Melissa Neal Stein , Dr.P.H.

Melissa Neal Stein Dr.P.H.


Position: Policy Research Staff
Mappings of Focus:Sequential Intercept Model Mapping Workshops
Sequential Intercept Model Mapping Workshops

Melissa Neal Stein is Senior Research Associate at Policy Research Associates, Inc. (PRA), where she provides research, technical assistance, and training services. She directs communications for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA’s) GAINS Center for Behavioral Health and Justice Transformation, which involves the creation and dissemination of webinars, newsletters, and publications, such as Data Collection Across the Sequential Intercept Model: Essential Measures, SAMHSA’s Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) in the Criminal Justice System: Brief Guidance to the States, and others. She leads technical assistance projects, such as the Data-Driven Equity & Inclusion Learning Collaborative, in which she provided support to jurisdictions working to reduce racial disparities in the criminal justice system. She is also certified to provide Sequential Intercept Model Mapping Workshops and train-the-trainer workshops for the How Being Trauma Informed Improves Criminal Justice Responses initiative. In past years, Dr. Stein has provided technical assistance, research, and writing around implementing assisted outpatient treatment programs, medication-assisted treatment in justice settings, early diversion, supporting behavioral health professionals working with justice populations, and more. Prior to joining PRA, Dr. Stein was the Criminal Justice Planning Manager for Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, where she led research and directed the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation’s Safety and Justice Challenge grant. She obtained her doctorate in public health, with a concentration in community health, from East Tennessee State University.