Senior Advisor for Adverse Childhood Experiences, Division of Violence Prevention

CDC role

Phyllis Holditch Niolon, PhD, is the senior advisor for Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) in the Office of the Director of the Division of Violence Prevention (DVP) at CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Dr. Niolon is a senior subject matter expert on ACEs and intimate partner violence (IPV). In this role, she coordinates the DVP's work relating to the prevention of ACEs and collaborates with both internal and external partners on advancing the field of ACEs prevention and response. She responds to high-level information requests from the legislative and executive branches of government and the media relating to ACEs and IPV.

Areas of expertise

• Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)
• Intimate partner violence
• Rigorous methodological designs for testing interventions

Education

Dr. Niolon graduated with high distinction with a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from the University of Virginia. She received her master’s and doctorate of philosophy degrees in community psychology from Georgia State University. After serving as a postdoctoral fellow in DVP for one year, she joined as a behavioral scientist in 2006. She has published multiple peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and government documents on violence prevention.