Conference presenters

Director of CHW Leadership Advancement and Envision Co-Director

Center for Community Health Alignment

Presentation: Our Time is Now!

Lisa Renee is a proud member of the CHW workforce with over 30 years of experience. She is the Director of CHW Leadership Advancement and Envision Co-Director at the Center for Community Health Alignment, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina. Lisa Renee is a co-founder of several CHW organizations including the National Association of Community Health Workers, the New England CHW Coalition and the Southeast CHW Network.

Senior Learning and Development Specialist, Corewell Health

President/CEO, Consult Me LLC

Presentation: This Little Light of Mine…(I’m Gonna’) Let it Shine!

Ms. Evans serves as the Sr. Learning & Development Specialist for the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Corewell Health. For 11 years, she served as the Project Coordinator for Strong Beginnings-Healthy Start program - serving pregnant and parenting families in Kent County. Denise gave leadership to the training and education of countless public health professionals serving communities across the country. She is a content expert in the areas of implicit bias, cultural intelligence, health equity, social justice, racial healing, inclusion and belonging - with a demonstrated passion and gratitude for the invaluable work of home visitors. This Spanish Harlem, New York City born educator loves to work cross-culturally and cross generationally to bridge gaps and disrupt the systems of oppression that plague those living in our most vulnerable communities. Ms. Evans has one son, Brian, three grandchildren Brianna (19), Jesse (16), and Brian III (8), and a Goldendoodle mini - Snoopy (2.5).

Program Manager

Day One Doula Collective

Presentation: Community Care: Maximizing Impact with Doulas and Community Health Workers

Kiara Baskin is a black maternal health advocate, certified doula, and lactation counselor with over 10 years of patient care experience. She knows that all families should have access to evidence-based information and resources about birth and parenthood that’s straight-up.

Kiara's approach to birth and parenthood is integrative - she combines the latest information with a compassionate vibe, providing a range of services from prenatal education to postpartum care and breastfeeding support. Kiara's a familiar face in the community - most recently she's been leading efforts to advance the profession of birth work as program manager for the Day One Doula Collective, a Medicaid-approved doula training program in West Michigan. Bottom line, Kiara's all about making sure every family has the knowledge and resources they need to have a positive birth and parenting experience. And with her approach, she's doing it in a way that's accessible and relatable to the community.

Community Education Specialist

Disability Advocates of Kent County

Presentation: An Introduction to Disability Advocates and People with Disabilities

Jonathan Cauchi is a Community Education Specialist at Disability Advocates of Kent County. In this role he provides Disability Awareness training in a variety of settings around the county. Jon has shown a dedication to Disability services as he has worked in that field, as a Youth Transition Specialist and Recreation coordinator, even making it a concentration of his studies at Western Michigan University. This passion for working with Disability stems from a personal journey as at age 12 Jon suddenly lost most of his sight to a rare eye disease. His journey has had a lot of twists and turns that came with many lessons of adversity and advocacy. Jon is not one to sit still however as he is father first and foremost, he is also a Youth Camp Director for the Michigan Blind Athletic Association, he sits on the Wyoming City’s Community Development Committee, and is an amateur stand-up comedian. Disability plays a huge role in Jon’s life impacting all he does, however it does not define him!

Director of Community Health Programs and Strategies

Henry Ford Health

Presentation: When Cultures Clash: Lessons Learned From CHW and Clinical Integration Attempts to Improve Birth Outcomes in Detroit

Jaye Clement is the Director of Community Health Programs and Strategies at Henry Ford Health in Detroit. She is responsible for aligning HFH’s community commitments by engaging new and existing partners around issues of community health and managing metrics to continuously improve strategies that contribute to improvement. Amongst her many and varying responsibilities, Jaye staffs the Detroit Regional Infant Mortality Reduction Task Force and holds administrative oversight for the award-winning Women-Inspired Neighborhood Network: Detroit program. Jaye also directs the Community Health Worker Hub for the health system, which is responsible for the integration and deployment of CHWs throughout the organization for the purpose of promoting a culture of wellness through enhanced care coordination that simultaneously addresses clinical factors and social determinants of health, ensuring CHWs are a valued part of the healthcare workforce, and taking a population-based approach to extend care beyond hospital walls. She also serves as chairperson on the board of directors for the Michigan Community Health Worker Alliance and serves on the board for other local and national organizations.

Community Health Worker/ Parent Coach/Belonging Committee Chair

Spectrum Health Healthier Communities

Presentation: Creating a Sense of Belonging at Our Workplace

Parent Coach for Baby Scholars – BS/MBS. Speaker and Motivator. Mentor and Community Resource.

Community Health Worker

Spectrum Health Healthier Communities

Presentation: A Call to Action

William Jackson is a Grand Rapids native and a proud first-generation Davenport University alumnus. Over the past 7 years William has been a part of Corewell Health serving as a CHW in addition to supporting the work being done throughout the organization centered around DEI. Over the past 10 years William has had both a community and professional presence in areas such as professional development, DEI, healthcare, and housing development.

Executive Director

Michigan Community Health Worker Alliance (MiCHWA)

Presentation: Michigan Community Health Worker Alliance: Current State Conversation

Tressa Liba serves as Executive Director for Michigan Community Health Worker Alliance (MiCHWA). Having served as a CHW and CHW lead for over 18 years, Ms. Liba is thrilled to partner with MiCHWA’s Board of Directors, Working Groups, and especially CHWs and Allies to elevate the community health worker profession. She serves as Chair of the Michigan Dept of Health and Human Services CHW Subcommittee and serves on the national Board of Directors of the Pathways Community Hub Institute.

Grace Health and Infinity Consultation Group

Presentation: Community Health Worker: Our Greatest Advocate

Danielle Acker is a Detroit native who currently resides in Kalamazoo, MI. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor who has a specialization in addiction. She has been in practice in the field since 2016 and throughout her time has worked with a variety of mental health and co-occurring issues. She has worked in different settings and populations inclusive of outpatient care, inpatient care, and teens, college students, adults and seniors. She currently works at a local community health center and works part time in private practice. Danielle has a deep appreciation for working with people ensuring their needs are met and their voices are heard.