| (AHUC) Advisory Committee. |
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Advisory Committee.Biosketches:Tanya D. Agurs-Collins, PhD, RD, is an Assistant Professor of Nutrition at the Howard University Cancer Center. She has over the past nine years worked as nutrition program manager, health promotion coordinator, diabetes educator and clinical dietitian. Dr. Agurs-Collins has served as a member for the Ad Hoc Committee on Minority Population; the Legislative Network Coordinator for the District of Columbia Metropolitan Area Dietetic Association; and mayoral appointed Board of Dietetics and Nutrition, District of Columbia. Publications and presentations have addressed the cultural components of eating patterns of African-American women to be incorporated in a model for dietary and weight change and designing health programs for minority populations. Fabricio E. Balcazar, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Disability and Human Development and Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). Dr. Balcazar has been principal investigator in numerous grants in the areas of urban planning and education with Latino communities, training Hispanic youths with disabilities, community health promotion, community integrated living and consumer involvement training. David Beer, PhD. (Cand.), is a Research Assistant Professor, Department of Occupational Therapy at UIC. He is a cultural anthropologist with over a decade of experience in ethnographic program evaluation research and program consultation of services to children and families in minority communities. Most recently, Mr. Beer has completed evaluations of family service projects in Cabrini Green, Robert Taylor Homes and Ogden Courts. Mr. Beer has also directed the evaluation of the Head Start Program at the Ridgeland Transitional Living Center/Family Rescue. Katherine A. Burson, MS OTR/L, is Director of Rehabilitation Services at the Chicago-Read Mental Health Center in Chicago where she is developing services for ethnically and racially diverse clients. Ms. Burson has been guest lecturer in the Department of Occupational Therapy at Rush University and UIC, consultant for Quality Healthcare Resources and Director of Psycho-Social Services at Excellcare, Inc. Christine Clay, a qualified Head Start teacher has been a consumer of a variety of occupational therapy services over the past 10 years including acute inpatient, outpatient and work rehabilitation. Ms. Clay has a cystic disorder that has required her to undergo several brain surgeries and has brought her into contact with numerous rehabilitation services. Ms. Clay has made numerous guest lectures to students on her experiences of rehabilitation and on the barriers that disabled minority persons face when returning to work. Judith Cooksey, MD, MPH, is a Clinical Associate Professor of Public Health at UIC. Dr. Cooksey has been active in developing interdisciplinary and community-based educational and primary care service programs. Research areas include community level health assessment, and managed care among Medicaid populations, and preparation of health practitioners. She is the Principal Investigator of an interdisciplinary grant programs in the areas of health professionals education. Diane Cornman-Levy, MS, PT, is Project Director of Community and Academic Partnership: A Model to Train Interdisciplinary Health Teams for Underserved Populations, Allied Health Project Grant at the Center for collaborative Research at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Ms. Cornman-Levy has served as a physical therapy consultant for homeless shelters in Center City Philadelphia, a coordinator of a homeless support group, faculty advisor for a student-run physical therapy clinic for homeless adults and outreach volunteer for Project H.O.M.E., a non-profit organization that addresses the needs of the homeless in Philadelphia. Joyce M. Cowan, MA, has been Executive Director of Family Rescue in Chicago for over 11 years. Additionally, she has served as shelter director for the Rosenthal Family Lodge, Counselor for the Community Economic Development Association and the Monterey Peninsula Youth Project, and Head Start Coordinator for the Washternaw County Head Start Program in Michigan. Ms. Cowan has received regional and national recognition for her work with abused women and children, including the Victim Advocate Award presented by the President and Attorney General of the United States. Cindy Hughes Harris, PhD, OTR, FAOTA, originally from Chicago, is Chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy at Columbia University in New York. She also oversees a unique dual degree program between occupational therapy and public health. For several years, Dr. Harris has been involved with high school students in Chicago and New York in programs directed towards AIDS education and prevention. Her primary research interests focus on the experiences of minority individuals, particularly students, as they participate in both white and non-white environments. Julie Bass Haugen, PhD, OTR, is Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Occupational Therapy and Director, Master of Arts in Occupational Therapy Program at the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, MN. Dr. Haugen is responsible for faculty, fieldwork developers, supervisors and students involvement in fieldwork sites which include homeless shelters, transitional housing programs, battered women's shelters, child development centers and drop-in community centers. Dr. Haugen serves on the Corporation for National Service grant Partners for Social Justice grant. Jim Hinojosa, PhD, OTR is Associate Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at New York University. His research and publications focus on family interventions for families, mothers and children with an emphasis on Hispanic populations. |
Laura Brubaker, lbruba1@uic.edu