Allyssa Aguila Abacan, MPH, PhD

Allyssa Abacan (PhD) is an Assistant Professor at Baylor College of Medicine in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and the Public Health Programming Director for the Baylor College of Medicine Teen Health Clinic. She has worked in the public health field for 10+ years and has expertise in public health management and operations. Dr. Abacan has increased the clinic’s capacity to provide primary preventive, sexual and reproductive, and mental/behavioral health services to adolescents and young adults through data analyses, quality improvement (QI), patient safety (PS) activities, strategic planning, and program implementation, and monitoring, evaluation, and learning. She has publications and conducted oral and poster presentations on topics around LARC uptake, immunization administration, increasing parental consents in school-based clinics, and male adolescent reproductive health at local, state and national conferences. She is committed to working towards exploring and implementing evidence-based practices to address the medical and non-medical needs of marginalized populations.

DeJernel “DJ” Adams, MS, CCHW, FPHW

DeJernel “DJ” Adams is a passionate mental health and sexual and reproductive health professional dedicated to empowering individuals and communities through education, advocacy, and compassionate care. With a master’s degree in Human Development and Family Studies, she has built her career on helping others navigate life’s transitions with confidence, clarity, and support. DeJernel is a Qualified Mental Health Professional (QMHP), a Certified Family Planning Worker, and a Certified Community Health Worker, combining her clinical insight with a holistic, community-centered approach. DJ’s mission is to create accessible, inclusive programs that equip youth and adults with knowledge, tools, and real-life strategies for wellness, independence, and self-advocacy. From curriculum development and e-learning to group facilitation and community outreach, DeJernel brings professionalism, warmth, and purpose to every space she serves. Whether she is teaching, counseling, creating resources, or shaping new initiatives, DeJernel operates from a belief she lives and teaches every day: knowledge is the key to life.

Kristie Bardell, MPH

Kristie Bardell, CEO of Every Body Texas, has over 20 years of experience serving as a trailblazer developing and implementing health improvement initiatives.  She has led family health initiatives in both the nonprofit and government sector.  Ms. Bardell has extensive experience in building capacity around programming, clinical services, community engagement, and policy change to create thriving communities.  Ms. Bardell brings cross-sector experience to establish practices that promote greater understanding and intersectionality of content, skills, and community.  Prior to joining Every Body Texas, she served as the Executive Director of Children’s Coalition for Northeast Louisiana improving educational outcomes by addressing the social, emotional, and developmental well-being of families. Ms. Bardell has served on numerous boards such as the Junior League of Austin Community Advisors Council, Southern Center for Maternal Health Equity, 4th Judicial District Youth Service Planning Board, Louisiana School-Based Health Alliance, Community Impact Committee for United Way Southeast Louisiana and City of New Orleans Children and Youth Planning Board: Childhood Trauma Task Force. Some of her successes to date are being featured as a 2022 Bayou Icon by BayouLife Magazine, published author in the American Journal of Sexuality Education, strategizing on the passage of health policies by working with multi-sector partners, in addition to developing thriving communities through resource allocation and programmatic investments.

Chinwe Efuribe, MD, MPH

Dr. Chinwe Efuribe is a Nigerian American Pediatrician with over 16 years of clinical care experience across the globe in various clinical settings. Beyond the United States, her time spent caring for patients in the United Kingdom, Africa, and Canada allowed her to develop a cross-cultural approach to pediatric health care and promotion. After working in group practice and community health centers, she founded Centered Youth Clinic and Consulting (CYCC) to create more youth-friendly health spaces and coach adolescents to take charge of their health. The clinic provides direct primary and specialty care services to youth (newborn to 25yrs) and builds community partnerships for positive youth development. She has expertise integrating youth engagement into the infrastructure of youth-serving organizations. As a former church youth ministries director, she established processes for youth engagement in programs promoting wellness of the mind, body, and soul for adolescents. She has also developed youth engagement initiatives for the Society for Adolescent Health Medicine, Austin Black Physicians Association, Texas Youth Friendly Initiative, Adolescent Health Initiative, and American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Efuribe is board-certified in Pediatrics & Lifestyle Medicine, fellowship-trained in Adolescent Medicine, and obtained a Master of Public Health in Community Health Promotion.

Luis Espinoza, PhD, MPH, MCHES®, CPH, CHW, CHW-I

Luis Enrique Espinoza is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi where he currently teaches courses in the new public health programs (Bachelor’s of Science and Master of Public Health programs) and the undergraduate healthcare administration program. He is also the Program Coordinator of both the undergraduate and graduate Public Health programs. Dr. Espinoza earned a Ph.D. in sociology with concentrations in social stratification and health education & promotion from Texas Woman’s University. Luis also earned an MPH in epidemiology from The University of North Texas Health Science Center. Additionally, he is credentialed as a master certified health education specialist (MCHES®), is certified in public health (CPH), a community health worker-instructor (CHW-I) a community health worker (CHW), an adult mental health first aider, and an adult mental health first aid instructor. He also serves as an item writer for the CPH exam and the new certified in disease intervention exam to be released in 2025. Dr. Espinoza’s research focuses on sexual & reproductive health, violence & victimization, and health access & disaster response.

Eesha Farooqi, MD

Dr. Eesha Farooqi is a board-certified pediatrician, currently in fellowship for adolescent medicine at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. She discovered her passion for teens and youth while living in the small town of Killeen, finding her way through College Station, Houston, Las Vegas and San Antonio to build her career in medicine. She enjoys health education and outreach and is a part of various committees.

Rhonda Friedman, ScD

Dr. Rhonda Friedman spent her professional career in health public policy and outcomes research. After receiving her Doctor of Science degree from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Population Dynamics, she worked in the Congress on various health-related committees and Members’ offices following and promoting policy that would improve the public health. Her research interests have included evaluating interventions that could improve health delivery and healthcare status. She has investigated utilizing nurse practitioners for delivery of women’s health care, especially for adolescents, in several Latin American countries; the quality-of-life improvement with medications aimed at improving chronic conditions; and the safety and effectiveness of various diagnostics, devices, and drugs now used in the public sector. She is also on multiple Institutional Review Boards to examine research for initiation at several health care organizations.

Nora Gimpel, MD

For over 20 years, Dr. Gimpel has been consistently involved in community service, as an educator, a clinician, a researcher, and a leader. Community-based approaches and access to under-represented populations not only enrich the experience of well-established physicians, but it also offers an invaluable opportunity to expose medical and non-medical trainees to a population health approach to healthcare, building upon the traditional approach to medical education and training. Community health training programs aim to address issues of population-based health and interdisciplinary teamwork while providing students with community-based experiences and a broader understanding of the social and cultural background of health and disease. In the past 15 years, she has developed an infrastructure that can provide trainees the. opportunity to learn the principles of population medicine, community-based disease prevention, care of the underserved, and culturally appropriate approaches to health problems. She mentored pre and postdoctoral students in Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) using my expertise in Preventive Medicine, Family Medicine, and Public Health. She is currently directing the four components (Community Action Research Track (CART), Community Health Fellowship Program (CHFP), Community Action Research Experience (CARE), Community Medicine Fellowship) of the community action research training pipeline developed at the Division of Community Medicine in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSW) Dallas. In addition, she has developed very strong collaborative relationships throughout the academic and surrounding Dallas community. More than thirty community partners have participated in service-learning opportunities with UTSW medical students, residents, and fellows. She strongly believes that collaborative practice across disciplines improve the quality of care provided and bring an opportunity to creatively address health disparities.

Mandy Golman, PhD, MS, RN, BSN, IBCLC, MCHES

Associate Professor in the School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology at Texas Woman’s University (TWU), Dr. Mandy Golman is also Co-Director of the TWU Institute of Women’s Health, a collaborative hub dedicated to changing the landscape of women’s health research and improving the lives of women around the world. In addition to guiding students and teaching her TWU courses, Dr. Golman is also an RN and Certified Lactation Consultant. A frequent, in-demand speaker, she is known for delivering engaging and accessible workshops on female wellness, lactation, eating disorders, teen pregnancy, parenting, adolescent sexuality, and positive body image. Dr. Golman has served as the Principal Investigator and Evaluator on several grants, totaling over $8M in funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Emily Levy Kamugisha, M.D., AAHIVS

Emily Levy Kamugisha, M.D., AAHIVS, is an Associate Professor and the Director of HIV Residency Education in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center. She earned her medical degree at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine and completed a residency in Family Medicine at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas. She is certified by the American Board of Family Medicine and has her certification as an HIV primary care specialist through the American Academy of HIV Medicine. Her clinical work includes, but is not limited to, care for gender and sexual minorities, reproductive health care, sexual health, and HIV prevention and treatment. She is an expert in contraception and Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention and has served as an invited speaker to educate physicians state-wide on PrEP.  Dr. Levy Kamugisha is a highly regarded educator and has been inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society and received Outstanding Educator awards for her distinguished teaching with medical learners. As a physician scientist, her grant-funded research focuses on expanding access to HIV education in graduate medical education and addressing social drivers of health with an aim to improve the health of youth and young adults at great risk for inequities in health outcomes. Dr. Levy has obtained post-graduate training in Academic Medicine and will receive her Master’s in Science in Clinical Investigation in the Spring of 2026.

Kentoria Roberson-White, MSN, APRN, FNP-C

Kentoria Roberson-White is the Owner and Lead Provider of Healthier Her Women & Teen Clinic, a modern, patient-centered practice dedicated to expanding access to compassionate women’s and adolescent health services. She is also the Founder and Executive Director of Phoenix Health Alliance, a nonprofit committed to reducing health inequities, empowering teen parents, and strengthening community-based access to reproductive and preventive healthcare. Kentoria is currently pursuing her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and Master of Business Administration (MBA) at Johns Hopkins University, where she is building the clinical, operational, and leadership expertise to transform women’s health systems on both local and national levels. Her academic journey also includes advanced training in business communication, finance, and health systems innovation skills she actively applies to her organizations and consulting work. As a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner, Kentoria’s passion centers on reproductive justice, contraception access, teen health, and empowering women to take control of their wellness journeys. Her work bridges clinical care, community outreach, and strategic health advocacy. Through Healthier Her and Phoenix Health Alliance, she strives to create safe, accessible, and culturally aligned spaces where women and teens feel supported, informed, and heard. Driven, mission-focused, and deeply community-rooted, Kentoria continues to expand her impact through clinical leadership, public health programming, and speaking engagements. Her goal is simple: to change the way women and teens experience healthcare one community at a time.

Kayla Smith, PhD, LCSW-S

Kayla Smith, PhD, LCSW-S, is a distinguished mental health leader, author, and national speaker dedicated to transforming access and equity in behavioral health. She is the founder and CEO of Helen’s Project, a multi-state nonprofit organization that delivers innovative, community-based services to underserved populations. Dr. Smith earned her doctorate in social work, authored two books, and is frequently invited to speak on the intersections of mental health, leadership, and social innovation. Her impact has been recognized through the United Way Social Innovation Incubator award and her acceptance into the United Way Social Innovation Accelerator, where she continues to expand her vision for sustainable, scalable change. With persistence, compassion, and a detail-oriented approach, Dr. Smith brings both expertise and heart to every space she enters, shaping policy, practice, and community initiatives that uplift voices and advance adolescent health.

Deborah Tapler, RN, PhD

Dr. Tapler is currently retired from the nursing profession and serves as Chair of the Adolescent Health Advisory Committee of Healthy Futures of Texas. She previously served on the NTARUPT board for many years. She had a long career as a nurse educator with 20 years of experience as a tenured Professor at Texas Woman’s University, College of Nursing, Dallas. She has designed and implemented many health-related, women-focused research studies and created innovative process to enhance nursing education. She was the undergraduate nursing coordinator for many years in an administrative position while continuing to teach nursing students in the classroom and in the hospital.

Nicholas Westers, MD

Dr. Nicholas Westers is a Clinical Psychologist at Children’s Health and an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at UT Southwestern Medical Center. He is board certified in Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology and is President-Elect of the International Society for the Study of Self-Injury (ISSS). He also currently serves as Chair of the Media &; Communications Committee for ISSS and is newly elected to the Nominations Committee for the Society for Adolescent Health & Medicine (SAHM). His clinical and research interests focus on adolescent non-suicidal self-injury, depression, suicide, and risk-taking behavior, and he is the host and producer of The Psychology of Self-Injury podcast, a resource for parents, professionals, and people with lived experience of self-injury.