Advisory Council

About

National Advisory Committee

To aid in curricula revision and better target marketing and outreach materials/processes to hospitals and staff that work with expectant parents looking to adopt, experts have been recruited to join the Hospital-Based Adoption Care Advisory Committee. The Committee includes representatives from colleges and universities of medicine, medical doctors, nurse practitioners, hospital social workers, adoption professionals, and birth parents. Committee members will be introduced to the project through multiple webinars, after which they will share their expertise, knowledge and insights to:

(1) assist in the review of curriculum (UIA 7) refinements and online courses;

(2) review and advise on communication and dissemination plans;

(3) engage their constituents about UIA 7 training availability;

(4) disseminate information about curricula into their networks. Committee members will be expected to commit approximately 10 hours total over the project length. Members include:

National Advisory Committee Members (revised November 2024)

Janelle Basham (Birth Mother), Executive Director, BraveLove, Dallas, TX
Dana E. Johnson, MD, PhD, Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology and Adoption Medicine Clinic, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
DeeAnne Jackson, MD, MPH, Professor, Division of Academic General Pediatrics, and Medical Director, Newborn Nursery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
Angela Lane, DNP, CPNP-PC/AC, IBCLC, Associate Professor, Gordon E. Inman College of Nursing, Belmont University, Nashville, TN
Celeste Liversidge, JD, Adoption Atorney and Executive Director, Ethical Family Building, Pasadena, CA
Elise Lowe, LMSW, Pediatric Social Worker, Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at
Vanderbilt, Nashville, TN
Saara McEachnie, LICSW, LCSW-C, Director of Domestic Adoption Programs, The Barker Adoption Foundation, Bethesda, MD
Sarah W. Prager, MD, MAS, Professor, School of Medicine, and Director of the Family Planning Division, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Washington, Roosevelt, WA
Debbie Riley, LCMFT, Chief Executive Officer and Adoption-Competent Therapist, Center for Adoption Support and Education, Burtonsville, MD
Elaine E. Schulte, MD, MPH, PCC, BCC, Professor of Pediatrics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Division of Academic General Pediatrics, The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, Bronx, NY
Debi Tengler, Executive Director, Adoption Is An Option, Greater Houston, TX