Idonia L. Trotter, JD, MPS., Executive Director
Idonia L. Mitchell Trotter is a native of El Dorado, Arkansas.  
Trotter is an experienced manager and brings a strong programmatic, community advocacy and development background to the Commission.  She served as office manager, district field representative, and minority liaison for the U.S. House of Representatives 4th District of Arkansas from 1993 to 2001.   From 2001 through 2007 she worked as a community organizer and grassroots specialist for the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Arkansas where she was instrumental in educating city councils, legislators and citizens about the dangers of secondhand smoke.  She comes to the Commission with a passion for public health issues as a result of a personal life story.  “As a caregiver to my mother (the late Ruby Freeman Ford) for the last three years of her life, I witnessed her slow death to lung cancer in 2000 due to secondhand smoke.  Research, collaboration and education is the key to combating disease and living healthier lives,” Trotter has stated.

Trotter has an extensive background in radio as a result of studies at the University of Central Arkansas in marketing and broadcast communications.  In 2004, she graduated from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with a bachelor of arts in criminal justice.  She was accepted into the law program at the UALR William H. Bowen School of Law in the Fall of 2004 where she served as Student Bar Association Vice President, Secretary of the Black Law Students Association, and the American Bar Association Law Student Division's 10th Circuit Lt. Governor for Membership.  Trotter went on to further her education as the first concurrent UA Clinton School of Public Service and UALR Bowen School of Law graduate in May 2009 with a Juris Doctorate and Master of Public Service (MPS) degree.  At the Clinton School, Trotter assisted the 11th Judicial District West - 6th Division Juvenile Court (The Honorable Earnest E. Brown, Jr.) in the development and implementation of a juvenile drug court.  She traveled to Belize, Central America in the Summer of 2008 to perform an International Public Service Project with Human Rights Attorney Antoinette Moore in researching crisis proportion sexual assault trends over the past 10 years.  As a result of this project, UNIFEM (United Nations Development Fund for Women) agreed to fund a pilot project study in Belize (and two other Caribbean countries) of policing and prosecutions of sexual assaults with an eye toward remedying the shortcomings in the system.  The pilot project began January 2009.

Trotter is excited about the opportunity to lead the commission.  "It's a new day at the Arkansas Minority Health Commission.  I look forward to continuing service to the public in the arena of public health with a focus on minority health."  She is a mother of three and recently celebrated 10 years of marriage to Rodney L. Trotter, Sr.  In her spare time, Trotter enjoys outings with her children, reading, and cooking for family and friends.  Her favorite A&E series is The First 48 where she enjoys solving the crime in advance of the detectives.

Creshelle Nash M.D., MPH, Medical Director, Arkansas Minority Health Commission, Assistant Professor, Department of Health Policy and Management Assistant Professor, Division of General Internal Medicine University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Little Rock, AR
Dr. Nash continues her primary interest in the translation of public health research into viable programs and policies to improve the health of underserved and minority populations. Dr. Nash has assisted in informing health policy decision-makers through research with the Arkansas Minority Health Commission, and work with the state legislature, Arkansas Department of Health and community based organizations on public health issues facing the state of Arkansas. She has also worked on the development of and is inaugural faculty of both the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health and the Clinton School of Public Service.

In addition to addressing health issues on a policy level, Dr. Nash is continuing her practice of clinical medicine. She is currently on faculty in the Division of General Internal Medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, where she is involved in patient care, teaching and mentoring students.

Dr. Nash received her medical degree from the University of Maryland at Baltimore School of Medicine in 1994, and completed a residency in Primary Care Internal Medicine at George Washington University Hospital, Washington D.C., in 1997. She was a 1997-98 Commonwealth Fund/Harvard University Fellow in Minority Health Policy and received a Master's in Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health in 1998.

Patricia Minor, RN, Project Manager Hypertension Initiative and HIV/AIDS Outreach Initiative
Patricia L.  Minor is a Registered Nurse that has experience as both a clinician and a health educator.  With over 14 years of experience in the specialty of cardiology she has been actively involved with various pilot programs used to create sound healthcare policies to address the needs of Arkansas’ most chronically ill populations and increase awareness of cardiovascular risk factors among minority populations. She has also used her experience to successfully complete a community health assessment project that will help the State close the gap in HIV health disparities among its minority population. 

Patricia also serves as a health educator with an emphasis on HIV/AIDS.  She has worked extensively with the Arkansas HIV/AIDS Prevention Coalition and has extended the Commission’s collaborative relationship with the Arkansas HIV Taskforce and various Community Based Organizations and AIDS Service Organizations throughout Arkansas. Her recent appointment to the Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant Advisory Committee gives the opportunity to offer recommendations for increasing funding for minority focused prevention programs.

As part of her commitment to healthcare and the community, Patricia is actively involved with the American Heart Association, the Arkansas Medical Dental and Pharmaceutical Association and Legends in the Rock.  She was also adjunct professor for the Baptist School of Nursing before joining the Arkansas Minority Health Commission.

Cassandra E. Woods, M.Ed., Management Project Analyst  II
Cassandra Woods is the Management Project Analyst II.  She joined the Arkansas Minority Health Commission in October 2005.  She is the Project Manager for the “Southern Ain’t Fried Sundays” program as well as other programs funded by the Arkansas Minority Health Commission.  Cassandra received her undergraduate degree from the University of Central Arkansas and her graduate degree from Southern Arkansas University.

Hanan M. Givens, B.S. EHS, Management Project Analyst I
Hanan M. Givens came to Arkansas Minority Health Commission in June of 2005. Hanan started as Document Examiner II for the Medical Team. She is now Project Manager for various outreach and community health related program initiatives. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health Sciences and a Minor in Health Education. Hanan oversees all technical aspects of the internet website for the agency.

Rachael Hopes, B.S., Administrative Assistant II
Rachael Nicole Hopes is currently the Administrative Assistant II. She has been with the agency since June 2002, starting out as the agency Office Clerk and worked her way to her current position. She is currently human resources manager and contract support. She graduated in May 2008 from UALR with a Bachelor's degree in Health Sciences with Community Health Promotion. She is married to Ralph Hopes and mother of a beautiful 7 year old daughter, Reagan.

Clarissa Coleman, Administrative Assistant II
Clarissa Coleman joined the AMHC Staff in April 2008.  She serves as Administrative Assistant to the Executive Director.  She has been a state government employee since 2001 and brings various skills, assets, and enthusiastic work ethics to the Agency.  Clarissa is a multi-gifted speaker and writer whose perspective is that people are valuable and should be treated as such in the workforce.  Her motto is “integrity overrules status.

Siobhan Traylor, Document Examiner II
Siobhan Traylor is a member of the AMHC Staff. She is Document Examiner II and will be the first person to greet you when you visit our office.  Siobhan graduated from Parkview High School in 2004 and is a student at PTC working towards a degree in Social Work. She is also the mother of a beautiful 4 year old daughter, India.

Capstone Students

AMHC welcomes Jonathan Dunkley, UA Clinton School of Public Service Class of 2010. Mr. Dunkley will perform his capstone with AMHC in the development of an online minority health resource navigation system.

Jonathan Dunkley
Mr. Dunkley earned his B.A. in Political Science from Philander Smith College in Little Rock. He is originally from Kissimmee, FL and for the past 6 years, lives in “The Natural State”.   Dunkley is a former SGA president at Philander Smith. Dunkley’s work experience includes promoting youth education with the Baton Rouge AIDS Society in Baton Rouge, LA., serving as an admissions officer for ITT Technical Institute in Little Rock and interning with Governor Beebe’s Office of Constituent Affairs.  Dunkley is currently working on his Master of Public Service degree at the Clinton School of Public Service where over the past year he has worked with the Boys, Girls, Adult, and Community Development Center in Marvell, AR. He assisted in the Ministry of Education in Belize City, Belize C.A with the creation of sustainable recreational facilities and activities.