Brian Leidy
Principal Investigator/Director, Military Projects
2009
FLDCWeb Bio Page
Current Activities
Current Professional Activities
I am the Co-PI and Director of the Military Projects in the Family Life Development Center in the New York State College of Human Ecology. This work includes a number of support activities for the prevention, education, and treatment programs provided Army wide by Army Community Services. Army Community Services provides financial management services, employment services, relocation services, deployment support services, services for exceptional family members, child abuse prevention and response, domestic abuse prevention and response, sexual assault prevention and response, and volunteer services. Due to the two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Army Community Services has in recent years expanded its programming to include services to soldiers who are in transition because of war related injuries and services to the survivors of fallen soldiers.
The support provided to these programs includes program evaluation and the development of performance metrics and their incorporation into information management and reporting systems. Other assistance includes supporting local installation staff with their needs assessment efforts in preparation for accreditation, including data analysis and report writing. We also conduct large Army wide studies, the two most recent examples being studies of the way in which family service programs support soldiers and families before, during, and after deployment and how family service program providers build partnerships across Army components and the civilian sector to better serve soldiers and families, especially those who are geographically dispersed. Other work carried out in the past year has included updating information resources such as pamphlets, brochures, manuals, curricula, etc, that we previously developed and creating new educational materials to be used Army wide. We have also provided training in a variety of subject areas to Army family service personnel and frequently speak at their professional conferences and meetings.
Current Research Activities
During the last year, I provided leadership for the team completing an evaluation of the role of family service programs in the US Army's RESET initiative. The RESET initiative is designed to expedite units that are returning from deployment through the redeployment and reintegration phases and into the training and preparation phase for subsequent deployment. Focus groups were conducted at six locations from February 2008 to December 2008 and a summary report of findings from these visits was prepared this year along with recommendations for policy revisions and forwarded to the Family Programs Directorate for review.
I also designed and am leading the evaluation of the integrated family services network initiative in the US Army, Army National Guard, and Army Reserve. This initiative is known as Army One Source and is designed to assure that soldiers and families receive the services they need when they need them regardless of their component or geographic location. The evaluation plan focuses first on the implementation process looking at the way in which both military and civilian family service providers partner and how those partnerships affect local family services delivery systems. When the initiative is fully implemented, the outcome evaluation phase will begin and will look at the impact of the initiative on soldiers and their families.
Current Extension Activities
In addition to the research activities described above, I have provided guidance and technical assistance to ACS personnel in the development of monitoring and evaluation systems. In the past year, I have been especially active with the evaluation of newly created programs to support soldiers and families as a result of war and frequent deployments including wounded soldiers and survivors of soldiers killed in combat.
Some examples of this work during 2008 include:
• Presenting the evaluation plan for the Army Integrated Family Service Network/Army One Source at a training conference for Community Support Coordinators in Washington, DC in May and for family service providers at a conference held in Honolulu, HI in August.
• Teaching two of the classes in a week long training for new Army Family Advocacy Program Managers in San Antonio, TX in April.
• Participating in meetings in Washington, DC in May and September to review outcome measures and performance metrics.
• Evaluation of the Family Advocacy Program Biannual Conference held in Louisville, KY in August.
• Participation in a USDA Military Family Conference held in San Antonio, TX in November.
Other extension activities include providing oversight and direction for project staff who are providing technical support and assistance to local installations in the completion of their needs assessment survey. These surveys are part of the accreditation process for Army Community Service which gathers community input regarding the need for services, the use of services, and the barriers to using services. The survey also asks questions about the level of community cohesion experienced by respondents and their engagement in the local community. A sampling plan is prepared for each installation that includes guidance for distributing the survey in paper format and electronically. When the installation has completed the data collection process, their data is analyzed and a report is prepared.
Biography
Biographical Statement
Brian D. Leidy, Ph.D. is a Senior Extension Associate for the Family Life Development Center in the New York State College of Human Ecology at Cornell University. He is the Co-PI and Director of the Military Projects at the Center. Prior to coming to Cornell, he worked extensively in public child welfare and mental health programs. His current areas of interests include program evaluation and violence prevention programs in family, community, and institutional settings.
Administrative Responsibilities
Co-P.I. and Director Military Projects
Keywords