Melissa Jennings (she/her) is the director of operations and support services at the Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions (the Knowledge Institute).

Melissa holds a master’s degree in child studies and a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Early in her career, she was involved in a range of program evaluation and community-based research initiatives in the areas of school-age childcare, early years, social-emotional learning, violence against women and programming for seniors. Melissa joined the Knowledge Institute’s leadership team in 2012 and has led the evaluation support program, the knowledge broker team and most recently key internal planning- and performance-related activities.

Melissa oversees the Knowledge Institute’s operations.

Amy Porath (PhD) is the director of research and knowledge mobilization at the Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions (the Knowledge Institute).

Amy holds a PhD in psychology and is an alumna of both the University of Ottawa and Carleton. She has more than 22 years of experience conducting and leading substance use research and knowledge mobilization activities. An internationally recognized subject matter expert, her savvy has been sought out by the Government of Canada, parliamentary committees and the World Health Organization. Amy is also a peer reviewer for several journals and a longtime member of the editorial board for the Canadian Journal of Addiction.

Amy leads the Knowledge Institute’s efforts to identify and respond to the knowledge needs of the child and youth mental health and addictions sector and others who shape policy and practice in this area. This includes advancing and mobilizing knowledge through applied research initiatives, evidence resources and quality standards.