mental health systems realm to improve mental health services and accessibility. She is currently the Mental Health Systems Coordinator for the Children and Youth with Special Health Needs at the Minnesota Department of Health. She is the manager of the Minnesota Pediatric Mental Health Access Program. Outside of work, Alyssa also works in the reproductive freedom space. Without bodily autonomy or choice in our healthcare, our mental health will suffer. What drives her most throughout all her roles in the community is creating health equity and trauma-informed care in the healthcare and public health system.

Megan Warfield-Kimball, OTD, MSHS, OTR/L (She/her/hers) is a benefit policy specialist with the Minnesota Department of Human Services.  Her work focuses on fee for service benefit coverage policy for reproductive health services.  Her goal is to promote community led policy that is centered on equity and justice for Minnesota Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare members.  Megan’s background is in Occupational Therapy and she provided home care Occupational Therapy for 10 years prior to coming to state work.  It was the stories and life experiences of the members she met during that time that led her to state service to become a part of solutions that help members thrive.  

Evette Cullen, BS has been the Social Services Chief of the Medical and Dental Benefits Coverage Unit with the Nevada Division of Health Care Finance and Policy also known as Nevada Medicaid since December 2022.  Prior to her work with Nevada Medicaid, Evette progressed through multiple positions at the Nevada Division of Welfare and Supportive Services starting in 2010. Her previous non-State work experience includes working in finance running a mortgage branch for Wells Fargo Financial after college. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and linguistics from the University of Nevada, Reno. Evette was born in New York City and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada.  

Carin Fox Hennessey, M.Ed is a Policy Supervisor with Medical and Dental Benefits Coverage with the Nevada Division of Health Care Financing and Policy, also known as Nevada Medicaid. She had previously been a Program Specialist with Nevada Medicaid’s Behavioral Health Unit since 2018. Other positions held within Nevada DHHS include Psychiatric Case Worker, Academic Teacher, and Developmental Specialist. She has taught young adults with mild/moderate disabilities, adjudicated male youth, adult high school equivalency, and English Language Learners. She has also been a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor Intern, working with teens and adults in residential treatment. She earned her B.A. English at Dickinson College and M.Ed. Special Education at UNLV. Carin is originally from Pennsylvania. 

Folake Adedeji, PhD currently serves as the Chief Quality Officer for the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA). She has over 15 years’ experience in allied and public health with a focus on community health and data driven quality improvement. Prior to starting this role, she was OHCA’s Director of Quality Improvement.  Dr. Adedeji has also served as a Community Outreach Manager for the Oklahoma Primary Health Care Improvement Cooperative (OPHIC) where she led a statewide opioid education and naloxone distribution project. She supported several practice facilitators as they worked to integrate behavioral health into primary care clinics across the state. She cultivated and maintained several clinic partnerships to pave the way for other quality improvement projects’ implementation. Throughout her career, she has authored several publications and peer-reviews for the Medical Care journal. Dr. Adedeji has prior experience in strategic planning, quality improvement, maternal and child health, behavioral health, and public health policy. She received her BS in Sociology from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, an MS in Population and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science, United Kingdom, and a PhD in Behavioral Sciences with minors in Biostatistics and Health Management and Policy from UTHealth Sciences Center, Houston, Texas.

Tanesha Hooks MS, LPC, CPO is a licensed mental health therapist with over 20 years of experience and serves as the Director of Behavioral Health at the Oklahoma Health Care Authority. Her team consist of staff that complete prior authorizations for Inpatient Behavioral Health/Applied Behavior Analysis, a team of Psych/ID analyst that complete Preadmission Screening and Resident Review for nursing facilities, BehavioralHealth Auditors, care coordinators, and support staff. She also runs a private practice, Creative Options Counseling & Consulting, Inc. located in Midwest City, Ok. She specializes in trauma abuse counseling. She is very active in her community and previously served as the Risk Management Coordinator for her Alumni Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc and served on the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Citizen Advisory Board. Tanesha is committed to the support and advancement of behavioral health in our state and spends time training on CEUs for various board approved topics such as “Microaggressions”, “How to avoid burn-out when working in Utilization Management”, “Rape Culture and Ethics in counseling” to name a few.

Breanna M. Lemieux currently serves as the Accountable Entity Program Lead within the Medicaid department at the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services. In this role she oversees and supports the Accountable Entity (AE) Program, that is RI Medicaid’s version of an Accountable Care Organization (ACO) Program. It aims to reduce costs, improve quality of care, and improve population health outcomes amongst the 70% of Rhode Island Medicaid members that are attributed to RI’s Accountable Entities. She also supports RI Medicaid’s Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Investment Strategies that enables stakeholders to address individual health-related social needs, enable clinic and community coordination & linkages, and address upstream social determinants of health and racial inequities. Prior to joining the RI Executive Office of Health and Services she worked as a Population Health Operations Manager at Village Medical Inc. and Director of Quality Management at Ocean State Healthcare. She has over 10 years’ experience primarily in improving quality of care and population health outcomes and addressing health disparities and social determinants of health.

Collette Onyejekwe, BA, PharmD, RPh, MPH, currently serves as the Pharmacy Director for the Rhode Island Medicaid program within the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services (RI EOHHS). In this role, she provides clinical pharmacy support, analyzes pharmacy utilization data, and develops pharmacy policies. Additionally, she co-chairs the RI EOHHS Maternal and Child Health Workgroup and serves as community committee member on the Rhode Island Pregnancy and Postpartum Death Review Committee (PPDRC). Previously, she served as Chief Health Program Evaluator and Principal Investigator for the Rhode Island Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, overseeing evaluation studies and program enhancements. Additionally, Collette worked as an Academic Detailer for the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH), providing educational outreach to healthcare professionals. Her primary focus is addressing health disparities in underserved communities. Collette earned her Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Rhode Island College, her Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Rhode Island, and her Master of Public Health from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Keith King, MA has his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology, Bachelor of Science in Physics, and his Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology. He has been a licensed psychologist in West Virginia for the past 17 years.  Keith has worked as a psychologist and a social worker in rural WV as well as being the Director of Psychology at Mildred-Mitchell Bateman Hospital before choosing a path with WV Bureau of Medical Services (BMS.) He has worked at WV BMS for the past ten years and has assisted in policy regulation with children’s mental health, neonatal abstinence centers and psychiatric residential treatment facilities. He has been a member of the ACEs foundation and participated in WV perinatal partnership. Presently, he is the program manager of the 1115 waiver which includes a host of SUD treatment services and is passionate about methods for rural access of mental health services. 

Keli Mallory, MSW is currently licensed as an LGSW with an Associate degree in Science, a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, and a Master’s degree in Social Work. For the past 15 years, Keli has been employed with a Community Behavioral Health Center where she has worked as a supervisor for Community Engagement Specialist as well as the interim supervisor for Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) team. In addition, Keli has worked concurrently as a Crisis Worker/Therapist within a hospital setting. Currently, Keli works within the Bureau for Medical Services as a Program Manager and manages Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS), Drug Free Mom and Babies (DFMB), and Maternal Opioid Misuse Model (MOM) as well as other programs. Keli is passionate about her work within the behavioral health setting and is dedicated to improving the lives of others.

Leah Colburn, CMHC, is with the Utah Department of Human and Human Services-Office of Substance Use and Mental Health. As the Administrator of Children, Youth and Family Programs, she oversees mental health strategies for children and youth. Leah has previously worked in community mental health, providing a continuum of behavioral health supports and services to at-risk and underserved youth and families in Utah. While working in community mental health, Leah supervised school-based mental health programs, intensive wraparound in-home programs, and crisis intervention. Leah is a strong advocate for collaboration within the community to support system alignment and coordination to ensure the best outcomes for children, youth and families.

Jade Hill, MPH, works as the Maternal Mental Health Program Specialist with the Utah Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Maternal and Child Health, where she is focused on maternal mental health initiatives throughout Utah. Jade received a Master of Public Health degree from University of New England and is currently pursuing a Master of Social Work degree. She has worked in the field of maternal and child health in multiple settings, including clinical, research, policy, and state government. Jade has spent most of her career focused on addressing public health barriers. Jade has a passion for addressing health disparities and gaps in current maternal mental health efforts.

Chedeline Apollon, MPH, CPH, (she/her/hers) is the Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan Coordinator within the Office of Health Equity for the Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County. She holds a B.S. in Public Health, with a minor in Africana Studies and a Masters in Public Health, with a concentration in Maternal and Child Health, both from the University of South Florida. Her specific research and academic interests include centering historically marginalized communities and their lived experiences through a mixed-methods approach to help achieve health equity. With additional experience working firsthand with birthing persons during pregnancy and in the postpartum, this includes amplifying the needs of birthing persons and the importance of focusing on the “fourth trimester.”

Allison Nguyen, MPH, MCHES®, leads the Office of Health Equity at the Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County. She is involved in multiple initiatives to support health equity, including maternal health, infant mortality, health in all policies, Title X family planning, health literacy, public health re-accreditation, and community health improvement planning. She is engaged in community partnerships around public health issues relating to accessing healthcare services, early learning, food security, and transportation planning. She has been an invited speaker at state and national public health conferences on related topics. She has a background in local public health, having worked at local health departments in New York and North Carolina as well. In her personal time, she is an advocate for maternal mental health and enjoys time with her family and hobbies, including reading, baking, and traveling.

Giselle Hallden is a Public Health Program Manager in the Pennsylvania Department of Health. She has 14 years of experience working with various maternal and child health-related programs. She has worked closely with county and municipal health departments, health systems, community organizations, and national organizations to improve the health and well-being of Pennsylvania families.

Tahesia Thomas, MHA, MPA, CPhT, is the Public Health Program Administrator for the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Maternal Mortality Review Committee. In her role, she coordinates the multidisciplinary committee’s activities and oversees the implementation of the Maternal Review Program, contracts, and federal reporting. She earned her Master of Health Administration and Public Administration from the University of Phoenix. In addition, she maintains her certification as a pharmacy technician so that she can use this knowledge in her current work addressing maternal health issues. In addition, Tahesia has ten years of experience working in both the Health Care and Human Services fields, including Intellectual Disabilities / Development Disabilities (ID/DD), Children and Youth Services (CNYS), and Bureau of Human Services Licensing. In these positions, she measured compliance for the safety and well-being of individuals and helped identify the root cause(s) of death and injuries to identify ways to prevent these occurrences

Beth Tinker, PhD, MN/MPH, RN, is a Clinical Nurse Consultant/Nurse Advisor at the Washington State Health Care Authority. Her nursing experience is in Pediatrics, Obstetrics, Public Health, home visiting, and management. Beth completed her PhD in Nursing Science at the University of Washington in 2019, where she was awarded the Robert Wood Johnson Scholar Award for doctoral studies. Her research interests include health disparities, infant mental health, protective factors for children and families living with complex adversity, breastfeeding, early intervention, home visiting, and public health nursing. At the Health Care Authority, she focuses on clinical programs and policies across the reproductive health continuum and care for children and families, with a focus on perinatal and infant mental health. She is also an affiliate faculty member at the University of Washington School of Nursing.

Helena Girouard works for the Florida Department of Health in Volusia County as a Community Outreach Liaison focusing on maternal and child health and overdose prevention. She graduated from Daytona State College with an Associate’s in Arts and an Associate’s in Science in Human Services with a Specialization in Addiction. She graduated with her Bachelor’s in Science in Public Administration at Flagler College. She has been a Parent Leader Volunteer since 2014, working with community providers, parents, and other stakeholders to inform policy and programming for vulnerable families to build resiliency and support family well-being. She completed a two-year Pritzker Fellowship in June 2020. The fellowship built a network of strong leaders nationwide who lead community-based efforts focused on the first three years of life when rapid periods of brain development are critical for a child’s later success. She is deeply embedded in her community and works with early childhood leaders, and local policymakers and practitioners to create, implement and sustain ambitious communitywide birth to three action plans to support the healthy development of Volusia Counties’ youngest children.

Amanda Eby is a Program Specialist for Montana’s Maternal Health Innovation grant, Montana Obstetrics and Maternal Support (MOMS) she oversees program design, implementation and evaluation while managing related contracts and federal reporting. She coordinates the multidisciplinary statewide collaboration of the MOMS Maternal Health Leadership Council, the Montana Maternal Mortality Review Committee (MMRC), the Perinatal Quality Collaborative (PQC) and the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM) Initiative. Prior to this role, she managed business development and provided communications support for several contracts at Mountain-Pacific Quality Health. As the Health Innovation Program Officer for Montana Medicaid, she managed Medicaid’s value-based payment programs. As Project Administrator for the Montana Insurance Commissioner, she staffed communications, health policy and consumer education; and she administered the statewide Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) program.

Sarabeth Upson, BA graduated from Smith College in 2015 with a BA in Psychology. She then went on to receive her Master of Public Health degree from The George Washington University in 2018, with a focus on maternal and child health. Sarabeth worked for three years as a home visitor and family assessment and data specialist in Washington D.C. before moving to Helena, Montana to pursue her passion for creating system change within state government. Sarabeth is currently working on Perinatal Behavioral Health Initiative for the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, overseeing the HRSA grant which helps to fund both the PRISM for Moms teleconsultation line and the Meadowlark Initiative.

Samantha Shuster, LSW is the Community Coalition Manager for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Maternal, Child and Family Health Division. Samantha coordinates the Community Action Network, a collective-impact initiative aimed at reducing infant mortality and improving maternal health outcomes in Philadelphia and supports the coordination of Organizing Voices for Action, the community action arm of Philadelphia’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee. Prior to this, Samantha worked as a Program Analyst at Action Wellness. She has a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Temple University and is a licensed social worker.

Simone Snead, MPH, CLC is a public health professional dedicated to decreasing the rates of maternal morbidity and mortality among black women in the United States. Simone’s interests have focused on the role of birth and postpartum doulas, maternal and infant mortality and the impact those tragedies have on African American women. Simone is the Maternal Mortality Review Community Action Team Coordinator with the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. Simone is a Certified Lactation Counselor and a Birth Doula. Some of her greatest accomplishments are supporting families as they experience the beauty of birth. She truly believes that no woman should die while giving life and is making it her mission to decrease the high

Jenny Barbera is a public health nurse and works as the Maternal Child Health Coordinator at Teton County Health Department in Jackson, Wyoming. She has worked with new mothers and babies throughout her nursing career and was shocked to see the prevalence of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders in her small community. After having her own child in 2018, Jenny was inspired to incorporate a focus on maternal mental health in her nursing practice and personal life. She does this through her work as a nurse home visitor and her involvement with Postpartum Support International Wyoming Chapter and local advocacy groups. She feels it is a privilege to support families through the transformative period of pregnancy, postpartum and beyond. In her free time, she loves spending time with her family, running, yoga, and seeing live music.

Hannah Kennedy is a Maternal Child Health Nurse in Jackson, WY. She has been working as a nurse for 2 years and has been in Public Health the entire time. As the child of a counselor, mental health has always been a large part of Hannah’s life. Since beginning work in Maternal Child Health, she has become more acutely aware of the high incidence of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders and has a great interest in pursuing more education in this field.