New President and program area director at Policy Research Associates

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May 19, 2022
Policy Research is pleased to announce that as of May 20, 2022, Sarah Desmarais, PhD, will be the firm's President. Dr. Desmarais joined Policy Research in May 2021 as a Senior Vice President and Program Area Director of the firm's Research and Evaluation area. Under her leadership, Policy Research's research and evaluation portfolio has grown by 300 percent and returned the company to its original balance of research and technical assistance efforts. As President, Dr. Desmarais will build on Policy Research's success by creating a symbiotic relationship between the firm's technical assistance and research portfolios.
 
Desmarais takes over the helm from Pamela Clark Robbins, who will retire at the end of December 2022. Through Ms. Robbins's management, including 7 years as president, Policy Research has emerged as a national leader in behavioral health-focused research, evaluation, technical assistance, and training.  
 
Policy Research is also pleased to announce that Elan C. Hope, PhD, has joined Policy Research as the Program Area Director for Research and Evaluation. As Program Area Director, Dr. Hope will develop and provide oversight on research projects and use her area's research findings to inform and strengthen Policy Research's technical assistance efforts.
 
Dr. Hope brings a strong background in research focused on academic, civic, and psychological well-being for racially marginalized groups, youth, and emerging adults. She is excited to apply her research skills to bolster and enhance Policy Research's full behavioral health portfolio.
 
Dr. Hope takes an assets-based approach to understanding individual and community factors that promote well-being for adolescents and young adults, particularly structural barriers to wellness. She uses qualitative and quantitative methods to examine factors related to behavioral health and well-being, including racial identity, critical consciousness, socialization, and activism. She is also an Associate Editor at the Journal of Adolescent Research. Prior to joining Policy Research, Dr. Hope was an associate professor of psychology and a university scholar at NC State University.
 
Dr. Hope is from Prince George's County, Maryland. She earned her bachelor's degree in psychology from Smith College and her PhD in education and psychology from the University of Michigan. Following graduate school, Dr. Hope completed a post-doctoral fellowship (sponsored by the William T. Grant Foundation) in Comparative Human Development at the University of Chicago.