Nicholas Long, Ph.D. is the Director of the Arkansas State PIRC / Center for Effective Parenting.  He provides overall leadership for the Arkansas State PIRC.  He works on collaborative efforts/projects in the area of parental involvement/education with the Arkansas Department of Education and other agencies. He is also actively involved in development and dissemination of materials and programs for parents and educators.  Dr. Long is also a Professor of Pediatrics and Director of Pediatric Psychology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children’s Hospital.  He has extensive grant experience and has published extensively in the area of parenting. LongNicholas@uams.edu
 

Linda Patterson, M.Ed. is the Parent Educator for the Arkansas State PIRC / Center for Effective Parenting.   She is a certified group leader for The Incredible Years: Parent Training Series.     Her focus is on early childhood parent education and school readiness.   She provides workshops and trainings for parents and educators in the Central Arkansas area.   She is certified in elementary education and taught in the classroom for 25 years.    Linda joined UAMS as a parent educator in 2002.   Before joining the PIRC in 2007, she led parenting groups as part of a Center for Addition Research parenting project.  PattersonLindaK@uams.edu

Pam Kahler, B.A. is the Program Coordinator for the Arkansas State PIRC / Center for Effective Parenting.   She handles the coordination of the project objectives and the day to day operations of the Central Arkansas Center, coordinates statewide efforts, and assists the evaluator in managing project data.   She also serves as the Logistics Coordinator for the Arkansas Parenting Education Network annual conference on Parent Education and Involvement.   She has previous experience as a project manager for a large, multi-year U.S. Department of Education grant to develop, evaluate, and disseminate a model attention deficit disorder teacher inservice program.   
KahlerPamJ@uams.edu

Mark C. Edwards, Ph.D. is a professor of pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.  He is currently the evaluator for the Arkansas State PIRC / Center for Effective Parenting funded by the U.S. Department of Education   He has extensive experience with parent training to manage children with disruptive behavioral disorders and child advocacy within the educational system.  In addition, he has directed a variety of federally funded program development and evaluation projects focusing on prevention of violence, substance abuse, and mental health problems in children.  EdwardsMark@uams.edu