People
Faculty & Staff
Shelly Wagers, Ph.D., Assistant Director of the TIP Lab, Department of Criminology, University of South Florida
Dr. Shelly M. Wagers is an Associate Professor of Criminology at the University of South Florida, St. Petersburg campus and currently serves as the President for the National Partnership to End Interpersonal Violence Across the Lifespan (www.npeiv.org). Dr. Wagers has worked in the domestic violence (DV) field for over 25 years: first as an advocate, then as a law enforcement officer and now as a scholar. Dr. Wagers’ primary research interests include examining the relationship between power, control and DV, along with developing evidence-based practices for DV policies and programs. Dr. Wagers also focuses her research on the development of her theory on Internal Power and its theoretical correlation to intimate partner violence. Her most recent applied work examined factors impacting prosecutorial filing decisions in domestic violence cases. Dr. Wagers has published her research in numerous top peer-reviewed journals such as Journal of Interpersonal Violence, Victims and Offenders, and Journal of Social and Interpersonal Relationships.
Kailey Pate Carter, M.A., TiP Lab Manager, TIPSTR Project Manager
Kailey Pate Carter is the Project Manager for BRIGHT, TIPSTR, and the Lab Manager at the University of South Florida's Trafficking in Persons Risk to Resilience Research Lab. Kailey obtained both her B.A. in Psychology and M.A. in Criminology from the University of South Florida and has a passion for serving others. Kailey's research interests include human trafficking, complex posttraumatic stress disorder, ACES, and domestic violence. She has been intricately involved on the BRIGHT project with the USF Trafficking in Persons Lab since the initial needs assessment conducted in the Fall of 2020, working with community partners to tailor the platform to their specific needs.
Meghan Scott, M.A., Social Media Manager
Meghan Scott has a BA and MA in Criminology from the University of South Florida. She is passionate about using research-backed practices to address crime. She enjoys conducting research to advance criminology and using social media to raise awareness.
Taylor Algerio, MSW, MPH, CPH - Research Services Administrator
Taylor Algerio is a Research Services Administrator with the University of South Florida's Trafficking in Persons Risk to Resilience Research Lab. She received her Master of Public Health and Master of Social Work from the University of South Florida and has experience working with the juvenile justice system, substance use disorders, intimate partner violence, and human trafficking.