We are an interdisciplinary research team led by psychiatrist Matcheri Keshavan, MD and sociologist Russell Schutt, PhD in the Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and the Harvard Medical School. Our co-investigators are distinguished researchers from our own department and from Boston University, Dartmouth College and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, and the University of Pittsburgh. Stakeholder engagement in our research is led by national consumer advocate Jon Delman, MPH, JD, PhD, University of Massachusetts Medical School. Site Principal Investigators are research and program leaders at their home institutions. Our team also includes talented research assistants, clinicians, and administrative staff.
Our Team
Principal Investigators
Stanley Cobb Professor and Academic Head of Psychiatry,
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts Mental Health Center,
Harvard Medical School
Editor, Schizophrenia Research
Professor Emeritus of Sociology
University of Massachusetts Boston
Research Scientist I
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Lecturer, part-time
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts Mental Health Center,
Harvard Medical School
Co-Investigators and Treatment Supervisors
James and Noel Browne Endowed Chair, Associate Dean for Research, and Professor of Social Work and Professor of Psychiatry
University of Pittsburgh
Project SUCCESS Co-Investigator and CET Expert
Maralee Litschge, LCSW
Senior Research Coordinator, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
University of Pittsburgh
Project SUCCESS CET Treatment Supervisor
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
Director of Neuropsychology Research and the Peer Advisory, Advocacy & Research Council (PAARC), Psychosis Research Program
Massachusetts Mental Health Center
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School
Project SUCCESS Co-Investigator and Assessment Expert
Professor, Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation
Boston University
Project SUCCESS Co-Investigator and HOPES Expert
Center for Collaborative Mental Health Research
Associate Professor in Psychiatry
The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Project SUCCESS Co-Investigator and HOPES Treatment Supervisor
Instructor in Psychology
Massachusetts Mental Health Center
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School
Project SUCCESS Co-Investigator and CET Treatment Supervisor
Center for Collaborative Mental Health Research
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Project SUCCESS Co-Investigator and HOPES Treatment Supervisor
Professor of Biomedical Data Science & Community and Family Medicine
Dartmouth College
Project SUCCESS Co-Investigator and Outcomes Data Analyst
Site Principal Investigators
Stakeholder
Project Leader
Jon Delman, JD, PhD, MPH
Jon will provide insight on involving the voices of people with serious mental illness (SMI) and those of stakeholders throughout the field of healthcare in the research process. He has extensive knowledge of how to successfully implement Community Based Participatory Research.
Stakeholder Committee
The stakeholder committee provides advice and feedback to guide the direction of the project so that the most effective interventions can be implemented widely. The committee is comprised of individuals representing a broad spectrum of stakeholders that constitute lived experience, advocacy, and organization and delivery of services.
Rudolf Armando
Rudolf has worked with a variety of people who have lived with SMI and has personal experience with SMI. He will bring his depth of his experience to his role on the committee.
Judy Ashton
Judy has served as a peer volunteered at Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital for 14 years, where she is known as a strong advocate for patients. She is also a retired attorney who practiced discrimination law for 35 years.
Vanessa Davy, LCSW
Vanessa is the leader of a resilience team in First Episode Psychosis who will ensure that the study’s procedures take into account needs of young adults and will help review clinician training procedures.
Margaret Guyer-Deason, PhD
Margaret will bring her expertise in evaluation and dissemination of evidence-based practices to the committee.
Maria Edwards
Maria will inform the committee based on her lived experience, her work as a peer support specialist, and her experience serving on other advisory boards. She hopes to help the study recruitment and by reaching out to other stakeholders locally.
Steve Fedele
Steve will inform the committee based on lived experience and his work coordinating a program that serves young adults experiencing psychosis, where he also assists with the programs ongoing research and data collection.
Catherine Haines, OT, OTR
Cambridge Health Alliance Center for Mindfulness and Compassion. Catherine will review outreach, treatment, and feedback procedures to ensure that the study is made accessible to individuals seeking mental health care.
Pallavi Nishith, PhD
Works at Places for People, a certified community behavioral health center as Staff Psychologist.
Paula Rego
Paula has worked at Hartford Hospital’s Institute of Living for 20 years. She will share about her experience with assisting in the implementation of cog. rehab and social skills programs and her passion for helping to inform and educate individuals living with SMI and their families.
Priestess Ziona Rivera, CEO
AMRON International Organization
Outreach Coordinator of Brockton Recovery Learning Community
Ziona will contribute to the committee based on her lived experience, her work as a peer support specialist, and her knowledge of community organizing and peer group facilitation.
Nathan Schwirian
Nathan will inform the committee from his perspective as an individual actively involved in mental health communities throughout the Boston metro area and as a person with lived experience.
Brenda Venice
Brenda will advise the committee based on her experiences confronting stigma associated with SMI. She also looks forward to helping to inform the study’s recruitment and retention efforts.
Anne Whitman
Anne will inform the committee based on her diverse background, which includes lived experience; founding, leading, and consulting with peer support and recovery organizations; serving as a peer support specialist; and academic work. She will contribute her expertise to help improve the knowledgebase and help the study connect with other stakeholders throughout her network.
Saras K. Yerlig
Certified Intentional Peer Support Supervisor (CIPSS). Saras will share insights about engaging with those experiencing SMI. She will share feedback from peers about experience participating in research, treatment, and general community functioning.
Heather Carpenter
Maine resident with lived experience.
Clinical Trials Specialist and Staff Supervisor
Matthew A. Killam, BA
Clinical Trials Specialist
Study Staff
Diane Beckman, LMSW
Clinical Research Coordinator
Rachel Bickelman
Research Assistant
Caitlin Bryant, MA
Clinical Research Coordinator
Laura R. Golden, MA
Research Assistant
Youjin (Jenny) Jang
Research Assistant
Tabinda Khan, BA
Clinical Research Assistant I
Seo Yeon (Sunny) Lee, BS
Clinical Research Assistant I
Angie Mines, MA, BA
Clinical Research Administrator
Tracy Reed, MA
Research Assistant
Michael Rejtig, MA
Clinical Research Coordinator
Gautami Shashidhar, BA
Clinical Research Assistant II