Jamie Shank, MPH; Project Manager

Jamie is the Quality and Housing Manager for the City of Kansas City, Missouri Health Department’s HIV Care and Prevention Program. She earned her Master of Public Health in 2013 from Missouri State University. Jamie is passionate about systems thinking and using multi-disciplinary teams to drive complex change. She presents at local and national levels on the interrelated nature of housing stability and living with HIV. Jamie manages the HIV Housing Program portfolio spanning multiple IRB research projects, and several funding sources including the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Justice, the Health Resources Services Administration’s HIV/AIDS Bureau (HAB) and more.

Travis Barnhart, BSW; Housing Support Specialist

Travis is the Housing Support Specialist for the City of Kansas City, Missouri Health Department’s HIV Care and Prevention Program. Travis earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work in 2003 from Washburn University (Topeka, KS) and a certificate in Full Stack Web Development in 2018 from Centriq Training (Overland Park, KS). Travis began working in the HIV and sexual health arena in 1999 after a close family member was diagnosed with HIV, and has served in both front-line and administrative roles in prevention, care, and housing. Prior to joining the KC Health Department team, Travis worked at Positive Connections, KC CARE Health Center, Thrive Health Connection, Planned Parenthood Great Plains, and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. 

Debbie Adams, LMSW; Employment Support Specialist

Debbie Adams, LMSW is an Employment Support Specialist at the City of Kansas City, Missouri Health Department, in HIV services.   Where she provides assistance with employment and housing for those that qualify for services through the KC Life 360 SPNS project.  Before this role, Debbie was a medical case manage for families and children within the HIV Ryan White program run through the Kansas City Care Clinic, in Kansas City, Mo.   Debbie holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon along with a   master’s degree in Social Work from University of Kansas and a masters in management from Denver University.   She enjoys basketball and the ocean.

Joey Lightner, PhD, MPH; Evaluator

Dr. Joey Lightner is an Assistant Professor and Program Director of the Bachelor of Science in Public Health at the University of Missouri, Kansas City. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Biology, Master of Public Health with an emphasis in physical activity, and PhD in Kinesiology from Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. Dr. Lightner presents locally and nationally on topics related to public health and physical activity. Dr. Lightner’s research is focused on increasing physical activity for large populations. His current projects attempt to understand how to improve social relationships that may lead to improvements in physical activity behavior. In the past, Dr. Lightner has conducted studies on community capacity building, active transportation, LGBT health, health inequity, and several other areas. Dr. Lightner enjoys improv, Sporting KC matches, hiking, kayaking, SUP boarding, skydiving, and, of course, anything that has to do with physical activity.

May Jo Hoyt, RN; Clinical Data Evaluator

Mary Jo Hoyt is a public health nurse and serves as the Clinical Data Evaluator for the KC Life 360 Program that is part of the City of Kansas City, Missouri Health Department’s HIV Care and Prevention Program. She earned her Master of Nursing degree as a Family Nurse Practitioner from Columbia University’s School of Nursing. Ms. Hoyt has presented, conducted research, and published on prevention of perinatal HIV transmission and on preconception care and reproductive health for people living with HIV. Ms. Hoyt recently returned to her home town of Kansas City after many years in New York and New Jersey, and she is pleased to join the multidisciplinary HIV Care and Prevention Program of the Health Department and to learn more about the interrelated nature of housing stability, health, and living with HIV.

Simon Mutiri

Simon Muturi is the Employment Specialist for KC Life 360. Simon has a master’s degree in education and over 15 years’ experience working with first generation college students as well as underprivileged and low-income populations including refugee families and other at-risk populations. Simon provides educational training, job preparedness, employment readiness and job retention services to program participants. Simon is passionate about education, job training and workforce development as a pathway to removing barriers and help clients self-actualize and achieve economic self-sufficiency. Simon enjoys listening to R&B, Reggae music, watching the history channel, reading, traveling around the world and spending time with his son Isaac.