CSHP-iPHD Operations Team
Project Leadership
Joel C. Cantor, ScD
Distinguished Professor & Founding Director, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Principal Investigator & Ex-Officio Governing Board Member, iPHD Project
Joel C. Cantor is the founding director of the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy and a distinguished professor of public policy at the Rutgers Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. Dr. Cantor is a national leader in health policy and services research and uses his substantial subject matter expertise to guide the operations of the iPHD Project.
Margaret Koller, MS
Executive Director & Chief Operating Officer, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Deputy Prinicpal Investigator, iPHD Project
Margaret Koller is the Executive Director at the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy. Ms. Koller oversees the development and management of the Center’s research portfolio. With expertise in health care coverage and access and Medicaid program policy, she routinely represents the Center at iPHD Governing Board meetings and manages the project's operations.
Jose Nova, MS
Associate Director of Data & Analytics, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Director of Data, iPHD Project
Jose Nova is an Associate Director of Data & Analytics at the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy. Mr. Nova is experienced in data analytics, healthcare quality, data integration, health systems performance and improvement and focuses much of his work on leading the Center’s data analytics team, including spearheading data processing and linkages for the iPHD Project.
Kate Scotto, MA, CPA
Associate Director of Research Administration, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Chief Financial Officer, iPHD Project
Kate Scotto is the Associate Director of Research Administration at Rutgers Center for State Health Policy. In this capacity, she oversees the strategic management of the Center’s funding portfolio, including oversight of the Center’s grants and contracts and overall budget. This includes erving as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for the iPHD Project.
Project Administration
Manisha Agrawal, MPH
Senior Research Analyst, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Program Administrator, iPHD Project
Manisha Agrawal is a Senior Research Analyst at the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy, where she provides research and project management support for several ongoing projects. She is involved in the Integrated Population Health Data (iPHD) Project, where she manages applicant relations and coordinates the application review process, liaising with Governing Board and Research Advisory Commitee (RAC) members and reviewing submitted documentation.
Jolene Chou, MPH
Senior Research Analyst, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Program Administrator, iPHD Project
Jolene Chou is a Senior Research Analyst at the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy. Her responsibilities range from data analysis to synthesis of findings, and she supports various research efforts at the Center. Among the projects she currently supports is the New Jersey Integrated Population Health Data (iPHD) Project, where she provides expertise in website usability and design, as well as actively working on enhancing project management workflows and managing application cycle documentation.
Oliver Lontok, MD, MPH, MBA
Senior Research Manager, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Compliance & Operations Specialist, iPHD Project
Oliver Lontok is a Senior Research Manager at the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy. Dr. Lontok is experienced in qualitative research methods and research administration and compliance and focuses much of his work on IRB submissions, conflicts of interest, compliance, and pre and post award research activities, including for iPHD data access applicants and awardees.
Data Preparation & Communications
Joshua Lue, MPH
Data Analyst, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Data Analyst, iPHD Project
Joshua Lue is a Data Analyst at the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy. Lue is experienced in health systems, policies, and informatics and focuses much of his work on transforming healthcare with data analysis. Ongoing project work includes the NJ Integrated Population Health Data (iPHD) Project where he contributes to the cleaning, linkage, and validation of available data sets.
Julian Rodriguez, BS
Data Analyst, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Data Analyst, iPHD Project
Julian Rodriguez is a Research Analyst at Rutgers University, working on the New Jersey Integrated Population Health Data (iPHD) Project and Medicaid data initiatives. With a strong background in data analytics, biomedical informatics, and health informatics, Julian contributes to the cleaning, linkage, and validation of data sets recevied and maintained by the iPHD Project.
Joseph Brecht, MA
Communications Manager, Rutgers Center for State Health Policy
Communications Specialist, iPHD Project
Joseph Brecht is a Communications Manager at the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy. He is experienced in digital content creation and strategy and focuses much of his work on managing the iPHD Project's social media presence and engaging with the project's experientially diverse stakeholders.
Operations Efficiency Consultants
Katherine Kovacs, MBA, MPH
Principal, Kovacs Consulting, LLC
Katherine Kovacs brings over 25 years of successful commercial experience in the life science industry. Specializing in insight-driven market research services, she leverages her background in strategic planning, public health, and project management. She currently leads process improvement and workflow enhancement efforts for the iPHD Project.
Mary Marsan, BS
MPH-MBA Candidate, Montclair State University
Mary Marsan is an administrative leader in academic health currently pursuing her MPH-MBA at Montclair State University and will graduate in the spring of 2025. She currently supports process improvement efforts at the iPHD Project using research and data to inform administrative strategies for improving efficiency and the applicant experience.