Dr. Kanika Harris is Chief Executive Officer of the Centering Healthcare Institute (CHI), the national nonprofit that pioneered CenteringPregnancy® and CenteringParenting®. A behavioral scientist and nationally recognized maternal-health equity leader, she brings more than a decade of experience translating research, policy, and community expertise into strategies that improve care and outcomes.

Before joining CHI, Dr. Harris served as Executive Director of the National Association to Advance Black Birth, where she strengthened the organization’s national leadership and advanced research, policy, and programs supporting Black and Indigenous families. She also developed NOURISH, an innovative initiative designed to expand the birth-worker pipeline and address both the immediate and structural drivers of maternal-health inequities.

Previously, as Maryland’s Maternal Health Equity Advisor, Dr. Harris helped lead the state’s five-year maternal-health plan and developed a mapping system to direct resources to communities with the greatest need. At the Black Women’s Health Imperative, she created and grew the organization’s maternal-health portfolio, establishing a new body of work and strengthening BWHI’s leadership in the field. She also helped advance federal maternal mental-health legislation.

Dr. Harris has been featured by CNN, OWN, ProPublica, NPR, and The Washington Post. She earned her PhD in Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of Michigan and her Master of Public Health in Public Health and International Development from Morehouse School of Medicine.

Dr. Tisha S. Adams is an accomplished executive with over 25 years of leadership experience in human resources, risk and compliance, and operations, spanning both for-profit and nonprofit sectors. She has led high-performing teams in Fortune 1000 financial institutions, healthcare organizations, and mission-driven enterprises, building scalable systems, streamlining processes, and aligning operations with strategic priorities to deliver measurable outcomes.

As COO of the Centering Healthcare Institute, Dr. Adams directs strategic goal execution, enterprise risk management, and operational performance, ensuring the organization operates with efficiency, compliance, and accountability. Her advanced business expertise, coupled with deep practical experience, enables her to apply proven principles and data-driven strategies that strengthen governance, optimize resources, and amplify CHI’s mission to improve maternal health outcomes.

A respected educator and practitioner, Dr. Adams has taught master’s-level students the fundamentals of organizational leadership and operations—experience that informs her ability to translate complex challenges into actionable solutions. Her leadership ensures CHI remains a trusted partner for funders, healthcare providers, and communities, driving systemic change and expanding access to equitable, culturally responsive care.

Rhonda Armstrong, CPA, CMA, serves as CFO at Centering Healthcare Institute (CHI), where she brings extensive financial leadership, accounting, operational, and organizational experience to CHI’s executive leadership. Throughout her career, Armstrong has worked across nonprofit and mission-driven organizations, helping strengthen the financial and operational systems that enable organizations to pursue their missions responsibly and sustainably.


Armstrong’s professional background spans more than two decades and includes progressively responsible roles in accounting, finance, compliance, and organizational operations. Her experience includes senior finance leadership with Our House, Inc., Rheumatology Research Foundation, Rotary International, and Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs. Across these settings, her work has encompassed financial management, accounting operations, organizational controls, compliance, and the disciplined stewardship of institutional resources.


Armstrong is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Management Accountant (CMA). She earned a master’s degree in Accounting and Financial Management, with honors, from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University. Her professional approach reflects a longstanding interest in helping organizations strengthen operational efficiency and use sound financial stewardship to support organizational effectiveness.

Qiana Cressman is the Chief Development Officer (CDO) of Centering Healthcare Institute, where she leads the organization’s work to advance Centering as the preferred standard of care and expand access to relationship-centered healthcare models that improve outcomes for patients, families, and communities.

Cressman brings more than two decades of experience across healthcare, philanthropy, nonprofit leadership, community health, and organizational transformation. Her career has focused on strengthening mission-driven organizations, building sustainable revenue strategies, and advancing healthcare through cross-sector partnerships. Her work spans fundraising, business development, governance, community engagement, public health strategy, and enterprise-wide growth.

Since joining Centering Healthcare Institute, Cressman has led the organization through a period of significant transition and transformation. She stabilized a $14 million national organization through multiple CEO transitions while maintaining operational continuity, restoring stakeholder confidence, and retaining 100% of donors. She also established and scaled the organization’s first national philanthropy function.

Before joining CHI, Cressman held senior leadership roles with the American Heart Association, where she led community health and development strategy for the Greater Tampa Bay market. In that role, she managed a top-five national market with high multi-million dollar million in revenue accountability, built high-value partnerships across hospitals, corporations, and community organizations, and helped advance strategies that contributed to a 75% reduction in hypertension rates across targeted underserved populations.

Across her career, Cressman has worked at the intersection of healthcare, philanthropy, institutional resilience, and community impact. She has served on multiple boards, built partnerships across healthcare and civic sectors, and founded a women-focused media platform dedicated to amplifying leaders and change-makers. Her leadership has been recognized through national and regional honors, including Woman of the Year by the YWCA and recognition as one of Pennsylvania’s Top 20 Power Players in Healthcare.

Edward Wu (he/him) born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, is married and has one child. He is an avid sports fan and enjoys cooking and traveling. Ed is a seasoned technology leader with over 20 years of experience adept in digital product development, IT governance, and digital transformation. Expertise spans guiding organizations through technological advancements, optimizing digital strategies, and ensuring effective governance frameworks. Skilled in navigating complex digital landscapes to drive innovation and maximize operational efficiency.

Dr. Strickland is an Associate Professor at Wake Forest Department of Family and Community Medicine where she practices the full scope of family medicine including both inpatient and maternity care. She earned a Master’s of Public Health degree from UNC-Chapel Hill and is an active member of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine. She has been a long time advocate of Centering, joining the CHI Board of Directors in 2008. She has experience as a Centering provider and has implemented group visit programs in several residency programs. Locally, Dr. Strickland leads the North Carolina CenteringPregnancy Consortium in partnership with Northwest Community Care Network of Community Care of North Carolina.

Christine's work experience has mainly been derived within the higher education sector and for mission-based organizations throughout her career. With over twenty years of extensive and diverse business administration, management, finance, and accounting experience, she has leveraged this experience to aid organizations through change and transformation. Distinct expertise includes strategic planning, leadership development, process improvement, team building, and change management. Additional expertise includes financial oversight and analysis, budgeting and forecasting, management of grants and contracts, compliance, and professional education program design and development.

She has experience analyzing and assessing departmental workflow designs and assisting with programming software and systems to ensure efficiency. She has supported team direction during programmatic and technology rollouts and engaged in training design and development. She has assisted in data-driven decision-making through systems, processes, and metrics to support planning, forecasting, reporting, evaluation, and assessment.

Christine is passionate about serving and supporting the growth of all individuals by creating opportunities for dialogue. Her experience in leading interventions to support organizational alignment has expanded her philosophy and methodologies for aiding organizations in reaching their goals. She respects the need for diverse thought and is skilled in conflict resolution. Christine plans to continue researching and pursuing different technics and models to support organizational alignment and cohesion. In addition, seeking new ways to engage with conflict and friction.

In 2021, Christine started Farmstead Heights, LLC. because she is passionate about the future of our survival and understands that agriculture and food systems play a significant role in sustaining and growing our communities. Her organization's mission is to support BIPOC farmers and individuals in urban, suburban, and rural spaces through outreach, education, awareness, and consultation.

Eva is the Chief Financial Officer for GLAD (Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders) a non-profit legal organization and is responsible for operations and finance. She has over 25 years of combined experience in public accounting and non-profit management in wide-ranging capacities including: CFO, controller, treasurer, consultant, auditor, trainer, manager and coach. Eva is a Rockwood Leadership alumnus and participated in the inaugural cohort of the 21st Century Pipeline project; a year-long leadership training program designed to retain & support leaders of color in the LGBT movement. She has also served as a volunteer board member of the Provincetown Film Society, The Theatre Offensive, Elizabeth Stone House, Victory Programs, and Casa Myrna Vasquez.

Michelle Proser is currently Vice President of Research, Quality and Performance at Medicaid Health Plans of America, where she is responsible for developing, overseeing, and implementing MHPA’s research and analytics strategy to inform policy and drive quality. Previously, Michelle worked at the Financial Health Network, where she worked with payers, providers, and financial services partners to improve health by improving financial wellbeing. As part of her role, she provided subject matter expertise in social drivers of health and cross sector collaboration. Michelle also worked at National Association of Community Health Centers where she was Director of Research and the National Project Director for PRAPARE, a multi-organization effort to implement and scale social risk screening for action. She earned both a Doctorate and a Master of Public Policy degree in health policy from The George Washington University.

Sonya Williams-Stanton is a finance professional with over 25 years of experience in the private sector and higher education. She currently serves as a teaching professor at Villanova University where she teaches Corporate Finance to both undergraduate and graduate students and sits on the University’s Budget Committee.

She also serves as a consultant to small businesses and nonprofits. Previously she studied the impact of bank regulation on bank lending policies, consulted with the International Monetary Fund, and served on the audit committee of a credit card bank. Her finance career started in commercial lending in NYC. She first joined CHI as a member of the Finance Committee.

Dr. Williams-Stanton earned her bachelor’s degree from Brown University in Mathematical Economics and MBA and PhD from the University of Michigan.

Jen is a nonprofit leader and strategic innovator for NGOs, start-ups and banks. She has a progressive background in business, financial management, human relations and information technology systems.

A take-charge, action-oriented team leader strong in community relations, inspiring others to see her point of view. A financial and investment manager specializing in organization performance for over 25 years.

During the last several years, Jen has implemented various systems to streamline financial reporting to comply with regulator's directives and has served in various finance and accounting-related roles.

Digital Solutions Director, Enterprise Data and Analytics

Carelon Digital Platforms, Elevance Health

Tracy I. Wang, MPH serves as Digital Solutions Director for Enterprise Data and Analytics of Carelon Digital Platforms at Elevance Health. In this role, she is responsible for the delivery of

whole health management analytics that aggregate public and member data to provide insights on members’ clinical risks and health related social needs, as well as the community they live in,

to inform health disparities. Prior to her current role, Tracy served as Clinical Programs Director for Clinical Quality Strategy, where she was responsible for directing member and community health programs that measure and improve patient safety and population health. She works closely with key business units and collaborates with industry leaders to advance health care initiatives, including award winning Patient Safety First…a California Partnership for Health program.

Tracy currently serves on the Gravity Project Operating Committee and Family Keepers International Board. She also serves on the University of California at Riverside (UCR) Foundation Board of Trustees and Bourns College of Engineering (BCOE) Parent Advisory Council (PAC). Previously she served on the Patient Safety Committee for the National

Quality Forum (NQF), as well as California Maternal Data Center Steering Committee for the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC). Tracy received BS and MPH degrees from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). She completed America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) Minority Management Development (MMD) Program and Harvard University Health Equity by Design Certificate Program.

Evelyn Gallego, MBA, MPH, CPHIMS, is the CEO and Founder of EMI Advisors LLC, an 8(a) certified Small Minority-Owned Business dedicated to human-centered digital transformation across the government and commercial sectors. Evelyn launched EMI to deliver innovative and value-driven advisory services in digital health interoperability and health IT policy.

Evelyn brings specialized expertise in aligning regulatory, technical, and business requirements to facilitate the effective adoption and utilization of cutting-edge technology. She is a recognized thought leader in critical domains such as care coordination, social care integration, health IT policy analysis and development, health information exchange, interoperability, and standards development.

Evelyn co-founded the Gravity Project, a leading national public collaborative focused on developing data standards for Social Determinants of Health (SDoH). She also serves as a Subject Matter Expert on numerous national and state-level data interoperability initiatives, contributing her insights and leadership to advance health IT. Evelyn’s commitment to driving systemic change extends to her volunteer leadership in mission-driven, non-profit organizations, including IHE USA, United Community, and the Centering Healthcare Institute. Evelyn holds a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the Schulich School of Business and a Master in Public Health (MPH) from George Washington University.