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Click each staff person's name to learn more.
Project Director
Roberta Riportella serves as Project Director and Principal Investigator for Covering Kids & Families-Wisconsin, a coalition-based Medicaid outreach organization. She has recently accepted a position with Kansas State University and maintains her PI role with CKF's outreach and research projects.
785-532-1942
rriporte@ksu.edu
Project Manager
Michael Jacob has managed Covering Kids & Families-Wisconsin since its inception in 2003. He provides leadership in program design, oversight and implementation, along with overseeing eight staff and the day-to-day operations.
608-890-4784
Jeni Appleby rejoined Covering Kids & Families- Wisconsin in 2011 as an Outreach Specialist located at Community Advocates in Milwaukee. Through the REACH BC+ (Retention and Enrollment to Achieve Children's Health and Build Capacity +) project, Jeni provides BadgerCare+ outreach and support to CESA 1, which is comprised of 45 school districts in southeastern Wisconsin.
414-270-4685
Lauren Cnare joined Covering Kids & Families in 2012 as the Coalition and Communication Coordinator to champion an activated coalition and employ all the communication channels from traditional to social to spread the word about CKF’s strategies to build systems that connect children and their families to BadgerCare+ and other public programs. She’s worked in healthcare marketing and communications for 25 years.
608-261-1455
Evaluation and Dissemination Coordinator
Allison Espeseth has worked with Covering Kids & Families-Wisconsin since 2004. She has been involved in assessing the effectiveness of strategies for public health coverage outreach in schools since 2007 and currently leads project evaluation and dissemination efforts.
608-261-1455
Health Care Outreach Specialist
Caroline Gomez has been an Outreach Specialist with Covering Kids & Families-Wisconsin since 2011. Through the REACH BC+ (Retention and Enrollment to Achieve Children's Health and Build Capacity +) project, Caroline provides outreach and support to the 27 school districts in CESA 8, located in northeastern Wisconsin.
608-261-1455
Direct Certification Outreach Specialist
Abby Leonhart is an Outreach Specialist who began with Covering Kids & Families-Wisconsin in 2013. She works on the Direct Certification Implementation grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). This grant is a partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI), to make improvements to Wisconsin’s Direct Certification program and remove administrative barriers for students that are eligible for free meals at school.
608-890-4783
Direct Certification Outreach Specialist
Marisa MacLaren is an Outreach Specialist who began with Covering Kids & Families-Wisconsin in 2012. She works on the Direct Certification Implementation grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). This grant is a partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI), to make improvements to Wisconsin’s Direct Certification program and remove administrative barriers for students that are eligible for free meals at school.
608-890-4783
Health Care Outreach Specialist
Jean Nothnagel joined Covering Kids & Families-Wisconsin in 2010 as an Outreach Specialist. Jean currently leads the REACH BC+ (Retention and Enrollment to Achieve Children's Health and Build Capacity +) project in the CESA 3 region that represents 31 school districts in southwestern Wisconsin, and lends support to other school based projects, program planning and evaluation.
608-261-1455
Health Care Outreach Specialist
Danielle Zirkel is a Health Care Outreach Specialist at Community Advocates in Milwaukee. She provides school-based outreach through the REACH BC+ project, assisting individual schools with resources to connect their uninsured children and families to health insurance and care.
414-270-4687