TRI’s A. Thomas McLellan, Ph.D. announced today that Amelia M. Arria, Ph.D., a researcher in adolescent and young-adult substance abuse, will affiliate with TRI effective April 2007. Her arrival follows that of Ken C. Winters, Ph.D., also an adolescent substance abuse expert, and signals a growing TRI emphasis on the role of parents as agents of prevention and intervention in youth substance abuse.

Arria joins TRI on a part-time basis, retaining her position as Deputy Director of Research at the Center for Substance Abuse Research (CESAR) at the University of Maryland, College Park. Her primary area of interest is the identification of risk factors for adolescent and young adult drug involvement. She is also involved in research evaluating the safety and efficacy of buprenorphine and methadone for pregnant opioid-dependent women, prenatal methamphetamine exposure, and characterizing faith-based elements of drug treatment.

TRI’s adolescent focus stems from close work with the Partnership for a Drug Free America and other parent-oriented groups. “We are increasingly interested in addressing the knowledge gaps preventing parents from exercising their substantial, albeit unrecognized power to prevent substance use in the first instance, to spot and intervene at the first signs of experimentation, and to positively influence outcomes when children are substantially compromised by use of alcohol or other drugs,” McLellan said. “We welcome someone of Dr. Arria’s caliber to help us explore these knowledge gaps and translate new knowledge into actionable tools for parents,” he said.

Dr. Arria received her undergraduate degree in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University, a Ph.D. in Epidemiology from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and completed post-doctoral training at the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.