Our Team
Mike Jones, PhD
Serves as PI for the App Factory DRRP. Mike is Vice President for Research and Technology and founding Director of the Virginia C. Crawford Research Institute at Shepherd Center. Mike is also an adjunct professor in the School of Architecture at Georgia Tech and Co-PI of the LiveWell RERC and mRehab RERC. Prior to coming to Shepherd Center in 1996, Mike was executive director of the Center for Universal Design at NC State University, a NIDRR-funded RERC. Mike served as associate director of the Research and Training Center on Independent Living at University of Kansas from 1982-1988. As PI, Mike will provide strategic leadership for the App Factory.
John Morris, PhD
Is senior clinical research scientist at the Shepherd Center. John serves as operations manager for the App Factory DRRP. Additionally, John is project director for Assessment of User Needs in mRehab and Outreach/Training for Individuals with Disabilities, Caregivers, and Clinicians in the mRehab RERC. John’s research focuses on use and usability of interactive technology by target populations, which he currently conducts for the LiveWell RERC. He has previously served as operations manager and project director for consumer research for the Wireless RERC. Prior to joining Shepherd Center, John worked for Oracle Corporation as senior product development manager.
Frank Deruyter, PhD, FASHA, MMCi
Frank is Professor Emeritus, Department of Surgery at Duke University School of Medicine and Senior Research Scientist at the Shepherd Center. Prior to Duke, Frank was at Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center for 15 years in various leadership capacities. At Duke, he was Professor, Department of Surgery; Chief, Department of Speech Pathology & Audiology; Section Head, Division of Head and Neck Surgery & Communication Sciences; and Principal Investigator of 8 federally funded extramural awards, totaling over $23 million dollars that focused on research and development of assistive technologies for the disabled. Following retirement, he continued his research interest in applying emerging disruptive technologies into rehab and is currently Co-PI of the LiveWell RERC, the mRehab RERC, and the App Factory DRRP.
Ben Lippincott
Is a research coordinator for the consumer review and testing side of the App Factory DRRP. He also reviews app proposals submitted by developers during our annual app funding call. He leads user testing efforts for the Accessibility User Research Collective at Shepherd Center. He served as a Project Director for the Wireless RERC’s project on Industry and Consumer Outreach, Education & Support. He has worked in assistive/accessible consumer wireless technology for over a decade and a half. For the past several years he has been disability/accessibility advisor on AT&T’s Advisory Panel on Access and Aging. Prior to working at Shepherd Center, he was in sales/marketing for IBM.
Raeda Anderson, PhD
Raeda Anderson is a Research Scientist at Shepherd Center where she also serves as the AppFactory Project Manager for the app funding and development side of the DRRP. Raeda is an applied sociologist, demographer, and survey methodologist. She has published and presented research largely focusing on the relationship between disabilities, social interaction, and mental health. She earned her PhD in Sociology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Raeda also holds a MS and BA in Sociology from Valdosta State University. Prior to working at Shepherd Center, Raeda was an assistant professor and Quantitative Data Specialist at Georgia State University.
Delaney Cowart, BS-BME, CPACC
Delaney serves as a researcher on the App Factory DRRP, driving general testing and application activity analytics. She is an expert in user testing and, outside of the App Factory, is the program manager for the Accessibility User Research Collective. As a biomedical engineer, she has well-rounded knowledge of all stages of the design process and has experience designing and engineering rehabilitation tools and apps for women’s health. Delaney has also earned her credential as a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC).
Our Funders
