staff

Joseph J. Cocozza, Ph.D.

Dr. Cocozza is the Director of the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice (NCMHJJ) and the Mental Health/Juvenile Justice Action Network (MH/JJ Action Network).  As the Center Director, Dr. Cocozza has overall responsibility for all Center projects.  Dr. Cocozza is an expert in the areas of children and family services, juvenile offenders and mental health services, and forensic evaluation. He received his Ph.D. in sociology from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland in 1975.

Jennie Shufelt, M.S.

Ms. Shufelt is the Associate Director of the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice.  In this capacity, she assists Dr. Cocozza with the overall operation of the Center and the implementation of all Center projects, and provides oversight and supervision to Center staff.  Ms. Shufelt received her M.S. in Health Policy, Management and Behavior from the University at Albany and is currently pursuing her Juris Doctor at Albany law School.

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Kathleen R. Skowyra

Ms. Skowyra is the Associate Director of the Mental Health /Juvenile Justice Action Network.  In this capacity, she assists Dr. Cocozza in overall project management of the Action Network and implementation of all Network activities.  Ms. Skowyra received her B.A. in Political Science/English, with a concentration in Law and Justice from the State University of New York at Fredonia.

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Nakeshia Knight-Coyle, M.S.W

Nakeshia Knight-Coyle is the Division Manager for the Juvenile Justice Division of Policy Research Associates, where she oversees grant budgets, timelines and activities related to mental health and juvenile justice and supervises Division staff.  Ms. Knight-Coyle has a Masters in Social Welfare and is currently pursuing an M.S. in Health, Policy, Management and Behavior at the State University of New York at Albany’s School of Public Health. 

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Erin M. Hillery, M.A.

Ms. Hillery is a Project Assistant at the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice.  In this capacity, she provides support to all Center projects, including the Center’s work with the Models for Change states as well as the MH/JJ Action Network.  Ms. Hillery received her B.A. in Political Science from SUNY Geneseo and her M.A. in Political Science and History at the College of Saint Rose.

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Jennifer Deschamps

Ms. Deschamps is the Senior Administrative Assistant for the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice.  She assists in all Center related administrative duties, receives and manages all requests to the Center for information, and maintains the Center’s resource database.

Center staff can be reached at 866-9NCMHJJ or by email at ncmhjj@prainc.com.