Julie Brenman joined the School of Government as adjunct faculty in 2008. She has over 15 years of municipal executive experience and currently works as a management consultant to governments and nonprofits. Previously, she served as director of strategic initiatives, assistant city manager, and director of budget and management services for the City of Durham. Before moving to North Carolina, Julie worked for the city and county of San Francisco, CA, as director of planning and budget, budget and fiscal operations manager, and budget manager with the Department of Human Services, and as budget/policy analyst in the Office of the Mayor. Her publications include Local Government Budgeting: A Guide for North Carolina Elected Officials and a chapter on Using Trained Observer Ratings in the Handbook of Practical Program Evaluation. She is a member of the International City/County Management Association and a Credentialed Manager and has served on the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Local Government Budget Association. Julie holds a B.A. in political science from the University of California, Berkeley, and an M.A. in public policy from Harvard University.

Selected Publications

Allison, Gregory S., and Brenman, Julie M. 2013. Local Government Budgeting: A Guide for North Carolina Elected Officials. Chapel Hill, NC. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.

Newcomer, Kathryn E.; Hatry, Harry P.; and Wholey, Joseph S. 2015. Handbook of Practical Program Evaluation, 4th Edition. Jossey-Bass. “Using Trained Observer Ratings” chapter.

Blossom Barrett joined the School of Government in January 2018 as an adjunct professor for the MPA program. For more than 10 years she has worked in the nonprofit arena, primarily in the areas of development, data analysis, and program evaluation. Currently, Blossom is the associate director of data and evaluation for I Know I Can, a nonprofit college access organization in Columbus, Ohio. In her role, she is responsible for data management for three school districts. Additionally, Blossom manages stakeholder reporting and program evaluation for funding valued at more than $6M. Blossom earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Kenyon College, a master’s degree in educational policy and leadership, and a doctorate in philosophy in educational studies from The Ohio State University.

Justin Barbaree began teaching in the online MPA program in 2015, where he has taught PUBA 721 Professional Communication. He is also full-time faculty at the University of North Georgia, where he teaches writing and literature courses in the English department. Justin also lived and taught in South Korea for a decade, where he taught academic writing, composition, and presentation courses to undergraduate students. He worked with the Gangwon Provincial Government Office, where he taught professional communication courses for public administrators in preparation for the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. Justin holds a BA in English from Fort Lewis College, an MAT in TESOL from the School for International Training, and an MA in English Literature from Morehead State University.

Evans Ballard joined the School of Government as Adjunct Instructor for the MPA Program in 2015. He has more than 30 years of combined experience in the private and public sectors, including over 20 years developing and using performance management systems. He is a certified budget and evaluation officer and is Past President of the North Carolina Local Government Budget Association. He has led large organizations, presented to ICMA and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, and served on the steering committee for the National Center for Civic Innovation. His published work focuses on using survey data to improve community outcomes. He holds BA and MPA degrees and has completed both the Municipal Administration course at UNC and the LEAD Program at UVA. Originally from Indianapolis, Ballard is an Army veteran who served on active duty in the US and Germany as a non-commissioned officer in a mechanized infantry company with the 4th and 8th Divisions.

Selected Publications

Rivenbark, William C., and Evans C. Ballard. “Using Citizen Surveys to Influence and Document Culture Change in Local Government.” 2012. Public Performance & Management Review, 35 (3): 475–484.

Pickering, John; Harnden, Philip; and Brokaw, Gerald. 2014. Building High-Performance Local Governments – Case Studies in Leadership in All Levels. River Grove Books.

Monica R. Allen joined the School of Government in 2014 as an adjunct instructor in the MPA program. She is also Director of Strategic Planning and Evaluation for Mecklenburg County, where she focuses on leading, developing, and executing the county’s corporate performance management, strategic planning, and program evaluation initiatives. Allen is also the proprietor of Insight Performance Management Group LLC, a consulting firm specializing in change management, strategy development and execution, performance management, and organizational development. She was the recipient of the 2016 Charlotte Chamber of Commerce Young Professional Public Servant Award as well as the Association for Strategic Planning’s 2017 Richard M. Goodman Award for Strategic Planning. She also led efforts in performance management that resulted in Mecklenburg County receiving the International City/County Management Association’s 2017 Certificate of Distinction for Performance Management. Allen holds a B.A. in psychology from Hampton University, an M.A. in psychology from the College of William and Mary, and a Ph.D. in organization and management from Capella University.

Selected Publications

Allen, Monica (July 2016). A planning evolution: How Mecklenburg County got on the road to strategic business planning. International City/County Management Association.

Nezlek, J. B., Sorrentino, R. M., Yasunaga, S., Otsubo, Y., Allen, M., Kouhara, S., & Shuper, P. (2008). Cross-cultural differences in reactions to daily events as indicators of cross-cultural differences in self-construction and affect. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 39, 685-702.

Nezlek, J. B., & Allen, M. R. (2006). Social support as a moderator of day-to-day relationships between daily negative events and daily psychological well-being. European Journal of Personality, 20, 53-68.