About us
Public health partners who listen first.
B. Weyland Smith Consulting works alongside clients to build strategies that strengthen behavioral and public health programs. We lead with data, respond quickly and take the time to understand your community before we recommend anything.
Our approach
How we work with you
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Person first
We get to know your community and its conditions before we talk methods.
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Data informed
Quantitative and qualitative data guide every decision, all the way through.
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Responsive
Programs change along the way. Our evaluation adjusts with them, not months later.
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Light on your staff
Our "minimum data" practice keeps collection light for staff, clients and community members.
Our areas of focus
Services
Click any service to see what is included. Not sure which one fits? That is what the first call is for.
Talk to usProgram Evaluation
We evaluate public health programs, with a specialty in behavioral health: prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery.
- A developmental approach, so programs can improve while they run
- Quantitative and qualitative data throughout the project
- Regular checks on who is and is not being reached, with equity as a priority
- Support implementing your program with fidelity
- Federal grant reporting systems, including SAMHSA's SPARS
- Changes to electronic health record software for better data
Needs Assessment
We help you use data to identify and prioritize organizational and community needs, then hand you a road map tied to evidence based or evidence informed practices.
- A visual compendium of the data that already exists for your focus area
- A clear look at where the data gaps are
- New data from surveys, focus groups and key leader interviews
- Priorities written in language your community understands
Survey Services
From youth to adults, we design, run and report surveys that give you trustworthy local data.
- Youth Voices Count Survey for grades 6 to 12 on mental health, substance use and related risk factors
- Sound Perspectives, our school climate assessment
- Adult and parent or guardian community surveys on public health issues
- Questions on access to physical and behavioral healthcare
Grant Preparation
We support organizations and municipalities applying for state and federal grants, bringing our data skills to the parts of an application reviewers look at closely.
- A strong, data backed statement of need
- Measurable goals and objectives
- Evaluation plans that match your proposed grant plan
- Alignment with each funder's specific requirements
Tools we work in every day
- SPSS
- Alteryx
- Excel & VBA
- SAS
- NVivo
- ArcGIS
- Tableau Public
- ODMAP
- EpiCenter
- SAMHSA SPARS
You may have seen us presenting at CADCA, the National Prevention Network, the Connecticut Public Health Association and the CT Data Collaborative.
Proud partner
Analysis Factory
We collaborate with Analysis Factory to help partners and clients design and build dashboards for key public health metrics.
Visit Analysis Factory (opens in a new tab)Meet the team
The people you will actually work with
Hover over (or tap) a photo to get to know us. Open any bio for the full story.
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Bonnie W. SmithMPH, CPH, CPP
Founder & CEO
Bonnie has spent more than 20 years in substance use and problem gambling prevention, mental health promotion and public health evaluation. Today most of her work is data driven planning and program evaluation for federal, state and local grant programs, always as a true partner to her clients.
Email BonnieRead full bio
Bonnie earned her Master of Public Health from the University of Connecticut in 2005, focusing on how SAMHSA's Strategic Prevention Framework fits into Connecticut's prevention infrastructure. She is a charter recipient of the National Certification in Public Health (2008) and a Certified Prevention Professional (2016).
Her background spans coalition capacity building, program planning and management, grant writing and evaluation. She has presented at National Problem Gambling, the Office on Women's Health Region 1 conference, CADCA, the National Prevention Network, Connecticut's National Prevention Week Conference, the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling, the Connecticut Public Health Association and the CT Data Collaborative.
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Lucas SmithCFA, FRM
COO & Lead Data Analyst
Luke brings over 20 years of data driven decision making. After a career in investment data and reporting with Fortune 500 companies, he moved into public health data with BWSC in 2018. He leads our primary and secondary data analysis and runs finance and operations.
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Luke designs data collection workflows, sets up data management platforms and builds the analysis and reporting behind our client work. He leans on statistics, finance and tools like SPSS, Alteryx and VBA to get there.
He is an alumnus of the University of Connecticut School of Business and holds the CFA and FRM designations.
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Alyssa GilbertMPH
Lead Evaluation Associate
Alyssa has more than seven years in behavioral health research and assessment. She pulls data from many reporting systems into weekly and monthly summaries clients can act on, and supports analysis and reporting for the Youth Voices Count Survey.
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Alyssa holds a B.S. in Health Science Studies from Quinnipiac University and earned her Master of Public Health from the University of Connecticut in 2018, with a concentration in substance misuse.
She has experience with Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) and the Strategic Prevention Framework, and has supported evaluations of SAMHSA's Partnerships for Success and State Opioid Response grants and NACCHO's Implementing Overdose Response Strategies at the Local Level, among others.
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Kirsten CarewMPH
Public Health Data Analyst
Kirsten is an epidemiologist with more than 10 years of experience turning data into decisions for stakeholders. At BWSC she supports clients with data collection, analysis, program evaluation and grant reporting.
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Kirsten earned her Master of Public Health from the University of Connecticut in 2020 and holds a degree in Business Administration from Boston University.
She has used quantitative and qualitative data to find gaps and shape a Community Health Needs Assessment, and has built partnerships with superintendents, school nurses and social and senior service directors along the way.
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Keri HumphriesMA
Project Manager
Keri is a nonprofit programs professional with a background in organizational development, community engagement and program evaluation. She onboards Youth Voices Count Survey clients and stays with them at every stage of their project.
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Keri holds a Master's in Community Psychology from the University of New Haven with a concentration in Program Development, and has five years of grant writing experience, including successful SAMHSA and CDC applications.
Before BWSC she led community outreach and volunteer development, including growing the number of students served by a literacy program by 87%, and provided technical assistance and project management to workforce programs.
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Want to work with us?
Tell us about your program, your community and your deadlines.
- Book a virtual meeting
- Review a proposal shaped around you
- Kick off with the same dedicated team
Together, we can meet the needs of your community or organization.
How to get started
Three simple steps to get your project moving
Whether you need an outside evaluator, a needs assessment or a survey your community will actually answer, it starts with a conversation.
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01
Book a virtual meeting
Tell us what you are working on, who you serve and what your deadlines look like.
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02
Review your proposal
We send a plan shaped around your goals, your funder's requirements and your budget.
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Sign on and get started
Once the contract is signed, the same team stays with you from kickoff to final report.