People

Staff and Management Team

Charles J. Homer MD, MPH
President and CEO
Dr. Charles Homer co-founded the National Initiative for Children's Healthcare Quality in July 1999 and he currently serves as the organization's President and CEO. A graduate of Yale University, Charlie received his MD from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, and his MPH (Epidemiology) from the University of North Carolina School of Public Health.  Charlie is a pediatrician and serves as an Associate Professor of the Department of Society, Human Development and Health at the Harvard University School of Public Health, and an Associate Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. He was a member of the third US Preventive Services Task Force from 2000-2002, and served as Chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Steering Committee on Quality Improvement and Management from 2001-2004.

Prior to his position at NICHQ, Charlie was Director of the Clinical Effectiveness Program at Children’s Hospital, Boston, and served as Program Director of the first federally supported fellowship training programs in pediatric primary care and health services research.  He currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Board for the Catalyst Institute for Oral Health and on the Board of Directors for the Institute for Pediatric Innovation, both in Boston.

Rachel Sachs Steele, M.Ed.
Chief Operating Officer and Program Director
Ms. Steele is responsible for guiding NICHQ’s operations; offering programmatic leadership; and providing guidance on strategy and organizational development.  Rachel comes to us with over ten years of management, healthcare, and business strategy experience. She has been a consultant for the last several years, working independently with non-profits, and as a member of the Bard Group--a boutique firm working with physicians and hospitals--to strengthen strategy, organizational development, and executive and management capabilities. Before that, Rachel provided strategic planning, organizational development, and clinical quality expertise for Network Health, a Medicaid health plan based in Cambridge, and serving Massachusetts.  Rachel has a Masters degree in counseling psychology, and is a certified Myers Briggs practitioner.

Hillary Anderson
Senior Project Coordinator
Hillary joined NICHQ in 2008 as a Project Coordinator on the Learning Collaborative: “Improving Systems of Care for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs.” She earned a Bachelor’s of Arts in Community Health at Brown University, where she wrote a senior honors thesis on “Reproductive Intentions of HIV positive men and women in Cape Town, South Africa.” Prior to NICHQ, Hillary received the Royce Fellowship for Sport and Society, providing the opportunity to do volunteer work with the South African Medical Research Council. While her travels abroad provide valuable experience, Hillary’s true acclaim is as a former Sailing Instructor at the Community Sailing Center in Burlington, VT, where she worked to increase access to Lake Champlain.

Bob R. Bower MBA, CPA
Director of Finance
Bob has more than thirty years experience working for nonprofit organizations, primarily in colleges. At NICHQ, he is responsible for all aspects of the financial management; including budgeting, financial reporting, cash flow, billing, and grant and contract management. Bob is active in his church and is also the Treasurer of Ecclesia Ministries.

Alexandra Charrow
Senior Project Coordinator
Prior to joining NICHQ in November, Alex Charrow worked as a research fellow at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) where she measured global coverage of immunization and maternal and child interventions. Before joining IHME and following her graduation from Yale University,  Alex organized, developed, and analyzed a number of research projects and surveys to better improve quality of care for patients with amputations within the US veteran population as well as patients with disabilities in Cambodia.

Emily Clermont MPH
Program Manager
Emily is a Project Manager for NICHQ focusing on various perinatal projects for the organization. She has previous work experience at Boston area hospitals including the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children’s Hospital, Boston. Prior to joining NICHQ in January 2010, Emily spent four years working for the Quality Improvement Committee in the Medical Surgical Intensive Care Unit at Children’s Hospital. There, she provided administrative support, project management, and data analysis and systems management for the QI committee. Recently, she has also worked as a research assistant for the Massachusetts Health Care Quality and Cost Council Advisory Committee where her focus was on pediatric health care. Emily is a graduate of Stonehill College with a Bachelor of Arts. She completed her MPH in Epidemiology and received a certificate in Leadership and Management from Boston University School of Public Health.

Katie DuBoff
Marketing Coordinator
As marketing coordinator, Katie assists with communication efforts for NICHQ, with a focus on promoting the Annual Forum. Her responsibilities include writing and distributing press releases and bi-monthly newsletters, updating Web site content and assisting with planning the Forum. Katie recently completed her master’s degree in public relations at Boston University. Her master’s thesis explored corporate social responsibility, specifically corporate-nonprofit partnerships in Boston. Prior to graduate school, Katie worked as a communications associate at a nonprofit in Arlington, VA. She has had several internships during her undergraduate and graduate studies, including positions at Boston University, Common Impact and W*USA 9, a CBS affiliate in Washington, D.C. Katie earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in corporate communication, and a minor in English from James Madison University.

Emily E. Fallon
Project Manager
Emily joined NICHQ in December 2007. She graduated from Brown University with an Honors Bachelor's of Arts in Development Studies, focusing on access to healthcare in developing countries. She culminated her studies with a senior thesis, “The Effects of Economic, Political and Social Globalization on Access to HIV/AIDS medications in Brazil and Mozambique.”  Emily continues to be interested in healthcare in developing countries, but is enjoying the immersion in domestic health care issues that working at NICHQ provides. Currently at NICHQ, Emily works as a Project Manager on the Tulsa Children’s Project, the Neonatal Outcomes Improvement Project and the Autism Guidelines Project.

Laura Falvey
Senior Project Coordinator
Laura is a Senior Project Coordinator for the Public Events Team, with a focus on NICHQ’s Annual Forum and Annual Obesity Congress. Her responsibilities include research and coordination of logistical matters pertaining to both events. She has also been involved in the Integrated Systems team on the Learning Collaborative: “Improving the System of Care for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs: Epilepsy and the Newborn Hearing Screening Programs” with the responsibility of handling conference and hotel logistics. Laura is a graduate of Oakland University, in Michigan, where she received her Bachelor's in Marketing.

Mary Hathaway-Evans PhD
Director of Training and Curriculum Development
Mary joined NICHQ in July 2008, and currently oversees public events. She leads the Training and Events Team as they plan and carry out NICHQ’s signature Annual Forum for Improving Children’s Healthcare, a national childhood obesity congress, intensive quality improvement trainings, train-the-trainer activities, other programming surrounding events and other trainings that may vary each year. Prior to NICHQ, Mary was the Assistant Director of Harris County Protective Services for Children and Adults Region 6 Training Institute in Houston, TX. Her responsibilities there included the creation, content development, delivery, and modification of educational materials for county employees. Mary speaks 11 different languages including: Cherokee, Navajo, Choctaw, Lakota, and Iroquois. She has her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Doctorate of Philosophy in Political Science.

Melanie Hayden
Director of Development
As Director of Development, Melanie researches, writes and tracks grant applications to support NICHQ’s many project areas.  She also pursues corporate sponsorship and philanthropic funding to supplement new and existing programs.  Melanie came to NICHQ from Children’s Hospital Boston, where she worked with the Corporate Development and Marketing team to secure event and program sponsorship, corporate foundation grants and cause-related marketing programs.  Prior to Children’s, she planned events and integrated fundraising campaigns for public policy organizations and political campaigns across Massachusetts.  Melanie is particularly interested in corporate philanthropy, and the growing desire of consumers to use their buying power in the support of good corporate citizens.  She received her Bachelor’s in history from Geneva College in Pennsylvania, and is currently pursuing her Master’s in non-profit management at the Harvard University Extension School.

Priya Nair Heatherley MS
Senior Project Manager and Director of Staff Development
Priya has over six years of experience in project management, healthcare operations and consulting. Prior to moving to Boston, Priya worked as a hospital-based administrator in Allen, Texas.  As the Director of the Women's Health Service line and Community Education she implemented quality improvement projects and was responsible for staff, revenue and expense targets. She coordinated expansion projects and was successful in surpassing revenue goals. More recently, Priya held the role of Managing Consultant with the Healthcare Strategy Division of the Bard Group/ Navigant Consulting.  At Bard/ Navigant she was responsible for managing and co-leading multiple strategy projects with physicians, academic medical centers, and community-based hospitals. Priya received her MS in Healthcare Administration from Trinity University in San Antonio, TX.

Aaron Kirby MSc
Senior Project Manager
Aaron Kirby joined the NICHQ team as a Senior Project Manager and is working on multiple quality improvement initiatives. Aaron’s previous work experience includes community-based participatory research at the Institute for Community Health (ICH). While at ICH, Aaron managed, coordinated, and evaluated several life science grants funded by local, state, and national agencies. These projects focused on mental health, HIV/AIDS, dental hygiene, BMI studies, capacity building, and education initiatives. Prior to ICH, Aaron worked in the research department for the Mental Health Service Program for Youth (MHSPY), a collaborative project targeted to help high-risk children and adolescents with severe emotional difficulties from low-income communities. His work at MHSPY focused on the impact of a uniquely integrated clinical intervention. Aaron is a graduate of Duquesne University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Psychology. Aaron has also completed a Masters in Science from the University College London and The Anna Freud Centre in Psychoanalytical Developmental Psychology.

Erika McCarthy
Director of Marketing and Communications
Erika manages marketing activities at NICHQ. Erika joined NICHQ from SkillSoft, a provider of on-demand e-learning and performance support solutions for global enterprises, government, education and small- to medium-size businesses, where she served as marketing manager. Prior to joining SkillSoft, she served as a marketing and communications consultant for a variety of nonprofit, technology and education clients.  Previously, she was the public relations manager for Boston's Children's Museum, where she expanded the Museum's visibility to national proportions, increasing attendance and playing an instrumental role in the Museum's strategic purchase of the Computer Museum.  She started her career at a high-technology public relations agency, launching pre-IPO companies including Lycos and Fairmarket, Inc. She earned both a Master of Arts degree in communications and Bachelor of Science degree in journalism from Suffolk University.

Marianne McPherson PhD, MA, MS
Evaluation Advisor
Marianne joined NICHQ in 2009 as an Evaluation Advisor primarily working on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant, “Healthcare Professionals as Community Leaders in the Fight Against Obesity.” At NICHQ, she is developing, managing, and executing the evaluation of the project in conjunction with the NICHQ obesity team and NICHQ’s national partners.  Marianne holds a PhD in Social Policy from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University; her dissertation focused on physician advocacy for adolescent reproductive health policy.  She received her MS in Public Health from Harvard School of Public Health, her MA in Women’s and Gender studies from Brandeis, and her BA in Psychology and Women’s Studies from Harvard College.  Prior to joining NICHQ, she worked at Goodman Research Group, Inc., Ibis Reproductive Health, and Our Bodies Ourselves.

Rachelle Mirkin
Executive Program Director
Rachelle is the Executive Program Director overseeing NICHQ’s childhood obesity activities, including the management of the Childhood Obesity Action Network and the newly launched RWJF funded advocacy program.  Prior to joining NICHQ, Rachelle was the Managing Director for Regional Health Education at The Permanente Medical Group (TPMG) in California where she oversaw aspects of member education, provider training, marketing, and communications services. Under her leadership the team developed and implemented award-winning programs to improve outcomes in programmatic areas including diabetes, asthma, obesity and tobacco. Previously, Rachelle was the Director of Clinical Preventive Services also at TPMG. Prior to that, she was a Co-Founder and Manager of the Care Management Institute and Program Manager for the Perinatal Services Study Group both for Kaiser Foundation Health Plan. She also held positions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Division of Adolescent and School Health and the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health (NCEMCH) at Georgetown University. Throughout her career she has been passionate about creating healthy, sustainable communities. In addition to clinical and public health experiences she has worked in real estate development and consulting to further impact local communities in need. Rachelle holds an MPH from George Washington University and a BA from San Francisco State University.

Karthika Parithivel Streb
Senior Project Manager and Director of Project Management and Staffing
Karthika Streb is a Senior Project Manager with NICHQ working on a variety of quality improvement projects.  She draws upon her experience with oversight and management of quality performance reporting tools and metrics as well as to help develop and measure effective quality improvement programs.  For the past two years she was working as a Managing Consultant within Navigant Consulting, Inc.’s Healthcare practice (formerly The Bard Group) which provides strategic consulting services to major health systems, community hospitals, academic centers, and faculty practice groups across the country.  Her areas of focus were physician-hospital integration strategies, and clinical program development. Prior to Navigant, Karthi worked for Partners HealthCare where she designed and evaluated system-level quality reports and analyses including management of Partners’ comprehensive quarterly quality report.  She previously worked for several years at the Massachusetts Health Quality Partners where she managed facets of statewide collaborative physician quality measurement reporting projects, including organizing the statewide public release of a primary care physician experience survey.  Karthi graduated from Hamilton College with a degree in Public Policy and is currently finishing up her MPH in Health Policy Management at Boston University.