Management Team

  • Richard Kim, Ph.D.  ·  President and CEO
  • (808) 739-1992  · 
    Richard Kim

    Dr. Kim is the President and founder of The Catalyst Group, LLC. The company was formed in 2002 but Dr. Kim has been involved with consulting work, particularly in the areas of program evaluation, applied research, and assisting organizations to improve their healthcare and social service systems for the past 20 years in Hawaii and a number of other states. The types of projects involved areas of mental health, substance abuse prevention and treatment, HIV prevention, housing and homelessness, teen pregnancy prevention, crime and violence prevention, health promotion, cultural issues, immigrant services, school-based programs, and organizational development. Some of these were large scale, multi-site projects. He has also helped many agencies to secure funding by assisting them with proposal development.

    Dr. Kim conducted numerous trainings and presentations on topics such as culturally competent mental health services, overview of program evaluation, basic program self-assessment, utilizing logic models, culturally appropriate program evaluation, risk and protective factors in substance use, culturally relevant prevention programming, data management and analysis, and occupational stress. He also has years of experience in community mental health, private practice, youth therapeutic residential program, and psychiatric hospital settings where he provided direct clinical services, psychological testing, developmental and disability assessments, forensic evaluations, program development, quality assurance, staff and intern training and supervision, and a number of other management duties.

    Dr. Kim obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Hawaii and Masters and Doctorate degrees in Clinical Psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology - Los Angeles (CSPP-LA). CSPP-LA is fully accredited by the American Psychological Association. His training and experiences emphasized multicultural and community psychology. His professional memberships include the American Evaluators Association (AEA), the American Psychological Association (APA), and the Asian American Psychological Association (AAPA). He was the past Vice-President of AAPA.

  • Elmer Esmeralda  ·  Program Manager, Government Contract Services
  • (808) 225-1305  · 
    Elmer Esmeralda

    Elmer Esmeralda is The Catalyst Group’s (TCG) Program Manager for Government Contract Services. He was initially hired by TCG as a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) consultant for the U.S. Pacific Air Force (PACAF) Command Surgeons Office on Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, and oversaw the HIPAA Privacy and Security program of nine PACAF Medical Treatment Facilities. In his current role, he assists the President and CEO in overseeing government contracts and on business development matters. Mr. Esmeralda is a retired U.S. Navy Veteran with more than 24 years of experience in managing assets and resources for medical and dental operations. While on active duty he successfully completed two Command Master Chief assignments as a Senior Chief; was instrumental in the research, development and implementation of both the Navy’s Officer Fleet Marine Force (FMF) Qualification program and the Enlisted FMF Warfare Specialist program; and he led regional focus groups which enhanced the Navy’s Women at Sea Program. He has taught countless continuing education/in-service courses as a qualified Navy Instructor and is a trained facilitator for the Stephen Covey 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and the Total Quality Management/Leadership courses. Mr. Esmeralda graduated from the Naval Reserve Senior Enlisted Academy and completed the Navy’s Human Resource Management Program. Mr. Esmeralda completed military assignments in California, Virginia, North Carolina, Japan, Bahrain, Cuba and Iraq.

  • Ashley Morisako, BS  ·  Program Manager, Research and Program Evaluation Services
  • (808) 739-1992  · 
    Angelina Ahedo

    Ashley Morisako oversees all research and program evaluation projects for The Catalyst Group, LLC. Ashley has a bachelor’s degree from University of Santa Clara in Public Health and Psychology.

    An honors graduate of Kamehameha Schools, Ashley has experience working with the Department of Native Hawaiian Health at the University of Manoa, the Kupuna Education Center at Kapiolani Community College and the Health Psychology Laboratory at Santa Clara University. She recently returned home to Hawaii to pursue her Master's Degree and work towards her goal of improving health and well-being standards for Hawaii's communities.

  • Virginia Wescott, MCJ  ·  Family Advocacy Program, Senior Prevention Specialist
  • (808) 655-4788  · 
    Ginny Wescott

    Virginia "Ginny" Wescott has been in the field of education for over 10 years. Holder of a Master's Degree in Criminal Justice, she began her career working with juveniles in a Detention Center and later with an Alternative School in Florida. Ginny also spent time as Lead Teacher at the Bobby Benson Center, a residential treatment program for alcohol- and drug-addicted teens.

    She began as a Social Service Educator at TCG and was promoted to Team Lead in 2012. In addition to her duties as Senior Prevention Specialist, Ginny is also a Certified Ombudsman Trainer for the U.S. Navy, and holds training for subjects such as Domestic Violence Reporting, Recognition and Services; Stress management and deployment issues, among others. With a Navy active duty husband, Ginny loves interacting with Service members and their familes, and providing services for them is a cause near and dear to her heart.

  • Eric Eik, BA  ·  Supervisor, Contract Performace Assessment Representatives
  • Eric Eik

    Eric Eik supervises four other performance assessment personnel on this contract in the Philippines to include specialists in aviation, facility management, and quality management.

    Mr. Eik is a former Navy Seabee Chief Petty Officer, with more than 20 years of construction and facilities management experience. Highlights of his experience include: Facilities Project Manager, Camp Butler Okinawa Japan; Platoon Commander/Material Liaison Office Chief, NMCB 5 and Command Self-Help Coordinator for the Public Works Department, Naval Air Station Sigonella, Italy.

    He possesses a bachelor's degree in management and has completed numerous leadership courses throughout his military and civilian careers. He has also been formally trained in HAZMAT and HAZWASTE management and functioned as a HAZMAT Team Leader at an OCONUS location. Before being promoted to his current role of CPARE Supervisor, Mr. Eik served as the CPARE Facilities Manager.

  • Scott Ray, Ph.D.  ·  Senior Evaluator/Researcher
  • (808) 739-1992  · 
    Scott Ray

    Dr. Scott Ray is one of the most experienced evaluators of large-scale federally-funded projects in both Louisiana and Hawaii. He has authored numerous research publications and netted over $50 million with federal funding proposals. Dr. Ray has consulted on hundreds of projects, primarily in public health, human services and criminal justice as well as marketing, cost analyses and econometric forecasting for numerous businesses, federal and state agencies, non-profit service providers and community coalitions.

    Dr. Ray's public health research and projects include, design, development and evaluation of large-scale system interventions, multi-site outreach/research projects, performance data reporting systems, and various outcome studies. He has provided consulting for mental health and drug courts, prosecutorial diversion and intensive supervision and probation programs, HIV prevention and treatment projects, residential substance abuse treatment programs for adolescents, pregnant and post-partum women, community prevention coalitions, and interventions in program areas to include homelessness and teen pregnancy.

    Dr. Ray holds a Ph.D. in Social Science Research. In addition to 30 years of consulting, he served seven years as Special Executive Assistant to the Director of Human Services for the State of Hawaii, five years as the Research Director of NIDA’s New Orleans AIDS Demonstration Research Project (NADR) and seven years as the Director of Quality Assurance, MIS and Evaluation of the CSAT New Orleans Target Cities Project.