Program Overview Publications Staff Profiles Keyword Search:   Comer Site Med center Site Yale Site     Comer School Development Program 55 College Street New Haven CT, 06510 (203) 737-1020 Tel. (203) 737-1023 Fax			About Comer SDP Staff Profiles     • SDP Yale Faculty • SDP National Faculty & Implementation Coordinators • SDP Support Staff SDP Yale Faculty James P. Comer, M.D., M.P.H. M. Ann Levett, Ed.D Fay E. Brown, Ph.D. Camille J. Cooper, M.Ed., ABD .Christine Emmons, Ph.D. Cynthia Savo, M.A.. James P. Comer, M.D., M.P.H., the Maurice Falk Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine's Child Study Center, has been a Yale medical faculty member since 1968. During these years, he has concentrated his career on promoting a focus on child development as a way of improving schools. His efforts in support of healthy development of young people are known internationally. Dr. Comer, perhaps, is best known for the founding of the Comer School Development Program in 1968, which promotes the collaboration of parents, educators, and community to improve social, emotional, and academic outcomes for children that, in turn, helps them achieve greater school success. His concept of teamwork has improved the educational environment in more than 500 schools throughout America. A prolific writer, Dr. Comer has authored nine books, including Beyond Black and White, 1972; Black Child Care, (with Dr. Alvin F. Poussaint), 1975; paperback revision, Raising Black Children, 1992; School Power: Implications of an Intervention Project, 1980; the autobiographical Maggie's American Dream: The Life and Times of a Black Family, 1988; Rallying the Whole Village, (edited with Dr. Michael Ben-Avie, Dr. Norris M. Haynes, and Dr. Edward T. Joyner), 1996; Waiting for a Miracle: Why Schools Can't Solve Our Problems, And How We Can, 1997; Child by Child, (edited with Dr. Michael Ben-Avie, Dr. Norris M. Haynes, and Dr. Edward T. Joyner) 1999; The Field Guide to Comer Schools in Action, (edited with Dr. Edward T. Joyner and Dr. Michael Ben-Avie), 2004; and Leave No Child Behind: Preparing Today's Youth for Tomorrow's World, 2004. Between 1978 and 1994, Dr. Comer wrote more than 150 articles for Parents Magazine and more than 300 syndicated articles on children's health and development and race relations. In addition to his writing, teaching and research activities, Dr. Comer has served as a consultant to the Children's Television Workshop, which produces Sesame Street and The Electric Company. He was a consultant to the Public Committee on Mental Health chaired by Rosalyn Carter as well as a member of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, and Carnegie Forum on Education and the Economy (1987-1991). Since 1994, Dr. Comer has served as a member of the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). He has provided testimony before state and congressional legislative bodies. He chaired the Roundtable on Child and Adolescent Development Research and Teacher Education, organized by the National Association for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). He served on the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development's Commission on the Whole Child and contributed to the 2007 report, The Learning Compact Redefined: A Call to Action: A Report of the Commission on the Whole Child. Since 1971, Dr. Comer has served as Director or Trustee of the following Boards: the Nellie Mae Education Foundation (2003-present); Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT (1978-1984); Albertus Magnus College, New Haven, CT (1989-2000); Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY (1999-present); the Hazen Foundation, New Haven, CT (1974-1978); the Field Foundation, New York, NY (1981-1988); the Carnegie Corporation of New York, New York, NY (1990-1994); Connecticut Savings Bank (1971-1991); the Connecticut Energy Corporation, Bridgeport, CT (1976-2000); and the National Academy Foundation, New York, NY (1993-1998). For his work and his scholarship, Dr. Comer has been awarded 46 honorary degrees and has been recognized by many organizations. In 2007 he received the University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for Education. In 2004, he received the John P. McGovern Behavioral Science Award from the Smithsonian. In 2006 he received the John Hope Franklin Award, given to those who have demonstrated the highest commitment to access and excellence in American education. In 1996, he won both the prestigious Heinz Award in the Human Condition for his profound influence on disadvantaged children, and the Healthtrac Foundation Prize. Other honors include the Charles A. Dana Award for Pioneering Achievement in Education, 1991; the James Bryant Conant Award, presented by the Education Commission of the States, 1991; the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education given by McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1990; a Special Presidential Commendation from the American Psychiatric Association, 1990; the Rockefeller Public Service Award, 1980; and the John and Mary Markel Foundation Scholar Award in Academic Medicine, 1969-1974. In 1993, Bill Cosby served as the Master of Ceremonies for the 25th Anniversary Celebration of the School Development Program. In 1998, Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke at the Program's 30th Anniversary Symposium. A native of East Chicago, IN, Dr. Comer received an A.B. degree in 1956 from Indiana University, an M.D. degree in 1960 from Howard University College of Medicine, and an M.P.H. in 1964 from the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Between 1964 and 1967, he trained in psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine and its Child Study Center. He also completed one year of residency training at the Hillcrest Children's Center in Washington, D.C. M. Ann Levett (formerly Levett-Lowe) has served as a professional educator for nearly 30 years. She is the Executive Director of the School Development Program. In addition to coordinating university partnerships, Dr. Levett works with SDP systemic implementation districts. Dr. Levett earned a B.S. in Speech and Language Pathology from Armstrong State College. She also earned a Masters degree in Special Education, a Masters degree in Public Administration, and an Education Specialist degree in Educational Administration from Georgia Southern University. Dr. Levett earned her doctorate in Educational Administration at the University of Georgia in 1992. In addition to her formal studies, she has participated in leadership development programs at Harvard University, Vanderbilt University, University of Delaware, University of California, San Diego and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Before beginning this fulltime position with SDP, Dr. Levett most recently served as Chair of the Masters in Educational Leadership and Principal Licensure programs at Antioch University McGregor in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Prior to that position, she served in the positions of interim superintendent, deputy superintendent, assistant superintendent, secondary principal, assistant principal, and special education teacher. Dr. Levett has also served as a National Review Panelist and Site Visitor for the National Blue Ribbon Schools (National Schools of Excellence) program for more than 12 years. She is actively involved in her community, and she has received numerous awards for her work as a school leader and community activist. A few of the organizations with which she is or has been affiliated in a leadership capacity include Junior Achievement, Girl Scouts USA, Boy Scouts USA, National Business and Professional Women, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Phi Delta Kappa, Zonta International, Education's Leadership Georgia, and Leadership Savannah. Dr. Levett has been a speaker for state and national conferences, and she serves as an educational consultant for school districts, community organizations, and other entities. She has created and conducted leadership development academies for principals, aspiring administrators, and parents in addition to programs designed to address behavior management issues and special education concerns. Dr. Levett's research interests include minority student achievement, leadership development, and instructional leadership. Her most recent publication is a chapter entitled, Performance Management: The Principal's First Priority. This appears in The Field Guide to Comer Schools in Action. M. Ann Levett, Ed.D. Executive Director School Development Program 55 College Street New Haven, CT 06510 Phone: 203.737.1006 Fax: 203.737.1023 E-mail: ann.levett@yale.edu Fay E. Brown, an Associate Research Scientist at the Child Study Center at Yale University, serves as the Director of Child and Adolescent Development for the School Development Program in that Center. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Connecticut in 1984 and later received a Master of Education degree in Guidance and Counseling, and then a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Howard University. Dr. Brown has worked at the elementary, high school and college levels, teaching and counseling students. In 1993, she was recognized by the National Association for Personal Workers (NAPW) for her outstanding contribution to student development. Her major focus is to help schools create and maintain developmentally appropriate conditions to ensure the holistic development of every child. Dr. Brown has authored and co-authored journal articles about reading achievement of struggling elementary school students, and about the over-representation of African-American students in special education classes. She has also co-authored book chapters in Child by Child, Six Pathways to Healthy Development and Academic Success, and Dynamic Instructional Leadership to Support Student Learning and Development Dr. Brown has served as educational consultant to various groups, including the educational task force of the United Church of Christ. She is a motivational speaker, and in that capacity, presents at local, national, and international events. Fay E. Brown, Ph.D. Associate Research Scientist Director, Child and Adolescent Development School Development Program Yale Child Study Center 230 S. Frontage Road P.O. Box 207900 New Haven, CT 06520-7900 Phone: 203.785.4627 Fax: 203.785.3359 E-mail: fay.brown@yale.edu Camille J. Cooper is Director of the School Development Program's Learning, Teaching and Development unit which includes Essentials of Literacy, Teachers Helping Teachers and Balanced Curriculum programs. Learning, Teaching and Development (LT&D) expands the focus of the Yale Child Study Center's Development Program (SDP) from relationships and school climate to student achievement and school performance. Prior to joining SDP Camille served over 25 years as a professional educator in public schools. Her professional experiences include special education, career/vocational education, associate director of elementary humanities, associate director elementary language arts, assistant elementary principal, elementary principal, executive director/assistant superintendent for academic services, curriculum and instruction, and executive regional principal/assistant superintendent. Ms. Cooper attended Kent State University and earned a B.S. in elementary education (1974) and a M.Ed. in the education of exceptional individuals (1983) from Wright State University. She has completed postgraduate work at Wright State University and the University of Dayton in the areas of supervision, curriculum and instruction, and educational leadership. She is a doctoral student at Southern Connecticut State University. Her research focus is teacher collaboration and professional learning communities. Camille J. Cooper, M.Ed. Director of Learning, Teaching and Development School Development Program Yale Child Study Center 230 S. Frontage Road P.O. Box 207900 New Haven, CT 06510-7900 Phone: 203.737.3834 Fax: 203.785.3359 E-mail: camille.cooper@yale.edu Christine Emmons is the Director of Program Evaluation at the School Development Program. She received her B.A. from the University of the West Indies, her M.L.S. from the University of Western Ontario and her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Connecticut in 1992. Dr. Emmons was an elementary teacher and later a librarian in her native Grenada. As Director of Program Evaluation, Dr. Emmons is responsible for the design and management of the SDP’s research program, particularly in the districts involved in systemic reform. Her duties include the development and review of instruments to measure the SDP implementation and outcomes. She has done extensive work in the development of the SDP School Climate Surveys and School Implementation Questionnaire. Dr. Emmons has co-authored chapters in Rallying the Whole Village, Child by Child, and Comprehensive School Reform, as well as journal articles on SDP implementation and outcomes. Christine Emmons, Ph.D. Director of Program Evaluation School Development Program 55 College Street New Haven, CT 06510 Phone: 203.737.4000 Fax: 203.737.4001 E-mail: christine.emmons@yale.edu Cynthia Savo is the SDP's Communications Director. She rejoined the SDP staff in 2007 after ten years as CEO of Cynergy Associates, LLC, a communications and organizational development consulting practice that served foundations, school districts, national education reform organizations, and other nonprofits. For nine years she consulted to the Rockefeller Foundation's Working Communities program, providing the officers with analyses of grantee networks and program impact; research to inform grantmaking; and technical assistance on strategic communications. She joined the SDP staff in 1990 and was involved in the organization's national scale-up, focusing on the development of the national leadership academies and the organization's communications efforts. She was a member of the design and technology teams of the ATLAS Communities Project that brought together Harvard Project Zero, the Coalition of Essential Schools, the Education Development Center, and the School Development Program to design a "break the mold" education model. She was a school counselor at the Center for Vocational Arts (now the Briggs Center), an alternative high school in Norwalk, Connecticut and oversaw youth employment programming for the Town of Fairfield. She has a B.S. in psychology from Georgetown University and an M.A. in counseling and community services from Fairfield University. Cynthia R. Savo, M.A. Communications Director 55 College Street New Haven, CT 06510 Phone: 203.737.4000 Fax: 203.737.1023 Email: Cynthia.Savo@yale.edu
			Copyright © 2001 School Development Program, Yale Child Study Center. All rights reserved. Comments or suggestions to the site editor. Photos from the book "Child by Child: The Comer Process for Change in Education," are by Michael Jacobson-Hardy and Laura Brooks. Used by permission of Teachers College Press. Home URL: http://www.schooldevelopmentprogram.org/ Last modified: August 2008 (JP)