Research Team

Kyle L. Grazier, Dr PH

Director

Kyle L. Grazier, MS, MPH, DrPH is the Richard Carl Jelinek Professor of Health Systems Management and Policy in the School of Public Health and Professor of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine at the University of Michigan.

Dr. Grazier is a faculty member of the UM Eisenberg Family Depression Center, the UM Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, and is past chair of the department of Health Management and Policy.

Her research focuses on expanding access to health and health services for vulnerable populations through financing systems, payment models, mental health parity, and behavioral health integration with primary care and social services. In 2017-18, she was a Fulbright Scholar conducting research on behavioral health integration in Eastern Europe. She teaches graduate courses on insurance, finance, and payment systems.

Nancy Baum, PhD, MHS

Deputy Director

Nancy Baum, PhD, MHS has an extensive background in behavioral health, both as a clinician early in her career, and as a researcher and policy analyst. Dr. Baum has previously served as a Center Investigator for more than three years.

As the Health Policy Director for CHRT, Dr. Baum leads the organization’s work developing and managing health policy projects in health reform, health status improvement, access to health care, local public health, and behavioral health. With a focus on mental health, she has cultivated strong partnerships with myriad government and community organizations including the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network, the Washtenaw County Community Mental Health and Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office, and more. Dr. Baum incorporates policy into all aspects of her work, developing analyses and policy briefs for state-level policymakers and the public.

Simone R. Singh, PhD

Investigator

Simone R. Singh, PhD is an Associate Professor of Health Management and Policy in the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan. Trained in accounting, economics, and healthcare management, Dr. Singh studies how financing and organizational structures of healthcare and public health organizations affect resources available for population health. Currently, Dr. Singh is part of a national effort, funded by the CDC and the deBeaumont Foundation, to estimate the staffing needed to provide comprehensive public health services in communities across the country.

Lynn Videka, PhD

Investigator

Dr. Videka is the Dean, and Carol T. Mowbray Collegiate Professor of Social Work, at the University of Michigan School of Social Work. Her research and teaching focus on families served by the child welfare system and persons with serious mental health disabilities, and also include peer-helping models for people facing life crises, the effectiveness of social work practice, and prevention services. Dr. Videka’s various research endeavors are funded by institutions such as the Health Resources and Services Administration, the U.S. Children’s Bureau, the National Institutes of Mental Health, and the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.

Jessie Buche, MPH, MA

Managing Director

Jessie is a 2012 graduate of University of Michigan School of Public Health and School of Education where she applied her dual degrees to study the way schools can help decrease health and education disparities by building sustainable, empowered communities. She has gained public health and education experience as a teacher, community health educator, advocate, and program evaluation manager in Washington, D.C., Chicago, Ann Arbor, Detroit, and New York City. Her research interests include addressing chronic disease and mental health inequities in underserved communities.

Amanda Mauri, MPH

Doctoral Research Assistant

Amanda is a PhD student in the Health Management and Policy Department at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Amanda combines political science and health services research methods to evaluate behavioral health policies. She focuses on national and local policies related to insurance equity, opioid misuse, and the behavioral health workforce. Previously, Amanda worked as the Policy Advisor at the Kennedy Forum and the Thomas Scattergood Behavioral Health Foundation and as the Senior Researcher on Patrick Kennedy and Stephen Fried’s A Common Struggle.

Maria Gaiser, MPH

Research Area Specialist

Maria is a graduate of the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Maria’s professional experience includes cross-disciplinary training on addressing health disparities created by social, political, and physical factors through mixed-methods research. Her research interests include chronic disease prevention, social determinants of health, adolescent behavioral health and resiliency, and mental health outcome inequities in underserved communities. Maria specializes in qualitative data collection and analysis and program evaluation.

Victoria Schoebel, MPH

Statistician

Victoria is a recent graduate of the Epidemiology Department at the University of Michigan School of Public health, where she earned her MPH. Victoria has worked on both qualitative and quantitative research studies with a focus on psychiatric epidemiology and health disparities among sexual and gender diverse groups. Her work emphasizes the use of quantitative methodologies to strengthen research-based policy.

Jessica Kay, MPH

Marketing Coordinator

Jessica began her studies in public health as an undergraduate living abroad in Costa Rica, an experience that led to earning her MPH from the West Virginia University School of Public Health. Since then, Jessica has used her passion for health marketing and communications to enhance brand and service line programs for Detroit Medical Center, Tenet Healthcare hospitals, Chevrolet LMA, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, among others. Her programs put an emphasis on program strategy and measurement, using an integrated approach to increase brand recognition and improve results.

Caitlyn Wayment, MPH

Research Area Specialist

Caitlyn recently earned her MPH in the department of Health Behavior and Health Education at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Caitlyn has worked on qualitative and quantitative research studies that focus on health disparities and access to behavioral health services. Through her education and coursework, Caitlyn has found a passion for dental health disparities, health care policy and delivery innovations, and interprofessional education and collaboration.