meet our team

Jenita provides direction and strategic guidance to the Breakthrough team, and technical expertise and support toward executing its vision. Jenita is a leader in advancing adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) equity and is dedicated to challenging harmful SRH research. She has over 15 years of experience directing large implementation and impact evaluations and conducting training and technical assistance.

She is a nationally recognized researcher in racial equity approaches to research and is published in Prevention Science, Evaluation and Program Planning, Violence against Women, and the American Journal of Public Health. Jenita holds a PhD from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an MPH in Community Health Practice from the University of Texas Health Science Center. Jenita is the daughter of Indian and South African immigrants who grew up in a conservative community in Texas, motivating her desire to ensure that high-quality SRH is accessible and shame-free. She has a self-help book addiction, loves live country music, and is happiest spending soulful time with friends and family.

Sarah leads the design and delivery of innovation-related activities for Breakthrough. She has over 15 years of experience in innovation and adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH). After learning about the intersection of design and health, Sarah brought human-centered design (HCD) to Personal Responsibility Education grantees while serving as a project officer for the Family and Youth Services Bureau. She also participated in HHS Ignites, a highly competitive federal accelerator program designed to spur innovation in the federal sector.

Sarah has published peer-reviewed articles on innovation in ASRH in Prevention Science, presented on innovation at state and national conferences, partnered with world-renowned design firm IDEO, and received training in HCD at the Stanford d.school. In addition to her full-time role with Power to Decide, Sarah is an adjunct faculty member and DrPH candidate at the George Washington University School of Public Health, where she teaches a course on Design Thinking in Public Health. When she isn’t working full-time or teaching, you can find her volunteering with something related to reproductive health and rights, daydreaming about new teaching/training tools and products (yes, that’s really what she daydreams about!), or hanging out with her partner and dog.

Jenn is the expert guide providing support on the overall direction of the project and mentorship to the Breakthrough leadership team. Jenn is a leader in advancing sexual and reproductive health and well-being nationwide, with more than 20 years of experience working with federal, state, and local health agencies to achieve health equity.

Jenn’s passion is to create a nation in which young people feel comfortable talking about sexual health, health care providers provide person-centered sexual and reproductive health care, and all people have access to information and services without facing stigma, discrimination, or fear. At Child Trends, Jenn is the director of the Sexual and Reproductive Health program area, where she leads a portfolio of research and technical assistance projects to improve the rights, health, and well-being of young people. Jenn holds a Master of Public Health from Boston University with an emphasis on reproductive health, has served as a birth doula, is an avid reader, and is a parent to two red-headed kiddos.

Hannah leads the development of training and technical assistance materials and provides support to coaches, bringing over a decade of research experience and learnings from prior training and technical assistance projects. Hannah grounds her thinking and questioning in two underlying values:

1. How can outcomes for adolescents be better? and

2. What are developmental reasons for different adolescent behaviors and/or needs?

Focusing on these questions guides her approach to coaching and training. Hannah completed her PhD from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, an MPA in International Development from the Harvard Kennedy School, and a BA in international development from Brown University. Hannah enjoys spending time with her husband, 1-year-old, and two cats, and being outside at the playground/pool/in the garden (if it’s not too hot!) or curled up with a new novel (though that happens more rarely these days!).

Elise helps shape how teams will experience the accelerator and will provide direct support in the form of webinars and coaching, drawing on their knowledge and experience of building an innovation. Elise is adept at bridging the worlds of traditional teen pregnancy prevention and innovation, tech, and startups, frequently providing coaching and training to sexual and reproductive health experts looking to expand their innovation work.

Elise has over 15 years of experience in the field and is an expert in youth development, sexuality education, and LGBTQIA+ issues. Elise is the co-founder and executive director of OkaySo, an innovative teen pregnancy prevention intervention that uses technology to provide accurate information and build self-efficacy skills with young people. They hold a Masters in Public Health with a focus on Sexuality and Health from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. When not working, Elise is happiest reading a book outside or hanging out with their kiddo.

Lisa leads recruitment efforts for Breakthrough and has over five years of experience leading and supporting qualitative and quantitative research across various areas, including adolescent sexual and reproductive health, intimate partner violence, and healthy relationships.

She is committed to improving access to high-quality care for underserved communities and understanding the impact of racial and ethnic disparities, socioeconomic factors, and policies on health outcomes. Lisa holds a bachelor’s degree in public health from the University of Rochester. Outside of work, you’ll find her creating chaotic travel itineraries that never work out, borrowing and attempting to read too many books on her Kindle, and hanging out with her cat, Mango.

Asari Offiong serves as a coach and supports recruitment efforts. As an adolescent health researcher and public health practitioner, she has a decade of experience leading youth development programs; providing technical assistance; and conducting mixed methods, community-based research in various metropolitan areas across the United States related to substance use prevention and reproductive health.

Applying an equity and youth-centered lens to her work, Asari views youth as “at-promise,” not “at-risk.” As a Black early immigrant woman who grew up in Detroit, she understands and personalizes the need for innovations that are designed for and with youth because their experiences are unique, captivating, and worth centering—despite when society says otherwise.

Kate supports teams as a coach for rigorous evaluation, bringing expertise in quantitative methods and program evaluation. Kate has served in a lead role on the evaluations of a variety of adolescent sexual health programs (ASRH) implemented in schools, community organization, clinics, and online spaces.Kate believes young people deserve SRH programming and resources that recognize their unique needs and desires.

She has worked in SRH research for nearly 15 years and is excited to collaborate with Innovation Design Teams to bring new ideas into the field. She has a Master of Public Policy from the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. Kate enjoys spending time in the mountains and at the beach with her family and her goofball pup. She believes she might become a great pickleball player someday.

Claudia serves as a coach for teams interested in commercialization. She is passionate about finding innovative and impactful ways to advance health equity. Claudia previously supported teams using human-centered design (HCD) to develop and launch novel solutions to adolescent health through an OPA-funded SRH innovation incubator (Innovation Next) and coordinates the rigorous evaluation of Real Talk as a PREIS grantee.

She has worked in SRH field for nearly 10 years and has experience in coaching, training design and facilitation, and HCD; she is a senior program manager at Power to Decide. Claudia holds an interdisciplinary Master of Science degree from Arizona State University focusing on the intersection of health and society. When Claudia is not thinking about how to increase access to comprehensive and inclusive sexual health information and services, she enjoys traveling to new places, cooking extravagant recipes, and wheel-throwing her next ceramics piece.

Elizabeth serves as a coach for teams interested in evaluation. She spent six years providing direct services to children in therapeutic foster care and working as a legal advocate for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault before going to graduate school. Elizabeth earned a Master of Science in Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, with a concentration in reproductive, perinatal, and women’s health. Since then, she has focused on adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health and has over 15 years of experience in the field. Elizabeth has held leadership roles on several large, rigorous program evaluations.

She would like to see more adolescent sexual health programs developed for, with, and by youth with disabilities. Elizabeth moved to Baltimore, MD for graduate school and fell in love with the city, so she never left. Her favorite thing in the world is spending time with her pre-teen daughter, but she also likes taking long walks around Baltimore no matter the season and planting native trees in her free time.

Alison keeps the Breakthrough functioning behind the scenes as project manager and supports teams as a coach. Growing up in a rural community—and then teaching in that same community—left Alison wanting more from the sexual and reproductive health education available to adolescents and young adults in her community, which led her to pursue a Master of Public Health in Maternal and Child Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Alison wants adolescents and young adults, especially those who face systemic barriers, to be equipped with the support and resources they ask for and to feel empowered by the adults who work with them to pursue their dreams, goals, and passions. Alison has rigorous training in quantitative and evaluation methods and is passionate about applied, multidisciplinary research and interventions that support and promote adolescent health and positive youth development. A lifelong bibliophile, Alison’s favorite genres are romance and young or new adult fiction, and you’ll find a colorful tower of books on her TBR prominently featured in her video call background.

Novia serves as the deputy project manager, working behind the scenes to ensure that Breakthrough is running smoothly, on track, and organized. Before joining the team, she had nearly seven years of experience serving in administrative roles supporting executives, managing facilities, and managing various projects. She hopes to continue expanding her skills and bring her expertise to the accelerator.

She has a soft spot for making sure adolescents have proper and equitable access to resources, especially in mental health, to allow them to lead safe and meaningful lives. Novia holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Maryland. Outside of work, you’ll find her exploring a city, attempting a new hobby with her cat (she’s currently learning to crochet), being a teacher, or trying a new recipe.

Andrea leads learning and evaluation efforts for our Breakthrough, helping the team understand whether and how we can best support success among teams selected to join Breakthrough. Andrea is committed to ensuring that adolescents and young adults are supported in their sexual and reproductive (SRH) health journeys, wherever these journeys may take them. Andrea brings over 15 years of experience in the SRH field, serving in diverse roles to implement and evaluate programming across the globe.

She is a storyteller at heart and is especially adept at using qualitative research to illuminate a program’s strengths. Andrea received a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in 2012. She loves an open dance floor, makes a great lasagna, and is secretly fantastic at impersonations.

Emma leads quantitative work on the Learning Agenda team, which measures and disseminates lessons learned about SRH innovation from Breakthrough. She brings years of work in the field across many methodologies to the role, as well as her creativity. In particular, Emma is excited to incorporate her insights on mixed method work, intervention development, and health justice.

Emma has a Master of Public Health degree in Community Health and Social Sciences and has been working in the sexual and reproductive health field for over seven years. She’s deeply invested in interventions that ensure young people have the resources needed to have the safe and fulfilling reproductive and sexual lives they desire. She loves trying her hand at new DIY and craft projects, riding her bike, and spending time with her chi-weenie, Jimmy Dean.

Jane is part of the Learning and Evaluation team, helping our team understand whether and how we can best support success among teams selected to join Breakthrough. She’s worked in the sexual and reproductive health field for over five years and brings experience in program evaluation, person-centered care, quantitative analysis, and adolescent sexual health.

Jane believes that youth deserve programming and health care that respect their autonomy and give them the tools to lead healthy and fulfilling sexual and reproductive lives. Outside of work, you can find her reading, hiking, and hanging out with her cat Juno.

Jen provides senior advice and review to the Learning and Evaluation team, helping our team gather information and sharing lessons learned about supporting teams and innovations. As a PhD researcher, Jen has spent 30+ years researching adolescent and young adult sexual relationships, contraceptive use, and pregnancy; conducting program evaluations; and profiling effective sexual health programming.

She is excited about supporting innovations that ensure young people have access to a broad range of sexual health programming and services that are relevant to their experiences and support their interests and needs. She loves walking her dog around her neighborhood, going to the local farmers market, baking, and swing dancing with her husband and friends.

Stephen leads our website development and maintenance, providing expert design and technical guidance. He is Child Trends’ director of communications for digital strategy and has a successful track record of managing web properties at prominent research institutions, including the Population Reference Bureau and the Brookings Institution. At Child Trends, Stephen manages the website, newsletters, data visualizations, and analytics.

He contributes to strategic planning for the communications team and collaborates closely with researchers to help them maximize the reach and impact of their findings and data among key audiences. Outside of work, Stephen enjoys playing drums and producing music.