Staff

Provides oversight of activities with federal, state, tribal and local partner institutions in the six northwestern states; connects the NWCPHP with other activities and programs within the University; and links NWCPHP activities with significant national public health activities and organizations, including public health accreditation, public health systems research, and emergency preparedness. Dr. Allan has degrees from Harvard Medical School, Harvard Law School and Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. She is Board Certified in Preventive Medicine and General Public Health. Prior to coming to the Center, she was State Public Health Director in Oregon (2005–2008) and Health Director for Arlington County, Virginia (1987–2005).
Contact: susallan@u.washington.edu 206.685.1130

Luann D'Ambrosio, Assistant Director
Manages NWCPHP's day-to-day project operations and represents the NWCPHP on the national Coordinators Network. In addition she leads NWCPHP evaluation activities. Ms. D'Ambrosio has more than 16 years of experience as a public health professional focusing on health promotion and disease prevention education and training programs. Ms. D'Ambrosio received her Master's in Education from Seattle University. Prior to coming to NWCPHP, she was manager of professional education programs at the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, where she designed, coordinated, and evaluated a number of community-based programs.
Contact: ldambr@u.washington.edu 206.543.2659

Fred Abrahamson, Fiscal Advisor and Contract Manager
Provides fiscal advice and contract management for NWCPHP investigators, including monitoring grants and the development and processing of all sub-contracts. He also assists the NWCPHP Operations Manager on various fiscal and budget matters. Mr. Abrahamson graduated with a BA in Health Education from Central Washington University. Prior to coming to the University of Washington, Mr. Abrahamson was the Director of Financial services at the Washington State Department of Health, where he worked for 30 years.
Contact: fa@u.washington.edu 206.616.8410

Janell Blackmer, Center Operations Manager
Provides grant and contract management for NWCPHP investigators, including fiscal monitoring, grant reporting, subcontract negotiation, and budget development. She also supervises NWCPHP support staff, including the hiring, training and management of regular, hourly, and temporary staff. Mrs. Blackmer graduated with a BA in Sociology and Mathematics from the University of Washington.
Contact: jla@u.washington.edu 206.616.9414

Megumu Brownstein, Research Coordinator
Project manager for a NLM-funded research project studying the use of machine translation technology for producing translations of health promotion materials. Ms. Brownstein received Master’s degrees in Social Work and Public Health from the University of Washington. Over the past five years, Megumu has worked in the areas of health promotion and program evaluation focusing on women and refugee/immigrant health issues with a specific interest in qualitative research.
Contact: megumu@u.washington.edu 206.616.2557

Rick Bruch, Web Computing Specialist
Manages the NWCPHP family of websites; creates and manages Web and online Center educational offerings; provides Web conferencing/iLinc user support. Mr. Bruch worked for several years in the UW Department of Health Services on academic Web resources.
Contact: rbruch@u.washington.edu 206.543.3696

Rebecca Calhoun, Research Coordinator
Project manager for a CDC research project studying emergency communications for limited English proficient communities. Ms. Calhoun received a Master of Public Health from the University of Washington. Becca’s work has focused on serving vulnerable populations in public health research and practice, including the fields of child protection, promotion of health pregnancy and childbirth, HIV prevention, and health marketing.
Contact: calhounb@u.washington.edu 206.685.4983

Devora Chavez, Research Coordinator
Project manager for a CDC research project studying CPR and Limited English Communities. Ms. Chavez received a Master in Teaching from Seattle University and a Master of Public Health from the University of Washington. She also is a CHES (Certified Health Education Specialist). Ms. Chavez has also worked as a public school teacher and an advocate for children with special needs.
Contact: devora@u.washington.edu 206.616.9567

Brooke Ike, Research Coordinator
Project manager for a CDC research project studying CPR and Limited English Communities. Ms. Ike received a Master of Public Health from the University of Washington. Brooke has worked eight years in public health research and practice, including the fields of health promotion among limited English proficient and uninsured populations, domestic violence prevention, HIV vaccine development, and emergency/disaster preparedness and response.
Contact: bike2@u.washington.edu 206.543.3304

Hsio-Ying Lo, Program Coordinator
Supports the administrative and financial management activities of NWCPHP and its Northwest Regional Network. She also supports center operations, maintains and manages the center databases, and does event planning and coordination. Ms. Lo majored in accounting in Taiwan and has received a certificate of Medical Billing from Edmonds Community College.
Contact: hsiol@u.washington.edu 206-543-3136

Latrissa (Trish) Neiworth, Curriculum Development Specialist
Collaborates and engages with faculty content experts and NWCPHP production staff to ensure educational excellence. She also focuses curriculum design toward public health competency mapping and voluntary public health related accreditation requirements while supporting cohesion and alignment of educational philosophies among grant-supported programs. Ms. Neiworth has more than 20 years of combined experience in education, communications, and public health. She is currently completing her doctorate in Education at Pepperdine University in Los Angeles, CA. She received her Master's in Education from Fresno Pacific University in Fresno, CA. Prior to coming to NWCPHP, she was a curriculum developer for the State of Oregon's Public Health Division, where she developed courses and e-learning. She has been recognized three times nationally in the past five years by the National Public Health Information Coalition for excellence in public health projects.
Contact: lneiwor@u.washington.edu 206.685.2617

Sarah Paliulis, Learning Technologies Specialist
Provides support for distance learning technologies at the NWCPHP including web conferencing and the learning management system. Before joining NWCPHP, Ms. Paliulis worked at the University of North Carolina School of Pharmacy supporting instructional technology and distance learning applications.
Contact: paliulis@u.washington.edu 206.616.9233

Barbara Rose, Outreach and Training Design Specialist
Meets with public health practitioners throughout the region to learn about innovative practice methods and opportunities for professional development. Partners with faculty from the University of Washington to design and implement trainings regarding current public health research. Before joining NWCPHP Barbara worked for 10 years in various school settings as a teacher and social worker. She earned her Master's degree in Public Health from the University of Washington.
Contact: barbrose@u.washington.edu 206.685.0106

Beryl Schulman, Research Coordinator
Provides scientific input and administrative oversight for the Health Risks of Climate Change study and the Northwest Preparedness and Emergency Response Research Center projects. Dr. Schulman has been conducting community-based public health research at the University of Washington for the past 15 years. She completed her masters degree in social work and her doctorate in social work and community psychology at the University of Michigan.
Contact: beryl@u.washington.edu 206.543.9287

Missie Thurston, Communications & Marketing Manager
Conducts strategic public relations programs with communication materials that accurately portray the NWCPHP image, brand and mission. Ms. Thurston has written and produced for television, radio, print, internet and bound publication. She holds bachelor's degrees in English Literature and Journalism Mass Communications from St. Michael's College in Colchester, Vermont.
Contact: missie@u.washington.edu 206.221.3862

Candace Tkachuck, Communications and Training Specialist
Supports communications and training efforts at NWCPHP. Before joining NWCPHP, Ms. Tkachuck worked for the Department of Health Services as the assistant to the departmental chair. She has also worked in the public school system. She holds master's degrees in English and in education.
Contact: cyt@u.washington.edu 206.685.2947

Trudy San Jose White, Program Operations Specialist
Supports the administrative and financial management activities of the NWCPHP and the Northwest Regional Network, including providing logistical coordination and implementation of on-site trainings and meetings. Ms. White has 17 years of experience in the University setting involving event planning, fiscal management, and customer relations.
Contact: sanjose@u.washington.edu 206.685.2931