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MAY/JUNE 2026
The McSilver Brief is a comprehensive newsletter released every other month, providing updates on the wide-ranging and impactful research, policy, and technical assistance work we are engaged in at the NYU McSilver Institute. We appreciate your continued support.
For more information about NYU McSilver, please visit mcsilver.nyu.edu.
RECENT EVENTS
THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 2026
2026 TTAC Annual Conference Spotlights Innovation to Support Welfare System-Involved Families
Keynote speakers Jess Dannhauser, Kimberly Watson, Fred Wulczyn, and Brenda Jones Harden
TTAC — a unique center dedicated to improving perinatal, infant, and early childhood mental health — brought together over 200 attendees for a full day of networking, expert keynotes, and more. With a special focus on the child welfare system, this year’s conference sparked timely clinical, research, and policy conversations impacting young children and families in NYC.
MONDAY, MAY 4, 2026
Video Podcast on the ‘Fourth Trimester’ Recorded with Live Studio Audience
Julee Wilson, Gabrielle Albert, Danielle Jean Brooks, Brad M. Edwards, Tonya Lewis Lee, and Eboni K. Williams
On May 4, McSilver teamed up with AmeriHealth Caritas and the Greater New York Chapter of The Links, Inc., to produce a live video podcast titled "After Birth, Aftercare, Afterthought: The Fourth Trimester." The goal of the podcast is to build stronger, more responsive support systems for new mothers.
Award-winning journalist Julee Wilson hosted the podcast and it brought together maternal health experts, policymakers, advocates and parents with lived experience to discuss postpartum wellness and mental health, warning signs, family advocacy and policy. The two episodes of the podcast are packed with practical advice and innovative solutions.
THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2026
Theresa Betancourt on the Resilience of Former Child Soldiers
Dr. Theresa Betancourt
Drawing on over two decades of longitudinal research, Dr. Theresa S. Betancourt, Salem Professor in Global Practice at the Boston College School of Social Work, examined how the legacy of conflict continues to shape the lives of youth and families in Sierra Leone today during a special event hosted by the McSilver Institute. Her work, detailed in her latest book Shadows into Light: A Generation of Former Child Soldiers Comes of Age, reveals a remarkable story of resilience in the aftermath of the civil war.
THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2026
McSilver AI Hub Explores Modern Data Science and W.E.B. Du Bois
Chris Hemphill, Dr. Kara Emery, Anthony Starks, Allen Hillery, and Dr. Brandeis Marshall
In our first Reclaim the Algorithm webinar, data science and machine learning experts Allen Hillery, Dr. Brandeis Marshall, and Anthony Starks explored the W.E.B. Du Bois legacy and its connection to modern AI systems.
In conversation with Dr. Kara Emery, Director of Data Science at NYU McSilver’s AI Hub, and Chris Hemphill, Founder and Head of Data Science at Modular Feedback and NYU McSilver Fellow, they examined how his thinking and the centuries old mathematical foundations behind modern AI impact ethics, equity, and lived experience today.
FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2026
New Insights for Combatting HIV/AIDS and Improving Outcomes
Dr. Hawa Malechi, Dr. Nelson Ssewante, and Dr. Gideon Kye-Duodu
Three NYU ACHIEVE Training Program visiting scholars shared their innovative approaches to enhance cancer screening among women living with HIV/AIDs, improve assessments and diagnoses of infectious diseases among children, and leverage mobile health, known as mHealth, to improve service delivery for HIV-exposed infants. The hybrid event featured presentations of the scholars’ pilot research projects and an audience Q&A, showcasing critical work to save lives and shape the future of health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa.
Helping New York’s Behavioral Health Providers Navigate Documentation and Billing
The MCTAC team at the 6th Annual Billing Event
The McSilver-led Managed Care Technical Assistance Center (MCTAC) helps New York State care providers adapt to evolving billing requirements, strengthen documentation practices, navigate standards and compliance, and connect with valuable resources.
MCTAC’s Spring in-person events are bringing answers directly to service providers and connecting community organizations, OMH and OASAS state partners, and providers of Medicaid Managed Care Plans and Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems.
In Focus: Documentation & Billing
The May 13 event focused on documentation — resources including slides are available now (free with email registration). Billing events on May 27, June 10, and June 24 are being held regionally to support providers across the state.
MORE HIGHLIGHTS
AI Hub Showcases Suicide Prevention Research
Dr. Kara Emery and Jasmine Falk at the NYS Public Health Partnership Conference
In April, McSilver’s AI Hub highlighted their recent research and technological innovations across three premier events:
• NYS Public Health Partnership Conference (Lake Placid): Dr. Kara Emery, Director of Data Science, Jasmine Falk, Senior Research Software Engineer and Executive Director Rose Pierre-Louis delivered a poster presentation on democratizing data science and AI to advance suicide prevention.
• AFSP Suicide Research Symposium: Dr. Emery presented critical insights on the demographics and protective factors that influence adolescent suicidal behaviors.
• CUNY PIT Lab Public Interest Technology Pop-Up (WTC Oculus): The AI Hub team hosted a live demonstration of their innovative Suicide Risk Dashboard, which is currently in active development.
McSilver Fellow Comments on Changing SNAP Landscape
Alexina Cather, a policy consultant with Hunter College’s New York City Food Policy Center, recently examined the impact of new federal work requirements on access to SNAP. She spoke with McSilver Fellow-in-Residence and food policy expert Cathy Nonas, who told her: “People who work for minimum wage are often burdened with unpredictable and inconsistent work hours and unstable living conditions. The government is pushing even more people to choose between paying for their medications or paying for the food they need to live.”
RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS
May 18, 2026: Harris, A., Emery, K., Sheftall, A. H. “A Doubly Robust Machine Learning Procedure to Estimate Disparities by Race/Ethnicity and Sex in the Relationship Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Suicidality,” in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
May 18, 2026: Sensoy Bahar, O., Byansi, W., Ibrahim, A., Boateng, A.,… Ssewamala, F.M. & McKay, M.M. “Preliminary Effects of the ANZANSI Family Program on Caregiver Outcomes in Northern Ghana: A Pilot Study,” in Families in Society
May 14, 2026: Solidum, E., Harris, A., Emery, K., Sheftall, A. H. “Understanding Protective Factors That Impact Adolescent Suicidal Behaviors Across Race/Ethnicity and Sex,” in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
May 6, 2026: Kizito, S., Ssewamala, F. M., Nabayinda, J., Nabunya, P., Sensoy Bahar, O., Namatovu, P., & Neilands, T. B. “Comparing Self-Reports, Pill Counts, and Electronic Devices in Assessing ART Adherence and its Association with Viral Suppression in Adolescents Living with HIV,” in Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes
April 24, 2026: Nabayinda, J., Sensoy Bahar, O., Namatovu, P., Nabunya, P., Kizito, S., Kabarambi, A., Thames, A., & Ssewamala, F. M. “Acceptability of Suubi+Adherence intervention to improve ART adherence in Southern Uganda: A qualitative analysis,” in PLOS One
Full list of publications is available at the McSilver website ▸
