Chief Investigators:
Prof Sally Brinkman
The Kids Research Institute Australia
Professor Brinkman (BA, MPH, PhD) is a social epidemiologist with the majority of her research focusing on societies’ impact on child development. She has a commitment to practical, pragmatic and translatable research. Brinkman is an NHMRC Career Development Fellow, the Head of Child Health, Development and Education at The Kids Research Institute Australia (inclusive of the Fraser Mustard Centre of which she is Co-Director), and Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Western Australia, and Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Adelaide. Brinkman is also a Short Term Consultant for the World Bank and UNESCO. Brinkman has 25 years’ experience as a professional with 12 years in academia, 12 in government, and 1 year in the private research industry.
Prof Sheena Reilly
Griffith University
Professor Reilly took up the role of Pro Vice Chancellor (Health) in August 2016 after serving as the Inaugural Director of the Menzies Health Institute of Queensland at Griffith University. Prior to this, Professor Reilly held a longstanding position with the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute Melbourne as Associate Director: Clinical and Public Health, and with the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Melbourne as Professor of Speech Pathology. Professor Reilly obtained her undergraduate degree at the Western Australian Institute of Technology (now Curtin University) and her PhD from the University of London. Her Postdoctoral research was undertaken at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital and the Institute of Child Health, London. She is also an inaugural Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences, Fellow of the Australian Academy of Social Sciences, Fellow of the UK Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists and of Speech Pathology Australia.
Prof John Lynch
University of Adelaide
Since 2011, Professor John Lynch has been Professor of Public Health at the University of Adelaide. Prior to returning to Australian in 2009 after 20 years in North America, he was at the University of Michigan’s Department of Epidemiology, and then Canada Research Chair in Population Health at McGill University, Montreal, Canada. He holds a Visiting Professorship at the University of Bristol and an Honorary Doctorate in Medical Science from the University of Copenhagen. In 2009, he was awarded the highest merit NHMRC Australia Fellowship. He has over 300 publications.
Prof Edward Melhuish
University of Oxford
Professor Melhuish is Professor of Human Development at the University of Oxford, and from 2014, also Professor of Human Development at the University of Wollongong. He was the Executive Director of the National Evaluation of Sure Start from 2001-2012. He has also been involved in the Effective Provision of Pre-school Education (EPPE) and Effective Pre-school Provision in Northern Ireland (EPPNI). These studies contributed to the formulation of social policy in the UK in the area of families with young children, early years services and education, such as the universal provision of a pre-school place for all 3 and 4 year olds, and the establishment of 3500 Children’s Centres, the government’s Every Child Matters and 10-Year Childcare strategies, the 2004 Children Act, and the 2006 Childcare Bill. He has undertaken research in 12 countries. He has conducted research for the Medical Research Council, Economics and Social Research Council, Save the Children Fund, DCSF, DoH and several other government and voluntary sector agencies. Professor Melhuish has acted as a consultant to UNESCO, UK government departments (e.g. DfE, DWP, DoH, Treasury, Prime Minister’s Office), and film, television and radio companies. During his 40 year career, he has worked at the University of California, Berkeley, Institute of Education, University of London, Cardiff University, University College London, and the University of Utrecht. He has over 290 publications
Research Team:
Mary Brushe
The Kids Research Institute Australia – Study Manager
Location: Adelaide, South Australia
Mary Brushe is the study coordinator for the LiLO study and currently undertaking her PhD in Public Health at the University of Adelaide. She is responsible for the coordination of recruitment, data collection and, management of research assistants. Her PhD utilises the data collected through the LiLO study to examine the trajectories of parent talk during the early years and its influence on child development outcomes. Since starting at The Kids Research Institute Australia in 2016, Mary has coordinated the piloting of a new on-entry assessment tool in South Australian schools, worked on a study focused on young people's wellbeing in the middle years and supported the evaluation of South Australian Children Centre’s. Before joining The Kids Research Institute Australia she completed her Honours in Psychology at the University of Adelaide. Her previous work experience focused on children, young people and families through her work with the Children of Parents with a Mental Illness (COPMI) national initiative and at Orygen, the National Centre of Excellence in Youth Mental Health.
Maddison Hood
The Kids Research Institute Australia – Research Assistant
Location: Gold Coast, Queensland
Maddison began working on the LiLO study full time in Adelaide after completing her Honours in Psychology at Flinders University in 2016. Maddison’s previous experience has focused on children, vulnerable young people and their families through her time as a Youth Worker at Workskil and volunteer mentor at Service to Youth Council (SYC). Maddison also has experience working with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and their families in kindergarten through her Honours thesis which investigated school readiness in children with autism. Maddison has now moved up to the Gold Coast to pursue a Masters of Clinical Psychology and is now supporting our families in Queensland.
Bridgette Syrus
The Kids Research Institute Australia – Research Assistant
Location: Adelaide, South Australia
Bridgette is one of the research assistants working on the LiLO study. She completed her Bachelor of Health and Medical Sciences majoring in Nutritional Health at the University of Adelaide. Bridgette has a passion for public health and strives to improve the overall health and wellbeing of all Australians. She has previous experience working with children as a swimming instructor for over 5 years where she specialised in working with students with both physical and learning disabilities.
Jamelle Walton
The Kids Research Institute Australia – Research Assistant
Location: Bunbury, Western Australia
Jamelle is the Bunbury based research assistant working on the LiLO study. Jamelle completed her Bachelor of Health Science with a Major in Health Promotion at Edith Cowan University in 2019. She also has experience working with children both as an early childhood educator within school and childcare settings and as a mother to 3 energetic young children.
Abbey Belton
The Kids Research Institute Australia – Research Assistant
Location: Adelaide, South Australia
Abbey joined The Kids Research Institute Australia in February 2020 as a research assistant in the Language in Little Ones study. She is specifically conducting recruitment and data collection for the 5-year longitudinal study and providing support to the study coordinator. Abbey completed her Honours in Psychology at the University of South Australia in 2018, where she worked with primary school aged children investigating the relationship between sleeping habits and cognitive functions. She has always been particularly interested in working with children in a capacity that contributes to the improvement of their overall health and wellbeing.
Alisha Staines
The Kids Research Institute Australia – Research Assistant
Location: Adelaide, South Australia
Alisha joined The Kids Research Institute Australia in March 2020, after completing her Bachelor of Health Sciences majoring in Environmental and Public Health at Flinders University. In her role as research assistant, Alisha works in the Language in Little Ones study. Alisha has a passion for further improving and empowering youth, as well as improving the overall health of all Australians. She has previously worked as a Student Ambassador for Yunggorendi (Flinders University’s Office of Indigenous Strategy and Engagement), as well as a presenter for the Carly Ryan Foundation.