Eugene K. Cashman, Jr.
Eugene K. Cashman, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of The Urban Child Institute, received his M.S. in Technology of Management from American University and his B.S. in Business Administration from Auburn University.
For over forty years, his professional career has been focused on the well-being of children and ways to determine and implement best practices to ensure a better quality of life. Currently this particular emphasis is on optimal brain development in children 0-3 years of age.
Mr. Cashman has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of several organizations including: Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center from 1977-1995; Le Bonheur Health Systems, Inc., 1983-2004, and continued as President and Chief Executive Officer when the organization became The Urban Child Institute in 2004 to the present.
He is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives, and has served on numerous boards and committees over the years to include being a past Board Member of Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Memphis, National Association for Children and Related Institutions, and Methodist Healthcare-Memphis Hospitals. He serves on the University of Memphis Board of Visitors and the Board of The Village at Germantown. His professional associations have included Young Presidents' Organization and World Presidents' Organization.
Mr. Cashman has published several articles, and is the recipient of the L. M. Graves Award, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare Foundation Living Award, the University of Memphis Friend of the University Award and the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award.
Dr. Henry G. Herrod, MD
Dr. Henry G. Herrod earned his B.A. degree from Princeton University, with a major in history. He received his Masters of Science degree and M.D. from the University of Alabama in Birmingham (UAB) School of Medicine, from which he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2000. His pediatric training was at the University of Washington, and his allergy/immunology training took place at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, Melbourne Australia, the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, and at Duke University.
Dr. Herrod occupied the Le Bonheur Endowed Chair in Pediatrics, served as Vice Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Tennessee, Memphis, and as Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs at Methodist/Le Bonheur until 1998, when he assumed the role of Dean of the College of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Center for the Health Sciences, a position he held until 2005. Dr. Herrod has published more than 200 articles, abstracts, and book chapters. In 2009, he left the University of Tennessee and is currently a Fellow at The Urban Child Institute in Memphis.
Barbara Holden Nixon
Barbara Holden Nixon has a B.S. from the University of Memphis and a Masters of Science in Social Work from the University of Tennessee School of Social Work. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Tennessee Supreme Court Certified Family and Civil Mediator.
Mrs. Holden Nixon has worked as a Social Worker for the Tennessee Department of Mental Health, a Clinical Social Worker at Rancho Los Amigos Hospital in Los Angeles, California, Family Services of Orange County, California, and the Texas Institute for Rehabilitation and Research in Houston, Texas. In 1991, She founded the Prevention Wrap-around Services program for the Memphis and Shelby County Children's Community Services Agency where she then served as Executive Director until 2001. In 2001, she became the founding Director of the First years Institute, a non-profit early childhood collaborative based at Lebonheur Children's Medical Center.
Mrs. Holden-Nixon has served on a number of state, regional and national committees that have addressed children's issues. She most recently served on the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth and is an active member of Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen's Books from Birth Cabinet. She serves on the University of Tennessee School of Social Work Board of Visitors and is a Trustee for St. Mary's Episcopal School. In 2006 she joined the staff at The Urban Child Institute where she has focused on strategy, policy and dissemination.
W. Richard Janikowski, PhD
Professor Richard Janikowski is Director of the Center for Community Criminology and Research and Associate Professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Memphis. He is also a Fellow at The Urban Child Institute. He is the recipient of the University's Excellence in Engaged Scholarship Award and the Arts & Sciences W. Russell Smith Award for Teaching Excellence. In 2007 & 2008, he was recognized in the "Who's Who in Memphis" edition of Memphis Magazine.
Professor Janikowski has worked extensively with the Memphis Police Department, the United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, the Shelby County Sheriff's Office, and many other law enforcement agencies on a variety of projects. He was the Principal Investigator for the Memphis Sexual Assault Research project, a part of the United States Department of Justice's Strategic Approaches to Community Safety Initiative (SACSI) and is currently the Principal Investigator for the Memphis Project Safe Neighborhoods Initiative. In addition, he is the research partner for the Memphis Police Department's Blue C.R.U.S.H. strategy targeting "hotspots" of violent and property crime in Memphis and provides research support for Operation Safe Community.
Professor Janikowski has served as a consultant and trainer for the U.S. Department of Justice's National Institute of Justice and its Bureau of Justice Assistance; he has also served on the editorial boards and acted as a peer reviewer for numerous criminology journals. He is a member of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, American Society of Criminology, and the Southern Criminal Justice Association. Professor Janikowski has lectured extensively and trained police officers on gangs, youth violence, violent crime, problem-solving policing, and crime analysis.
He has published on issues concerning criminal law, criminal procedure, and criminology. Professor Janikowski is the co-author of Legality and Illegality, published by Peter Lang Publishing and is currently completing a book on constitutional criminal procedure. His other research interests focus on collaborations among local, state, and federal criminal justice agencies to reduce violent and gang crime and the impact of early childhood experience on future criminality.
JoeAnn L. Ballard, PhD
Born in Lucedale, Mississippi, JoeAnn Ballard received her undergraduate degree from Nazarene Bible Institute in West Virginia. JoeAnn continued her education at the University of Tennessee and Trevecca University, where she earned a Ph.D.
JoeAnn has impacted Memphis and Shelby County for over 30 years through the concerted efforts of the Neighborhood Christian Centers, Inc., (NCC) which she founded. She is the former Executive Director of the NCC and now presides as the Senior Advisor to the new President/CEO, Ephie B. Johnson. She walked hand in hand with her late husband, Mr. Monroe Ballard, Sr., changing a generation together one life at a time. Together they raised over 75 foster children and have nurtured and mentored thousands of others. JoeAnn's focus is to see the local church step up and take their rightful place in their communities, meeting the practical and spiritual needs of the people. She also has a great burden for families; the restoration of the family unit and brain development in children 0 to 3. Dr. Ballard currently serves as a consultant to The Urban Child Institute.
Sallie Foster
Sallie Foster has served as Executive Assistant to the President and Chief Executive Officer of The Urban Child Institute since 1977. She currently provides administrative assistance to the President and the Board of Directors of the Institute. Sallie also manages the day-to-day operation of the 600 Jefferson building.
She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Education from the University of Memphis in 1985.
Jean Phebus
Accountant Jean Phebus has been with The Urban Child Institute since 2006. She oversees the Institute's financial and administrative activities.
Before joining the Institute, she held financial and administrative management positions at both for-profit and nonprofit organizations. She has 9 years experience in non-profit fields, including serving as Director of Memphis Works, a service provider of job training for mentally disabled people, and Director of the Day Foundation. She also has 9 years experience in for-profit organizations including 5 years with Deloitte and Touche. In addition, she has served on several nonprofit boards and volunteers for various causes.
She earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Tennessee at Martin in 1992. She passed the CPA exam in 1993.
Stanley E. Hyland, PhD
Professor Stan Hyland is currently the Head of the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Memphis and Professor in the Department of Anthropology. He received his doctoral degree from the University of Illinois in cultural anthropology. In 2005 he received the University of Memphis' Excellence in Engaged Scholarship Award and currently holds the Faudree Professorship. He serves on several community boards including The Urban Child Institute. Since coming to the University of Memphis in 1976, Stan has worked with numerous governmental agencies, nonprofits, and community based organizations in a variety of community economic development initiatives. Stan has served as coordinator for several comprehensive regional and city-wide strategic planning efforts. In 1988-1990 he directed research for the federal commission on the economic development of the lower Mississippi Delta region, chaired by then governor, Bill Clinton. In 1998-99 he coordinated the University of Memphis collaborative effort with the Memphis Housing Authority's Transformation of Public Housing Initiative. Similarly in 2001-02 he coordinated the University of Memphis efforts in the Citywide Strategic Planning, Building Better Neighborhoods Together. Professor Hyland has been actively involved in the evaluation of all four of the HOPE VI revitalization efforts.
At the neighborhood level he has been involved in collaborative revitalization efforts in Orange Mound, North Memphis and the University District. His work with youth in Orange Mound received a Best Practices Award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In North Memphis Stan has spent the past four years working with middle school students on developing better communication strategies to build a healthy community. His book entitled Community Building for the 21st Century, published in 2006, brings together various perspectives and techniques on community development from a global perspective. Currently he is collaborating with the Neighborhood Christian Center in an effort to develop a media-based participatory research to address disparities among children 0 to 3.
Cyril Chang, PhD
Professor Cyril Chang is a Suzanne Downs Palmer Professor in Economic at the Fogelman College of Business and Economics, The University of Memphis, where he is also the Director of Methodist Le Bonheur Center for Healthcare Economics. In addition to his major appointment at The University of Memphis, Professor Chang serves as an adjunct Professor of Economics in the Department of Preventive Medicine, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.
Professor Chang received his Ph.D. in economics from The University of Virginia and has been with the University of Memphis since 1981. He teaches Health Care Economics and Executive MBA Economics, and regularly conducts executive training seminars and workshops for health care professionals and executives. Professor Chang has written a book and published more than 100 articles and book chapters in health care economics and health services research. In 2004, he won the University of Memphis' Board of Visitors Eminent Faculty Award, the highest distinction given annually to one faculty member who has made sustained contributions to the University of Memphis in scholarly activity, teaching, and service.
Phyllis Betts, PhD
Professor Phyllis Betts is the founding director of the Center for Community Building and Neighborhood Action at the University of Memphis. She has over twelve years experience working with community development organizations and other public and non-profit agencies. Her work revolves around the impact of poverty and inequality on neighborhoods, health and other quality of life indicators, and how to create and sustain healthy social support systems and neighborhood environments.
As a Research Fellow with The Urban Child Institute, her focus is on the impact of poverty and "neighborhood effects" on early childhood development. Professor Betts is the neighborhood effects research partner for the CANDLE study and brings this perspective to other TUCI-affiliated projects such as infant mortality and teen pregnancy prevention. She also contributes to the Data Book and directed an Annie E. Casey-funded inventory and analysis of resources and collaborative networks available for early childhood interventions.
In addition to her role with The Urban Child Institute, Dr. Betts is a research partner for the Community Development Council of Greater Memphis, the coordinator of the SouthEast Memphis Initiative, the research partner for the Southeast Memphis CDC and the community action component of the Safeways community safety strategy, the evaluator for four HOPE VI redevelopment projects in terms of their impact on neighborhoods, a pilot site partner for The Brookings Institution Urban Markets Initiative, the lead organization partner in Memphis for The Urban Institute's National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership, and the developer of a new on-line community indicators and information commons (InfoWorks Memphis, spring 2010 launch). She is also on the faculty of NeighborWorks America's National Training Institute for community developers.
She has a PhD in Sociology from the University of Chicago, with a special emphasis on urban policy, community and neighborhood change and poverty and social inequality.
Doug Imig, Director
Professor Doug Imig is a Research Fellow at The Urban Child Institute where he directs TUCI's Center for Urban Child Policy. Doug is also a professor of political science at the University of Memphis. He was on the faculty at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and a visiting scholar at Harvard University before coming to Memphis.
Doug's research focuses on the political representation of children, and social movement mobilization in the United States and Western Europe over the last century. He is the author of Poverty and Power, co-author of Contentious Europeans, and author of numerous journal articles and book chapters.
Frances A. Tylavsky, CANDLE Principal Investigator
As the Principal Investigator for the CANDLE study, Fran's experience as a researcher in the field of health sciences is wide-ranging, from genomewide SNP genotyping and DNA methylation to nutrition epidemiology. With more than 100 peer-reviewed publications to her credit, Frances is currently a Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine, Division of Biostatistics and Epdemiology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, Tennessee.
Originally from western Pennsylvania, Frances holds an M.S. from Boston University and a Dr.P.H. from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. In addition to managing her demanding research and professorial schedules, Fran is married and a devoted mother of two.
Pamela D. Connor, PhD
Pamela D. Connor is a professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine, with joint appointments in the College of Nursing and with the University of Memphis. She chairs the graduate program in Epidemiology and the online Certificate in Clinical Research program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Professor Connor has a long track record of designing and conducting training initiatives, as well as continued participation in ongoing clinical trials, and is currently the principal investigator on three community intervention studies. She has mentored over 65 students, published over 40 peer-reviewed articles, made hundreds of national presentations, and is one of the founding editors for The Primary Care Companion to The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.
Marion E. Hare, Director
Dr. Marion Hare is the Director of the Data Evaluation Center at The Urban Child Institute. She is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Preventive Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC). She received her medical degree from UTHSC in 1989. Prior to attending medical school Dr. Hare received a M.A degree in Exercise Science (1981) from Wake Forest University and worked as an exercise physiologist at the UTHSC where her work included exercise conditioning and testing of children with asthma and congenital heart disease.
After completing her pediatric residency in 1992, she began her medical career working for the National Health Service Corp and later spent two years in private practice. Dr. Hare returned to the University of Tennessee in 1996 where her initial focus was clinical medicine. In 2004, Dr. Hare received a M.S. degree in Epidemiology from the UTHSC. Her specific research interests are in the areas of early childhood development and obesity treatment and prevention. She is currently the PI of the NIH/NICHD grant entitled "Treating Childhood Obesity with Family Lifestyle Changes" and Co- PI of two Blue Cross Blue Shield funded projects, designed to impact infant morbidity and mortality, "The Blues Pilot Project" and "Blues II." She also serves as a clinical instructor of pediatric residents and medical students and teaches graduate students in the UTHSC epidemiology program.
Katherine L. Spurlock, Director
Katy Spurlock received her B.A. degree from Rhodes College, with a major in English. She received her Masters of Science degree in Social Work from the University of Tennessee College of Social Work and her Masters of Science degree in Business from the University of Memphis.
From 1994-1999, Katy was Project Director for a research study conducted by the Prudential Center for Healthcare Research to determine barriers to prenatal care for Medicaid-eligible women. The study resulted in two publications. From 1999-2005, she was Program Associate at the Plough Foundation, a private foundation in Memphis with a specific interest in early childhood education and services.
At The Urban Child Institute, Katy is Director of Education and Dissemination and currently serves on several nonprofit boards and community advisory committees.
Scott Wilson, Director
Scott Wilson is the Director of Technology and Special Projects for The Institute. Formerly the Director of Data, Scott was responsible for the publication of the annual "State Of The Children In Memphis And Shelby County" as well as overseeing the collection, organization and storage of data for the Institute. Currently, his department deploys and maintains the website and network technology utilized by The Institute. Additionally, the CANDLE research project at the University of Tennessee and our work with the Neighborhood Christian Center's Operation Smart Child project are his responsibility. Prior to joining The Institute, he owned and operated two businesses after more than 13 years in management positions at FedEx.
While born and raised in Memphis, Scott has lived and worked in several cities around the Southeast before returning home for good. Married, with three children, Scott has a B.S. in Organizational Management from Crichton College and has taught introductory business classes at Southwest Tennessee Community College.
Marc Goodman-Bryan, MA
Marc Goodman-Bryan is a Research Associate at The Urban Child Institute. He earned a B.A. in Philosophy from The University of Memphis in 2004 and a Master's Degree in Political Science from the University of Memphis in 2008. He has been with TUCI since 2008, and has contributed to numerous policy briefs and to The State of Children in Memphis and Shelby County: Data Book IV. His research interests include the effects of parenting style, family structure, and child care quality on child well-being. Other recent work examines topics such as infant mortality, educational achievement gaps, and emergent literacy.
Catherine Joyce, MA, Director
Catherine received her bachelor's degree in 2003 from LaSalle University in Philadelphia, PA where she majored in Political Science. Later she earned her master's degree from the University of Memphis in Political Science with a focus in Public Policy and American Government.
Catherine is currently the Director of Data Management at The Urban Child Institute where she is working on several projects including data development, modeling and simulation of child outcomes based upon early life experiences, Public Opinion Poll, and the annual publication of "The State of Children in Memphis and Shelby County."
Katherine McCaa Baldwin, MSW
Katherine received her Bachelor of Arts degree in German from Rhodes College and her Masters of Science degree in social work from the University of Tennessee. She has coordinated several research projects including Screening for Social, Communicative and Behavioral Problems in the Schools (University of Colorado), Availability of Hepatitis B Vaccine for High-Risk Adolescents (University of Rochester), and The Evaluation of Fetal and Infant Mortality Review (FIMR) Programs Nationwide (Johns Hopkins University).
As a parent of three children with hearing loss, Katherine has worked as a regional parent coordinator for Colorado Families for Hands & Voices. Currently, Katherine is a research coordinator in the department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Tennessee. Her focus is on evaluation of community-based programs and outreach efforts related to promoting awareness of early brain development in children 0-3 years of age.James W. (Bill) Howell, PhD
Dr. Bill Howell has a B.S. and M.S. from the University of Memphis and a Ph.D. in neurobiology from Cornell University. Besides studying with and working for the Atomic Energy Commission (now the Nuclear Regulatory Commission) at the University of Puerto Rico and Cornell University, Dr. Howell has held teaching and research positions at Frederick College, Cornell University, and Baylor College of Medicine. His work at Baylor was primarily with the Department of Psychiatry's Sex and Marriage Clinic and the Sleep Laboratory. Currently he is on the adjunct faculties of the Department of Psychiatry and the Department of Preventative Medicine of the College of Medicine at the University of Tennessee. Dr. Howell is the author of several books, book chapters, scientific papers, and articles. He is a neurobiologist at The Urban Child Institute.
Katie Devlin Midgley, MS
Katie Devlin Midgley received her B.S. in Psychology, Ed. from Mississippi State University in 2006 and her M.S. in Criminology from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa in 2008. In her graduate program she focused on family systems criminality, parental incarceration and children, and statistics.
She has been employed by the Center for Urban Child Policy at The Urban Child Institute since September of 2008. During her time at the CUCP, she has worked on projects examining child care settings and early childhood investment initiatives as well as policy briefs on poverty and parenting structures.
Bill Day
Bill Day is an Artist in Residence for The Urban Child Institute and an award-winning editorial cartoonist with more than twenty five years at the Detroit Free Press and The Memphis Commercial Appeal. He grew up in the segregated South and as a young boy witnessed the humiliation of Jim Crow laws. The fight for social justice and equality is an enduring and eloquent theme throughout his work.
He is the winner of the RFK Journalism Award, the National Headliners Award, the Reuben Award in Editorial Cartooning, The First Amendment award, The John Fischetti Award, The James Aronson Award for Social Justice, The Sierra Club Award Award for Cartoons on the Environment, and five-time winner of the Society of Professional Journalist's Green Eyeshade Award. Bill is syndicated with United Feature Syndicate and is carried by newspapers throughout the United States and Europe.
He lives in Memphis with his wife Susan and their three sons Sam, Robby, and Zack.
Terri Combs-Orme, PhD
Terri Combs-Orme is a Professor of Social Work at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, where she teaches graduate courses in human development with a focus on neurophysiology and research. Professor Combs-Orme has previously taught in the School of Public Health at The Johns Hopkins University and at the University of Maryland and Louisiana State University. She received her PhD from Washington University in St. Louis.
Professor Combs' research focuses on parenting, especially the parenting of infants, and the needs of disadvantaged families. She has published 45 articles in social work, public health, and medical journals, in addition to two books. She regularly writes for various regional parenting magazines, including Memphis Parent.
Jason Ziegler
Jason began his journey in the world of business as a bike-riding paperboy while still in elementary school. Not one to rest on his laurels, Jason eventually earned a B.B.A. in Management Information Systems from the Fogelman College of Business and Economics at the University of Memphis. He has developed business processes, custom software, and hardware solutions in various capacities since the early 1990s.
Jason's work spans several industries, including energy management, law enforcement, non-profits, auto racing, telecommunications, printing, shipping, packaging, marketing, entertainment, and real estate. Jason joined The Urban Child Institute in 2008 to spearhead future technology initiatives.
Jason is a lifelong Memphian, as are his wife Kristy and their son Ben.