Meet the Team
NAHDAP Director
Amy Pienta is a research scientist at ICPSR and leads the Business and Collection Development unit. She received her Ph.D. in sociology from SUNY Buffalo and completed an NIA postdoc at Penn State. She has written about health (including substance use behaviors) over the life course using secondary data from the Health and Retirement Survey. Recently, she has been working on incentives to encourage scientists around open science and data sharing.
NAHDAP Research Investigator
Joy Jang joined ICPSR in 2020 as a research investigator. She received her Ph.D. in human development and family science from Ohio State University and completed her postdoctoral training from Youth and Social Issues program and Social and Environmental Health program at Survey Research Center at University of Michigan. As a trained interdisciplinary quantitative methodology and survey researcher, she utilizes secondary data for her research on substance use and health over the life course.
NAHDAP Data Project Manager
Chelsea Samples-Steele joined the NAHDAP team in 2020, but has been at ICPSR since 2016. Prior to her work with NAHDAP, Chelsea was a Data Project Manager for the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data (NACJD) at ICPSR. Chelsea has an M.S. in Psychology from Villanova University and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Michigan.
PATH Study Data Project Manager
Jennifer Koski has been with NAHDAP and ICPSR since March 2020. Starting as a Data Project Assistant for NAHDAP and the PATH Study, Jennifer transitioned to the role of Data Project Manager for the PATH Study in December 2022. Jennifer is responsible for managing contractual obligations, budgets and reporting, along with restricted data applications and user support inquiries. Jennifer is a graduate from Northern Michigan University with a B.S. in Applied Sociology.
PATH Study Data Project Manager
Michal Kirkwood has worked with NAHDAP since joining ICPSR in July 2016. His current duties include oversight of Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study Data Releases, including primary data processing and project communications/coordination. Prior to joining NAHDAP, Mr. Kirkwood worked as a Data Manager with the University of Michigan Law School and as a Research Assistant with the University of Michigan's School of Public Health: Prevention Research Center.
Mr. Kirkwood is a University of Michigan - Flint graduate with a B.S. in Research Psychology and a B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Linguistics.
PATH Study Data Manager
Alieysa Patel joined ICPSR in June 2022 as a Data Manager for the PATH Study. Prior to ICPSR, she was a Research Coordinator at the Department of Internal Medicine at UM Hospital. Alieysa has a B.S. in Biology from the University of Michigan and an MPH from Boston University.
NAHDAP Data Project Assistant
Meg Jerrild joined ICPSR as a Data Curator in 2021 where she focused on studies concerning criminal justice and minority data. In May 2023, Meg transitioned to NAHDAP as a Data Project Assistant, where she works with user support inquiries and restricted data applications. Meg holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Connecticut and minored in Sociology and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.