PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Strategic communications leader with psychology background and 15+ years experience, currently focused on AI governance, institutional accountability, and policy frameworks as an independent analyst and writer. Previously contributed to clinical AI safety through healthcare annotation systems and evaluation protocols. Bridges technical understanding of AI systems with strategic communications expertise to translate complex governance concepts into accessible narratives for policymakers, educators, and the public.

Key Research & Policy Work:

CORE COMPETENCIES

Strategic Communications & Narrative Development | AI Safety Assessment & Governance | Cross-Functional Leadership | Psychology & Mental Health Applications | Editorial Strategy | Quality Evaluation Systems | Media Relations & Issues Management

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Independent Writer and Communications Professional | Jan 2025 – Present
The Caffeinated Chronicle (Substack)

  • Publish data-driven analyses on AI governance and institutional accountability with transparent methods and public data.

  • Serve as ethics reviewer for NeurIPS 2025 conference, evaluating AI research for ethical implications and societal impact.

  • Create CTRL+Think, a K–12 toolkit to preserve critical thinking in AI-integrated classrooms.

Vice President of Marketing | Jul 2024 – Apr 2025
mpathic

  • Built and led public narrative and policy communications on AI bias, privacy, and safety, ensuring claims accuracy through cross-functional review with legal, compliance, clinical, and engineering.

  • Directed media relations, PR strategy, and interview preparation; developed press materials, managed vendors, and aligned distribution with ethical AI messaging.

  • Created briefing kits, stakeholder FAQs, and talking points for executives engaging media, policymakers, clinicians, and civil society partners.

  • Oversaw the editorial calendar for research releases and policy moments; coordinated op-eds, research summaries, and executive thought leadership.

  • Secured coverage in Fierce Pharma, GeekWire, and AWS publications; achieved inclusion in the Ethical AI Database and Women in AI Ethics list.

  • Supported $1.3M ARR and an $8.07M Series A through consistent, evidence-led public communications grounded in transparency and trust.

Director of Marketing & Clinical Team Lead | Dec 2021 – Jul 2024
mpathic

Clinical and AI Safety Focus:

  • Served as gold-standard annotator and supervisor for clinical labeling; led training, calibration, and QA to maintain inter-rater reliability across 12-person annotation team.

  • Co-authored labeling manuals, reviewer criteria, and policy guidance that defined appropriate AI behavior boundaries and safety thresholds for healthcare applications.

  • Identified risk indicators and edge cases; proposed threshold tiers (low/medium/high) and SME escalation criteria for clinical conversations.

  • Partnered with VP of Clinical AI on detection evaluation; assessed model fit, refined definitions, and conducted coverage testing on real-world and synthetic data.

  • Maintained versioned documentation of clinical contributions to model development; ensured traceability of policy changes.

Marketing and Communications:

  • Drove 1,700% lead growth and 400% press-coverage lift through integrated campaigns and content strategy.

  • Translated evaluation findings into briefs and FAQs for health-system and policy audiences.

  • Established rapid-response protocols for bias, privacy, and safety communications to ensure external claims accuracy.

Empathy Core Associate | Jun 2022 – Jul 2023
mpathic

  • Served as a gold-standard annotator ensuring consistency and accuracy in clinical labeling.

  • Assisted in training and calibration sessions to uphold inter-rater reliability standards.

  • Contributed to developing bias-mitigation guidelines and reviewer criteria that improved labeling quality and alignment with clinical policy guidance.

Empathy Core Intern | Dec 2021 – Jun 2022
mpathic 

  • Conducted systematic data annotation using evidence-based protocols to support model evaluation and safety testing.

  • Logged edge cases and annotation feedback that informed model updates and labeling standards.

  • Supported documentation to maintain traceability between evaluation outputs, definitions, and versioned data.

Freelance Marketing Strategist and Consultant | Apr 2017 – Nov 2023

  • Delivered communications strategy and content for technology startups, translating complex products into clear public-facing web copy, one-pagers, and media backgrounders.

  • Advised on ethical implementation for digital mental health and developed evidence-based therapeutic content with clinical partners.

Plan Manager, Residential Acquisition Marketing | Apr 2017 – Jun 2022
Altice USA

  • Led a team of three and a $2M budget to improve acquisition conversion through integrated, data-driven campaigns and message testing.

  • Built audience segmentation and creative briefs that aligned narrative across digital and direct channels.

Marketing Manager | Jul 2014 – Nov 2015
Mobiquity Networks

  • Led a website redesign that improved clarity and UX, increasing traffic 77% and leads 154%.

  • Partnered with the C-suite on message architecture and go-to-market narratives for location-based media offerings.

Product Marketing Specialist | Communications Coordinator | Nov 2010 – Jul 2014
Nikon Inc.

  • Managed the external PR firm and creative agencies while overseeing $70M+ in communications budgets, ensuring consistent public narrative and on-time delivery.

  • Generated 120M+ impressions through National Geographic partnerships and social campaigns; earned min’s Integrated Marketing Award and PR News Social Media Icon Award.

GOVERNANCE AND ADVOCACY

Board Member | Jan 2021 – Present
Merchantville School District

  • Provide policy oversight and community engagement; advocate for responsible AI adoption in K–8 (integrity, equity, privacy).

Court Appointed Special Advocate | Jun 2021 – Oct 2023
CASA of Camden County

  • Advocated for abused and neglected children in court settings.

Crisis Counselor | May 2021 – Jun 2022
Crisis Text Line, Remote 

  • Provided text-based crisis counseling, de-escalation, and safety planning; applied evidence-based interventions in a digital health context.

Member-at-Large, Committee on Legislative Action | Jan 2020 – Jan 2023
New Jersey Psychological Association Graduate Students

  • Liaised on student policy issues and legislative awareness.

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

Research Assistant | Sep 2022 – Jan 2023
Research on Anxiety and Depression Lab (ROAD), Rowan University

  • Researched mHealth adoption in underserved and college populations, stepped-care acceptability for depression, physical activity–schema links, and representation on clinical PhD program websites.

  • Built surveys, followed IRB procedures, cleaned and analyzed data, and supported manuscripts, posters, and grant proposals; co-authored four APA 2023 poster abstracts.

Adverse COVID-19 Events Survey: A Trauma-Informed Investigation into the Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on Diverse Psychology Graduate Student Population 

Reminick, D., Kroot, K., Kleinman, K. (Co-PI’s) | May 2020 - Sept 2021

  • Led a correlational, longitudinal study on COVID-19’s impact on psychology graduate students using trauma-informed methods to examine disparate effects across demographic groups; findings presented at NJPA 2020 and APA 2021.

METHODS AND TOOLS

Psychometrics: IRR monitoring, rubric construction, construct/criterion validity checks, thresholding | SPSS | RStudio | Qualtrics | Label Studio

EDUCATION

AI Governance & Compliance Certificate Program (in progress), Georgetown University | 2025

Ph.D. Coursework in Clinical Psychology, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ | 2023

M.A. in Psychology, Developmental Psychology, CUNY School of Professional Studies, New York, NY | 2021
Master's Capstone: The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training on Parent Stress and Resilience During Infants' First Year of Life

Global M.B.A., Digital Marketing, IE Business School, Madrid, Spain | 2014

B.S. in Business, Management, and Economics, SUNY Empire, Saratoga Springs, NY | 2011

ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE

Owner | Apr 2010 – Present | Kristina Kroot Photography

PUBLICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS

Edenne, N., Policella, N., Kroot, K., Schweitzer, D., & Haugh, J. A. (2023, August).Acceptability of The Stepped Care Model for Depression in College Students [Peer-reviewed poster abstract submitted]. The 131st Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington DC.

Schweitzer, D., O’Donnell, E., Giordano, M., Keating, E., Kroot, K., & Haugh, J. A. (2023, August). The Perceived Effectiveness of Mental Health Apps During COVID-19 [Peer-reviewed poster abstract submitted]. The 131st Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington DC.

Shoemaker, A., Lleshi, J., Schweitzer, D., Kroot, K., D’Onofrio, J., & Haugh, J. A. (August, 2023). Depression, Physical activity, and Early Maladaptive Schemas [Peer-reviewed poster abstract submitted]. The 131st Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington DC.

Terry, S., Schweitzer, D., Kroot, K., & Haugh, J. A. (2023, August). Ethnic Minority Student Enrollment and Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program Websites [Peer-reviewed poster abstract submitted]. The 131st Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington DC.

Reminick, D., Kroot, K., Kleiman, K., & Gubi, A. (2021, August 12-14). Adverse COVID-19 Events (ACEs): Impact of pandemic trauma on psychology graduate student distress. In J. E. Maietta (Chair), COVID-19 and psychology: A research update [Symposium]. American Psychological Association 129th Annual Convention, Virtual Conference.

Reminick, D., Kroot, K., & Kleiman, K. (2020, November 18). Impact of Pandemic on Psychology Graduate Student Mental Health [Presentation]. Rutgers University “Brown Bag” Lunch Session, Virtual. 

Reminick, D., Kroot, K., & Kleiman, K. (2020, October 16-20). Adverse COVID-19 Events Survey: A Trauma-Informed Investigation into the Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on Diverse Psychology Graduate Student Population. [Poster Presentation]. New Jersey Psychological Association Fall 2020, Virtual Conference. https://www.psychologynj.org/assets/committees/AcademicScientific/2020posters/poster%201%20ReminickKrootKleiman.mp4

HONORS AND AWARDS

  • GAANN Grant, Rowan University, 2022-2023

  • Global M.B.A.+ Scholarship, IE Business School, 2014

  • PR News' 2013 Social Media Icon awards for Facebook: Contest/Games

  • min's 2013 Integrated Marketing award for contest and sweepstakes

  • Dean's Honor List, State University of New York (SUNY) Empire, 2011