iRT Continues Accelerated Growth with New Hires

DURHAM, NC (October 28, 2014)—innovation Research & Training (iRT), a leading behavior science research organization, has continued its business growth resulting in a surge of new hires.

“We have seen a very positive performance across the business this year,” said Dr. Janis Kupersmidt, iRT president. “Our outlook for the remainder of the year is promising, resulting in the need for additional staff.”

iRT has added six employees so far this year. Dr. Susan Haws, who joined iRT as a Research Scientist working on mentoring projects, was appointed in July. She is joined by the following employees:

  • Marina Ziemian, research assistant
  • Maggie Alter, research assistant
  • Cory Campbell, research assistant
  • Kimberly Vuong, research specialist
  • Veronica Evans, administrative assistant

Ziemian joins iRT after completing a Bachelor of Science degree in human development from Cornell University. She will work on iRT’s media literacy team focusing her efforts on the project evaluating the effectiveness of the Media Aware—Sexual Health (MASH) project. MASH is a comprehensive sexual health media literacy education program that engages middle school students in the development of analytic and critical thinking skills. In her role on the MASH team, Ziemian will assist with participant recruitment, monitoring data collection, and data coding.

Prior to joining iRT, Alter served as a behavioral consultant with the Carolina Center for Applied Behavior Analysis and Autism Treatment in Cary. She has also worked as a clinical specialist at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore.  Alter earned an MA in Human Services Psychology from the University of Maryland.  At iRT, she will work with senior scientists on the development of youth mindfulness programs, particularly focusing on programs for youth with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.  Her work will focus on participant recruitment, data collection, and program development.

Campbell earned a Bachelor of Science in Decision Science from Carnegie Mellon University. During her time of study, she worked as a research assistant in the Center for Behavioral and Decision Research on studies that examined food choices, medical treatments and research ethics. In addition, Campbell also spent three years while at Carnegie Mellon University working on a teen pregnancy prevention and risk reduction intervention funded by the Office of Adolescent Health. At iRT, Campbell will work on the evaluation of the Media Detective Family program which uses media literacy education to teach families how to critically interpret media messages about alcohol and tobacco. Her work will focus on participant recruitment, data coding, and managing the data collection process.

Vuong, a certified health education specialist, joins iRT’s media literacy team. Vuong earned a master’s degree in public health in behavioral sciences from Emory University and a Bachelor of Science in Public Health in Health Policy and Management from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Vuong has held internship and coordinator positions with GlaxoSmithKline, Planned Parenthood Southeast, Center for Pan Asian Community Services, and the Centers for Disease Control. As part of the media literacy team at iRT, Vuong will work on participating recruitment, data coding, literature reviews, and program dissemination for the MASH project.

Evans is a certified administrative professional, joining iRT with nearly 15 years of professional experience. She is a member of the American Society of Professional Assistants and the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP). Evans holds a Master of Arts degree in public history from North Carolina State University. At iRT, she is responsible for office management, records management, and scheduling as well as being the main liaison between management, staff, and vendors, among other duties.

“iRT is so fortunate to have the resources, people, infrastructure, and culture in place to attract great talent,” said Kupersmidt. “Currently, we are still actively hiring and expect that trend to continue throughout the remainder of the year.”

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About innovation Research & Training innovation Research & Training (iRT) is a behavioral sciences research company committed to identifying and solving significant real-world problems facing children, families, communities, and organizations. By using evidence-based and culturally sensitive methods, iRT researchers investigate, develop, and evaluate behavioral, educational, psychological, social, and community assessment, prevention and treatment programs and services. iRT’s staff includes experts in basic and applied research in a variety of areas, including substance abuse prevention and treatment, youth mentoring, social and emotional development, mindfulness education, media literacy education, pregnancy prevention and sexual health, child and adolescent mental health, adult and juvenile justice programs, drug courts, drugged driving, tobacco use and underage drinking. For more information about iRT, visit www.irtinc.us.

Media Contact:
Yvette Ruffin, APR
Director, Marketing and Communications
Innovation Research & Training
919-493-7700
yruffin@irtinc.us