Professional:
Grant R. Grissom, Ph.D
Dr. Grissom is the co-founder, President and CEO of Polaris Health Directions, Inc. He has directed the development of several automated and clinically-focused outcomes management systems, including systems for children and adolescents, adults in outpatient mental health and/or chemical dependency treatment, severely and persistently mentally ill adults, and for depression management for primary care, oncology and cardiac patients. Dr. Grissom holds an undergraduate degree in mathematics from Penn State University, a M.S. in Computer Science from Cornell University, and a Ph.D. in Counseling and Child Development from Bryn Mawr College.
Prior to co-founding Polaris Health Directions with Dr. Kenneth Howard in 1997 he served as Social Science Research Director of Philadelphia’s University City Science Center (1977-1987), Vice President for Research and Development for Integra, Inc (1988-1994) and Compass Information Services (1995-1997). Dr. Grissom conducted a longitudinal study of the program and outcomes of the Glen Mills Schools for Boys, the nation’s oldest institution for juvenile corrections, publishing his research in Without Locks and Bars: Reforming our Reform Schools. He has been the Principal Investigator for more than thirty grants awarded to his research teams by the National Institutes on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Mental Health (NIMH), Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (NIAAA), and the federal Departments of Education, Justice and Defense. He has published his outcomes assessment work in two books and thirty articles in scientific and professional journals, and presented his teams’ research at numerous national conferences.
Personal
Married in 1969 to Gail (Gay) Grissom (dec’d 11/2011). Two children and two grandchildren. Have lived in the Media-Swarthmore area since 1969. Active in the Swarthmore Presbyterian Church and the Wayne Oratorio Society (tenor).
218th Central High School 