Staff

A multi-disciplined research support team, under the direction of Mary Evans, PhD, RN, FAAN, provides a spectrum of research consultation at the Nursing Research Center. Dr. Evans was appointed in 1997 and serves as mentor and role model to researchers as they seek funding and publishing opportunities. A nurse and sociologist, her program of research is focused on children's mental health services and intensive family support services. She has been conducting federally-funded research on children with emotional and behavioral disorders for the past 13 years, and has participated as a member of the Scientific Review Board at the National Institutes of Health for the past 12 years.

She originally came to the University of South Florida in 1996 as a visiting professor, and was appointed the Director of Research in 1997. Her experience and expertise have been an invaluable resource for the College of Nursing. Her critical influence in the grant application process has been instrumental in the College of Nursing achieving almost $10 million in funded grant awards since Dr. Evans joined the faculty.

Jason Beckstead, PhD, consults on research design, measurement, statistics, data management and statistical analysis software. Dr. Beckstead, appointed in 1998, is a psychologist and statistician with research interests in the areas of help-seeking behaviors and patient satisfaction. Both Drs. Evans and Beckstead provide consultation and technical assistance with methodological and strategic issues in research and data management. Faculty mentors can also recommend students to Drs. Evans and Beckstead for technical assistance in designing research, conducting statistical analyses, or interpreting analyses.