Senior Staff
Senior Staff
Kristen D. Holtz
Expertise
- Social marketing and health communication for youth audiences
- Substance abuse prevention and science education, particularly curriculum development and evaluation
- Child mental health, particularly methods to increase social acceptance of children with differences
- Health promotion and disease prevention, particularly for low-literacy audiences
Biography
Kristen D. Holtz is the founder and president of KDH Research & Communication, a woman-owned small business that constructs and evaluates public health and social service programs and disseminates objective and timely scientific information to these fields. Her work explores optimal methods to present health information in ways that the target audiences can learn and benefit from it. Dr. Holtz has published her research in top academic journals, presented at professional meetings across the U.S., and developed and disseminated many evidence-based products for lay audiences, including parents, children, and teachers. Dr. Holtz has won multiple federal grants and contracts in the field of health communication, including work with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Prior to starting KDHRC, Dr. Holtz served as Vice President of Child and Family Health at Danya International.
Education
Ph.D., Developmental Psychology, George Washington University
M.Phil., Developmental Psychology, George Washington University
B.A., International Affairs, George Washington University
Select Publications
Agnew, C. A., Twombly, E. C., & Holtz, K. D. (2009). Resonant prescription drug abuse prevention messages for teens. Brief Number 6: August. Informing Public Health. Atlanta, GA: KDHRC.
Twombly, E. C., & Holtz, K.D. (2008). Teens and the misuse of prescription drugs: Evidence-based recommendations to curb a growing societal problem. Journal of Primary Prevention, 29(6), 503-16.
Twombly, E.C., Holtz, K.D. & Tessman, G.K. (2008). Multimedia science education on drugs of abuse: A preliminary evaluation of effectiveness for adolescents. Journal of Drug and Alcohol Education, 52(1), 8-17.
Holtz, K.D. & Twombly, E.C. (2008). Recommendations to prevent teen misuse of prescription drugs. Brief Number 5: July. Informing Public Health. Atlanta, GA: KDHRC.
Holtz, K.D. & Tessman, G.K. (2007). An evaluation of a peer-focused intervention to increase knowledge and foster positive attitudes toward children with Tourette Syndrome. Journal on Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 19(6), 531-542.
Holtz, K.D. & Twombly, E.C. (2007) A preliminary evaluation of the effects of a science-education curriculum on changes in knowledge of drugs in youth. Journal of Drug Education, 37(3), 317-333.
Eric C. Twombly
Expertise
- Community-based health and human service organizations
- Health and social service delivery systems
- Science education and health literacy
Biography
Eric C. Twombly is a principal research associate and the Director of Organizational Studies at KDHRC, where he studies health and social service delivery mechanisms and health literacy programs. Dr. Twombly is a leading expert on the organizational behavior of community-based nonprofit providers and has been the chief evaluator on several public health projects funded by the National Institutes of Health. Before joining KDHRC, Dr. Twombly was a senior research associate at the Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy at the Urban Institute, and an assistant professor in the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University, where he continues to lecture on public policy and social policy issues.
Education
Ph.D., Public Policy, George Washington University
M.Phil., Public Policy, George Washington University
B.S., Psychology and Criminal Justice, University of Massachusetts
Select Publications
Agnew, C. A., Twombly, E. C., & Holtz, K. D. (2009). Resonant prescription drug abuse prevention messages for teens. Brief Number 6: August. Informing Public Health. Atlanta, GA: KDHRC.
Twombly, E.C., & Holtz, K.D. (2008). Teens and the misuse of prescription drugs: Evidence-based recommendations to curb a growing societal problem. Journal of Primary Prevention, 29(6), 503-16.
Twombly, E.C. (2008). Nonprofit staffing and compensation: current trends and future directions. In J. J. Cordes & C. E. Steuerle (Eds.) Nonprofits and business: A new world of innovation and adaptation. Washington, DC: The Urban Institute Press.
Twombly, E.C., Holtz, K.D. & Tessman, G.K. (2008). Multimedia science education on drugs of abuse: A preliminary evaluation of effectiveness for adolescents. Journal of Drug and Alcohol Education, 52(1), 8-17.
Holtz, K.D. & Twombly, E.C. (2007) A preliminary evaluation of the effects of a science-education curriculum on changes in knowledge of drugs in youth. Journal of Drug Education, 37(3), 317-333.
De Vita, C.J., & Twombly, E.C. (2006). Nonprofits and federalism. In Elizabeth T. Boris and C. Eugene Steuerle (Eds.). Nonprofits and Government: Collaboration and Conflict (2nd Edition). Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute Press.
De Vita, C.J., & Twombly, E.C. (2005). Who gains from a charitable tax credit program? Public Administration Review, 65(1), 57-63.
Twombly, E.C. (2003). What factors affect the entry and exit of nonprofit human service organizations in metropolitan areas? Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 32(2), 211-235.
Twombly, E.C. (2002). Religious versus secular human service organizations: Implications for public policy. Social Science Quarterly, 83(4), 947-961.