RGC Centre for the Advancement of Best Practices: Staff Biographies
Monica White, PhD, Director
Dr. White joined RGC in May, 2006 with over 13 years of experience designing and conducting research in the prevention/health promotion field. She has directed qualitative and statistical studies, and has conducted policy and practice analysis in a number of areas including family violence prevention, AIDS prevention, organ donation, and child health. In her role as Director, Dr. White provides strategic direction for applied research studies, and guides the analysis, interpretation, and recommendations based on study findings.
Phil Mun, PhD, Senior Researcher and Statistician
Dr. Mun joined RGC in January, 2004 and has been conducting gambling-related research for over 10 years. His hands-on experience as Senior Researcher and Statistician includes literature reviews, research design, data collection, statistical analysis, and report preparation for numerous research projects (e.g., gambling and problem gambling prevalence; older adults and youth gambling; gambling attitudes and perceptions; EGMs and problem gambling; best practices in self-exclusion; social marketing evaluations). Dr. Mun has also been integral to designing and conducting evaluations for various RGC responsible gambling initiatives, including awareness and education campaigns, the M.A.R.G.I. information kiosk, and gaming staff training programs.
Nadine Kauffman, MA, Manager of Information Services
Nadine joined RGC in January, 2004. As Manager of Information Services, Nadine is responsible for overseeing the Council’s information resources, including the Canadian Gambling Digest, the Canadian Inventory of Responsible Gambling Initiatives, and the Organization and Management of Gambling in Canada. She also supervises the content and delivery of RGC’s information services (e.g., Newscan, Headlines), and responds to information requests received by the Council via its social marketing campaigns and InfoSource. Before joining RGC, Nadine spent several years designing and conducting research studies on the determinants of unhealthy eating behavior.
Chris Glover, MA, Education and Evaluation Specialist
Chris joined RGC in August, 2008 with over 18 years of experience as an educator and researcher. Working as a research consultant, Chris has conducted numerous literature reviews, surveys, and program evaluations on a range of education and health issues including newcomer settlement, community education needs, tuberculosis treatment adherence, and drug use. Chris has lectured on public policy and education issues at York University, and has taught in Toronto high schools and colleges. He has also taught internationally in India, Kenya and Turkey. In his role as Education and Evaluation Specialist, Chris takes the lead on RGC’s education and training studies. He also works on program evaluation and prevention studies.
Christina Whelan, MSC, Research Coordinator
Christina joined RGC in February, 2006. In her role as Research Coordinator, Christina organizes the day-to-day activities of various RGC research projects (e.g., M.A.R.G.I. kiosk evaluation; best practices in self-exclusion; pre-commitment and player cards). She also conducts focus groups for research studies, assists with the evaluation of RGC’s prevention programs (e.g., Know the Score, Within Limits), gives presentations on responsible gambling at colleges and universities (e.g., Ryerson, Niagara College), and helped to develop the Responsible Gambling Index.
Cynthia Lucar, MPPA, Research and Policy Assistant
Cynthia joined RGC in May, 2008. As Research and Policy Assistant, Cynthia provides policy research, analysis, and evaluation for various RGC initiatives (e.g., Friend4friends social marketing campaign; M.A.R.G.I. information kiosk; Responsible Gaming Resource Centre). She was also involved in the Centre’s research study on seniors’ experiences with gambling, as well as the pre-commitment and player cards study. In addition, she assisted with the development of the Responsible Gambling Index. Before joining RGC, Cynthia gained extensive specialized training in policy analysis. She also gained several years of experience in project management, program development and evaluation, proposal design, and report preparation.
Joel Berkovitz, BA, Research Assistant
Joel joined RGC in August, 2007 after graduating from McGill University with a degree in Political Science. As Research Assistant, Joel provides logistical support to various research and information projects by assisting with literature reviews, proposal and report preparation, and data collection, entry, and analysis. Joel is also extensively involved in the production and distribution of the Centre’s information services (e.g., Newscan).
Information about treatment centres, help line numbers and Gamblers Anonymous.
