Team

Research Team

Our talented University of Minnesota team analyzes, translates, and disseminates emerging best practice and policy. Our interdisciplinary approach includes psychology, child psychology, clinical psychology, sociology, public health, and nursing.

The Shlafer Program is a diverse and inclusive space in which mentoring is a value and a verb.

Abaki Beck
Abaki Beck

Doctoral Candidate

Health Services Research, Policy, and Administration

Emily Bloomquist
Emily Bloomquist

Health Equity Researcher

Center for Research in Family Home Visiting

Freddie Corcoran
Freddie Corcoran

Doctoral Candidate

Institute of Child Development

Laurel Davis
Laurel Davis

Project Director 

Center for Research in Family Home Visiting 

@DrLaurelDavis

Darartu Elemo
Darartu Elemo

Undergraduate

Psychology

Mariann Howland
Mariann Howland

Doctoral Candidate

Developmental Psychopathology, Clinical Science

Miftahul Jannat
Miftahul Jannat

Undergraduate

Psychology and Sociology of Law

Julia Kancans
Julia Kancans

Master's Candidate

Biostatistics

Ingie Osman, M.P.H.
Ingie Osman

Project Director

Enhanced Perinatal Programs for People in Prison (E4P)

Rodolfo Perez
Rodolfo Perez

Doctoral Candidate 

Psychology

Vivian Pham
Vivian Pham

Master's Candidate

Maternal and Child Health

Katherine Pierson headshot
Katie Pierson

Communications Strategist

Karenna Thomas
Karenna Thomas

Master's Candidate

Social and Behavioral Sciences

US Health and Justice

Maternal and Child Health

Ashley Watson portrait
Ashley Watson, PhD

Research Staff

Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development

External Partners

Teamwork powers our efforts to change systems.

These external partners help us build momentum and impact:

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Amherst H. Wilder Foundation

Amherst H. Wilder Foundation’s convening of the Strengthening Families Affected by Incarceration Coalition resulted in our analysis of the Minnesota Student Survey and a series of one-pagers and infographics that show stakeholders the layered impacts of having an incarcerated parent

MDH Family Home Visiting Program

Minnesota Department of Health’s Family Home Visiting (FHV) program partners with us to co-develop and continuously improve a comprehensive research and evaluation agenda, to connect FHV research and practice, and explore potential collaborations between FHV and criminal justice settings.

Minnesota Department of Corrections

The Minnesota Department of Corrections works with us and our community partners to improve birth and infant health outcomes, strengthen parent-child attachment, and offer supports to children of incarcerated parents.

Minnesota Model Jail Practices Learning Community

The MN Department of Health partners with us to facilitate the Minnesota model jail practices learning community. We engage jail facilities and community partners at the state and local levels to help implement policy, systems, and environmental changes that benefit children of incarcerated parents and their families.

Ostara Initiative

Ostara Initiative, a collective of the Minnesota Prison Doula Project, the Alabama Prison Birth Project, and new initiatives to end the phenomenon of prison births, connected with the Shlafer Program’s to measure and evaluate outcomes and participant experiences.