Calendar/Registration | Community Engagement  |  Professional Development

Community Advisory Board

The Healthier Urban Families Community Advisory Board will assist in ensuring that our seminars/trainings meet the needs of community agencies, reviewing program materials, as well as acting as ambassadors for our program and exploring the option of partnerships.

Board Members:
Rita Clark, Youthville of Detroit
Karen Ebeling PhD., Marygrove College
Abdullah El-Amin, Muslim Center of Detroit
Theresa Johnson, Children's Center
Sandra Jones-Kariem, Interim House
Lamarr Paige, DPS Project Head Start
Debra Spring, Vistas Nuevas Headstart
Pastor Skip Wachsmann, Genesis Lutheran Church
Doreen Turk-White, Empowerment Zone Coalition

BIOS

Tanneshia Coleman
From a young age, being of service to others is something that came natural to me. Being hands on no matter the event is who I am. My name is Tanneshia (Tuh•Knee/shuh) Coleman. As a lifelong resident and continued tourist of Detroit, I am a product of the Detroit Public School System and experienced a short tenure at Wayne State University. My educational journey was cut short as I focused on caring for my eldest daughter who was born with meningitis. While she passed away in 2004, I am the mother to four other amazing children who are 24, 18, 12, and 2. As a result of many different experiences, I have a wide range of interests which include Autism awareness, education and inclusion, women's preventative care with a focus on breast cancer research as well as grief counseling and final arrangement consultations. Following the death of my nephew in 2019, myself along with my family, created 'Coleman Family Comfort' specializing in funeral planning and coordination services. 

Since 2018, Tomika Horne has been an advisory board member of The Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute's Healthier Urban Families Program. She is currently an Assistant Corporation Counsel with the City of Detroit Law Department prosecuting misdemeanor offenses at the 36th District Court. Before joining the Law Department, Ms. Horne worked as the Data Project Coordinator (contractor) with the United States Attorney's Office Eastern District of Michigan identifying real estate fraud in the Detroit area using various electronic platforms for research. She also specializes in legal research and writing, civil litigation, and real property law. She is committed to improving the quality of life for the citizens of Detroit. Attorney Horne is from Detroit, Michigan where she received her high school diploma from Martin Luther King, Jr. Senior High School's Math Science and Applied Technology Program (M.S.A.T). She graduated from Michigan State University, and she received her law degree from The Thomas M. Cooley Law School in 2005

Sandra Jones-Kariem is a License Master Social Worker (L.M.S.W.) and a Certified Forensic Counselor. She is employed at YWCA Interim House as the Program Manager and Counselor. She has worked in the Social Work profession for over 30 years and is a strong advocate for women and children. She works with women and children fleeing from an abusive relationship and/or environment. She is, also, a supportive mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, dedicated minister and evangelist, prophetic praise dancer, gifted actress, powerful poet and loving caregiver.

Tahira Khalid has been a social activist both personally and professionally. She has worked diligently to address the disparities, injustices, and negative social narratives in this society which reduce our fellow citizens' abilities to create healthy lives and develop the gifts which each individual has been provided by their Creator to benefit humanity. 
Tahira has been privileged to work in major social institutions including Wayne State University School of Medicine, National Healthy Start, Muslim Family Services, Institute for Population Health, and Sister Friends Detroit, with amazing individuals dedicated to improving and enhancing the fabric of our society. She has contributed to this work as a researcher, clinician, and lecturer.  Her role models were her parents Era and Oscar Hudson who dedicated their entire lives to raise contributing individuals and lifting others in our society whose lives were challenged by their inability to vote, to be educated, etc. Her inspiration also comes from the amazing individuals and families with whom she has had the privilege to work and who have made amazing accomplishments in their lives in spite of the disparities which they have had to endure, but which have encouraged them to run forward based on the dreams of their ancestors, and the hope they have carried to build positive futures for themselves and families.

Duree Turk-White

Mrs. Turk-White is an executive director and chief executive officer with the Empowerment Zone Coalition, Inc. (EZC). Mrs. Turk-White is responsible for the day-to-day management and administration of the coalition including supervision and training of direct and support staff. She applies more than Forty-two (42) years of experience in community health to the development of innovative approaches to social ills such as substance abuse. Mrs. Turk-White has successfully develop, implemented, and managed several (Federal, State & local) prevention projects. Some of the major projects that she has managed include the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network (DWIHN) Contracts, Drug Free Communities Support Grant, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention Community Prevention Coalition Demonstration Grant, the Michigan Governor's Discretionary Grant, and Partnership for Success grant.
Mrs. Turk-White established EZC as a 501(c) 3 nonprofit substance abuse prevention coalition in the city of Detroit. For the past thirty-one (31) years, her major focus has been on coalition building in the field of substance abuse prevention. She is widely respected for her skills in community organizing, action research, coalition building, training, program development and troubleshooting. She has been recognized for her outstanding leadership qualities through receiving fellowships from the Eureka Communities, Detroit Chapter and Join Together, Boston University. Mrs. Turk-White also has been a consultant for the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America in Alexandria, Virginia and she provided technical expertise in coalition building to the White House National Office of Drug Control Policy. Mrs. Turk-White has received several awards for outstanding community service in substance abuse prevention. She received the Detroit City Council Spirit of Detroit award, Wayne County Commission and the Michigan Department of Community Health, Office of Drug Control Policy community services awards. She serves on a variety of community boards, and she was selected to participate in national focus groups including National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign and Achieving Outcomes, a CSAP evaluation initiative administered by Caliber Associates in Washington D.C. Mrs. Turk-White also served on the Coalition Advisory Council for the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America in Alexandria, Virginia (2000-2005).
Mrs. Turk-White holds a Bachelor of Science degree in health education from Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, Masters of Education in clinic/community health education from Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan. She received certification as a Health Education Specialist from the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc. in Allenstown, Pennsylvania, and certification as a Prevention Consultant from the Michigan Certification Board for Addiction Professionals (MCBAP).

Theresa Williams

Theresa Williams is currently a school social worker in a public school district. She has extensive clinical experience in children's outpatient, hospital trauma therapy programs and case management services. Theresa's educational background includes a bachelor's in sociology, two masters' degrees in social work and Christian ministry, and a diploma in media arts.
Theresa is a dedicated social worker who constantly discovers innovative ways of reaching children, youth and their families. She recognizes media's influence on our current society and explores creative approaches to addressing mental health issues. Theresa is a former co-founder of Sistas On The Move in the 90s. This non-profit organization featured talent extravaganza events that gave local youth exposure in performing arts. She has also volunteered as a camera crew member with the Just Ask Talk show featured on local cable station