Melissa Bright, PhD

Dr. Melissa Bright is the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Violence Prevention Research, Dr. Bright has a PhD in Developmental Psychology from University of Georgia and substantial depth of experience in developmental psychology with an emphasis on early childhood development and health. She spent eight years on the faculty at the University of Florida, where she led evaluations of Florida’s Medicaid programs for children and developed a multidisciplinary research agenda around violence against women and children. Over the past 7 years, Dr. Bright has conducted multiple randomized control trials on school-based prevention education. She has published in leading journals and presented at numerous national and international conferences. Her work has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and several foundations. Dr. Bright is a faculty affiliate of the Center for Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire, which provides the Center with full access to library resources including thousands of scientific journals. She also sits on the Florida Maternal Mortality Review Mental Health Subcommittee and the Child Fatality Review of Florida's 8th Circuit, and is a member of Prevent Together - the National Coalition to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation.