NRCYS Personnel
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Peter Correia III, MSW; Director Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Cultural Diversity • Child Welfare • Team Building |
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Peter directs the
overall administration of the NRC and is responsible for coordinating
the overall management and delivery of service/programs of the NRC.
He develops and provides training and consultation in the areas
of cultural competency and independent living. Peter serves on many
national committees pertaining to child welfare and youth services.
Peter has a master's degree in social work from Boston University. Email: pcorreia@ou.edu |
| Kristi Charles, MSW;
Associate Director Fields of Expertise: Grant Proposal Writing • Administration and Management • Child Welfare and Youth Services |
| Kristi
oversees national training and conferences, marketing, publications
and other support services at NRC. She gained her direct care experience
as a residential counselor, shelter counselor, and team supervisor
for Youth Services of Tulsa. Kristi has a master's degree in social
work from The University of Oklahoma with a concentration in administration
and planning. Email: klcharles@ou.edu |
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Dorothy I. Ansell, MSW; Program Director Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Assessment and Goal Planning • Life-Skills Instruction • Permanency for Adolescents |
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Dottie is responsible for directing the activities of the National Child Welfare Resource Center for Youth Development, which is a service of DHHS Children's Bureau. Her work includes training, technical assistance, curriculum and resource development. She is also responsible for managing the NRCYS web site and it's web-based activities. She collaborated in the development of the Ansell-Casey Life Skill Assessment and the Life Skills Guidebook. She has authored and edited many publications, including Pass It On, Making It On Your Own, Teen Conference Planner's Guide, Creative Life Skill Activities, and Mentoring: What's It All About? She received her master's degree in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University. Email: dansell@ou.edu |
| Sue Barton, MHR; Program Director Fields of Expertise: Runaway and Homeless Youth • Basic Center • Transitional Living • Street Outreach • Working with Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual • Two-Spirit and Transgender Youth • Competency Based Services • Youth Development |
| Sue is responsible for directing the Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Centers (RHYTTAC). She has extensive experience in the field of youth services and has worked in both rural and urban programs. Sue has been a trainer/ consultant for many years and has provided Training and Technical Assistance nationwide since 1989. Sue is certified to train Managing Aggressive Behavior (MAB), Residential Child and Youth Care Professional Curriculum (RCYCP), Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment, Street Smarts, and Winning Through Participation Group Facilitation and Strategic Planning from the Institute of Cultural Affairs. Sue earned her master’s degree in Human Relations from the University of Oklahoma. Email: sbarton@ou.edu |
Jean Carpenter-Williams, MS, CYC-P; Director of Training Development |
| Jean has been with The University of Oklahoma’s the National Resource Center for Youth Services for over ten years. She has worked extensively with residential programs across the country on improving the culture of care, reducing seclusion and restraint, and effectively implementing the Managing Aggressive Behavior (MAB) program. She serves on the Executive Board for the Association for Child and Youth Care Professionals (ACYCP), a national organization dedicated to professionalizing youth work. Jean has extensive experience in the development of training curricula, including the Residential Child and Youth Care Professional Curriculum (RCYCP) and MAB. Jean has worked in residential settings as a recreation therapist, direct care worker and unit manager and earned a master's degree in therapeutic recreation from the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse. Email: jcarpenter@ou.edu |
| Clay Finck , MSEd, LCPC / Program Supervisor Fields of Expertise: |
Clay is a program supervisor with the National Resource Center for Youth Services. He coordinates projects through the National Child Welfare Resource Center for Youth Development and works with other NCWRCYD staff to develop and deliver training nationally. He trains the NRCYS Residential Youth and Child Care Professional, Managing Aggressive Behavior, and the Ansell Casey Life Skills Assessment curricula and in the areas of Independent Living, Permanency Planning and Positive Youth Development. Clay provides technical assistance to states that are developing or restructuring their Youth Advisory Boards. Clay has 17 years experience with youth in foster care and was a director and Independent Living coordinator for a private foster care agency in Kansas. Clay is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and earned a master’s of education degree from Northern State University in South Dakota. |
| TeRessa Kaemmerling, MSW; Assistant Program Director Fields of Expertise: Residential Services |
| TeRessa is responsible for the management
and development of the NRCYS Oklahoma Independent Living Program.
She facilitates training and technical assistance to youth serving agencies nationwide in the areas of strategic planning, Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment and the implementation of the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program. She has served as a direct care worker for a youth services' shelter,
a shelter administrator and a group home assistant director. TeRessa
received her master's of social work degree from The University
of Oklahoma. Email: tkaemmerling@ou.edu |
| Courtney Burress , BA;
Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Independent Living •Therapeutic Foster Care • Life Skills |
| Courtney works under the Oklahoma Department of Human Services Independent Living Program as an Independent Living Specialist for Area II. She provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers and young adults. She gained experience in youth development while working for child welfare and has trained and certified therapeutic foster homes throughout the state. Courtney has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Oklahoma. Email: courtney.burress@okdhs.org |
| Kathy Chamberlain, BS; Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Child Welfare |
| Kathy works under the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) Independent Living Program as an Independent Living Specialist. She tracks independent living services, conducts training for child welfare workers in independent living, provides life skills training to youth, and initiates youth advisory boards. She also serves as an independent living resource person in Oklahoma DHS Area 5. Kathy has a bachelor's of science degree from Northeastern State College. Email: kchamberlain@ou.edu |
Renae Charlson, MA; Trainer/Consultant |
| Renae provides independent living services under the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) Independent Living Program and serves as an independent living resource person for youth, caregivers and DHS employers in Area III. She conducts trainings for child welfare workers, provides life skills trainings to youth and coordinates Youth Advisory Boards. Renae has a master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Kansas. She has worked as a child welfare worker and as a therapist in a therapeutic foster care agency. Email: Renae.S.Charlson-1@ou.edu |
| Misty Codrey, MA; Program Supervisor Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Positive Youth Development • Teen Conference Planning |
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Misty is the program supervisor for the Oklahoma Independent Living Contract. She provides supervision to the six area independent living specialists for the state of Oklahoma. Misty provides training, implementation and coordination of independent living events and conferences, with an emphasis on providing technical assistance to adolescents, department workers and contract service providers in the area of independent living and youth development. In addition, Misty facilitates training and technical assistance to youth serving agencies nationwide in the areas of strategic planning, youth development, and the implementation of the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program. Misty received her bachelor of arts degree from Oklahoma State University in sociology and her master's in criminal justice administration and management at the University of Central Oklahoma. Email: mcodrey@ou.edu |
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Velina L. Davenport, MPH; Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Public Health Education • Human Sexuality • Kinship Care • Foster Care • Adoption |
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Velina works on the Resource Family Training Program where she is involved in curriculum development and the training of kinship, foster and adopted families for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS). Her responsibilities include scheduling, coordination and development of statewide contracted trainers for the program. Velina also provides training for OKDHS Child Welfare staff on Resource Family Assessment and trains Behavior Crisis Management, a national training curriculum for resource families. Velina trains in the area of diversity and provides training for residential child care staff. She received her master's degree in Public Health from The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Email: vdavenport@ou.edu |
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Sherri Finik, LSW, ACSW; Program Supervisor Fields of Expertise: Adoption • Foster Care • Women's Issues |
| Sherri supervises the Resource Family Training Program which provides training and technical assistance under contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. The heart of this program is the 27-hour pre-service training workshop provided to new foster, kinship and adoptive parents throughout Oklahoma. Sherri has served on the boards of many community organizations, and she has directed two non-profit social service agencies in Oklahoma, including a licensed adoption agency. Recognition as Social Worker of the Year, 2000, by the Oklahoma Chapter of NASW is one of many honors that Sherri has received throughout her career. She has earned two master’s degrees, in French and Social Work, from the University of Oklahoma. Email: sfinik@ou.edu |
| Kristi Freshwater, MSW;
Program Supervisor Fields of Expertise: Child Maltreatment • Interviewing Skills • Permanency Planning • Independent Living |
Kristi coordinates the Yes I Can! program that serves young adults, ages 18-21, who have aged out of foster care in the state of Oklahoma. Services include case management, financial assistance, life skills education, and referral to other community resources. Kristi is a former child welfare specialist for the Children's Justice Center in Tulsa, OK, and she currently delivers training in interviewing in the field of child maltreatment, the dynamics of disclosures in child abuse cases, cultural diversity, and worker safety. In addition, Kristi serves as the central point of admission to the Youth Opportunity University Career Academy which is a program component of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce’s Project M.O.V.E.S. and is funded by the United States Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. Kristi also provides supportive services to the youth enrolled in the program. Kristi earned her master's degree in social work from The University of Oklahoma. |
Katherine Hargus, BA; Trainer/Consultant |
| Kathy works under the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) Independent Living Program as an Independent Living Specialist for Area VI. She provides life skills training to youth, conducts assessments for youth, serves as an area independent living resource person, conducts training for child welfare workers and facilitates area youth advisory boards. Kathy has provided individual and group counseling to victims and batterers of domestic violence and has worked as a juvenile justice specialist, providing supervision for probationary and custody youth. She has a bachelor of arts degree from California State University, Hayward. Email: khargus@ou.edu |
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Joe E. Johnson,
Conference Coordinator Fields of Expertise: Meeting Planning • Conference Programming • Communications |
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Joe's responsibilities include site selection,
contract negotiation, conference programming, on-site logistics
and final reporting for all NRCYS' conferences. Joe has experience
that ranges from Assistant Director of Student Activities and Director of Student Information Services at The
University of Oklahoma to commercial and retail design businesses. Joe's academic background is in journalism and public relations at The University of Oklahoma. Email: jejohnson@ou.edu |
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Clarissa Jones, LCSW, ACSW;
Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Sexual Abuse Treatment • Grief & Loss Resolution • Foster Care and Adoption • Kinship Care |
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Clarissa works in the Resource Family Training Program and is involved with curriculum development for training of kinship, foster and adoptive parents for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. Clarissa collaborated in writing a curriculum specifically designed for kinship caregivers. Her responsibilities also include scheduling, coordination, and development of statewide contracted trainers for the program. In addition, Clarissa provides training for OKDHS child welfare staff on Resource Family Assessment and trains the Behavior Crisis Management national curriculum. Clarissa is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker experienced as an individual, family and group therapist with a focus in family development and sexual abuse treatment. Clarissa received her Master's of Social Work from the University of Oklahoma. Email: cmjones@ou.edu |
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Nancy Mason, MHR; Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Permanency Planning • Foster Care• Tribal Services |
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Nancy works under the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) Independent Living Program as an Education Specialist. She serves as a resource person, assists youth with education and career planning, tracks independent living services, conducts training for child welfare workers in independent living, and provides life skills training to youth. Nancy was also involved in the development and implementation of A Native Pathway to Adulthood, a curriculum to assist service providers working with Native American youth during their transition to adulthood. She has a master’s of human relations degree from The University of Oklahoma. Nancy has worked with youth in foster care in state and tribal custody. Email: nmason@ou.edu |
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Steven Mullen, BA,
CTRS; Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Managing Aggressive Behavior • Residential Care Issues • Recreational Therapy |
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Steven provides training
and technical assistance to Oklahoma non-profit agencies as part
of the NRCYS' Juvenile Personnel Training Program. He presents Managing
Aggressive Behavior and also trains on the topics of team building,
experiential therapy, leisure education and milieu management. Steven
has been the Director of Expressive and Adjunctive Therapies/Recreational
Therapy at Brown Schools of Oklahoma, and he has extensive experience
in residential care and youth ministry. He is a Certified Therapeutic
Recreation Therapist and he has a bachelor's of science degree in
therapeutic recreation from Oklahoma State University. Email: smullen@ou.edu |
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Ann Newman, M.Ed.;
Program Supervisor Fields of Expertise: Youth Development • Independent Living |
| Ann Newman is a program supervisor for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Training Center, a program of the National Resource Center for Youth Services of the University of Oklahoma located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Ms. Newman holds a Masters of Education in Community Health Education and has been providing training and consultation to youth services programs, child welfare agencies, schools and community programs throughout the United States for 21 years. Ms. Newman’s areas of expertise include youth development, and independent living. At the National Resource Center, in addition to her role as trainer Ms. Newman has coordinated and supervised state and national conferences.
Email: anewman@ou.edu
Email: anewman@ou.edu |
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Kristal S. Nicholson, MA, LPC; Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Residential Care Issues • Managing Aggressive Behavior • Spiritual Development |
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Kristal provides
training and technical assistance for Oklahoma non-profit agencies
through the NRCYS Juvenile Personnel Training Program. She presents
the Residential Child Care Worker and Managing Aggressive Behavior
training courses. She also trains in the area of spiritual development.
She has extensive experience working with youth in a variety of
settings as a trainer, counselor and direct care provider. Kristal
has been a counselor at the Frances Willard Home for Girls, the
Coordinator of Training for the United Methodist Circle of Care,
and a Family and Community Services Facilitator for Tulsa Public
Schools. She has a master's degree in counseling from Oral Roberts
University. Email: knicholson@ou.edu |
Mary Catherine Plank, MHR; Program Development Specialist Fields of Expertise: Case Management • Child Advocacy |
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Mary provides services to eligible youth through the Oklahoma Independent Living Program and the Yes I Can! Program. These services are designed to help youth transition to adulthood and assist young adults leave foster care. Services include case management financial assistance, life skills education and referral to other community resources. Mary has worked with the Child Abuse Network, Inc. as a case manager and child advocate. She has a master's degree in Human Relations from the University of Oklahoma. Email: mcplank@ou.edu |
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Cynethia Rayford, M.Ed.; Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Vocational and Educational Counseling • Separation and Placement • Cultural Diversity |
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Cynethia
coordinates and develops training for the Juvenile Personnel Training
Program. She also conducts training on a variety of topics including
African American Youth and Families and Residential Child Care Worker
Trainer Certification. She has served as intake social worker for
the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. She also has direct experience
as a counselor, program coordinator, recruiter, and conference coordinator
for the Guthrie Job Corps Center. Cynethia is a presenter for One
Church/One Child, a minority recruitment program. She earned her
master's degree in urban education at Langston University in Oklahoma. Email: ccrayford@ou.edu |
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Kathy Sutter, MS; Program Supervisor Fields of Expertise: Managing Aggressive Behavior • Gay and Lesbian Youth and Family Issues Youth Development/Independent Living • Permanency for Adolescents |
| Kathy has been with the National Resource Center for Youth Services for over 16 years and is a program supervisor. She coordinates projects through the National Child Welfare Resource Center for Youth Development and works with other NCWRCYD staff to develop and deliver training nationally. She was involved in the development and implementation of NRC’s Managing Aggressive Behavior (MAB) curriculum and is and MAB trainer. She also provides training in permanent connections for adolescents, positive youth development, independent living, cultural diversity, and working with gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender youth. Kathy has direct care experience as counselor in both inpatient/acute care and residential settings for adolescents. She earned her master's degree in community counseling from Oklahoma State University. Email: ksutter@ou.edu |
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Lou Truitt, MHR;
Program Supervisor Fields of Expertise: Child Welfare Issues • F oster Care, Kinship & Adoption • Permanent Connections Post Adjudication Review Boards |
| Lou is the program supervisor for the Juvenile Personnel Training Program (JPTP) at the National Resource Center for Youth Services where she oversees the development and delivery of training for youth serving agencies in Oklahoma. Having been at NRCYS over 10 years, she has also delivered training in the areas of child welfare, foster care, cultural diversity, life skills assessments and has trained Post Adjudication Review Boards throughout Oklahoma. With over 24 years experience working with children, youth and their families, she worked for OKDHS Children and Family Services Division as a child welfare specialist and supervisor of child protective services. She has also provided specialized group services for adolescent survivors as well as non-offending parent groups. She currently serves on a tri-county Children’s Advocacy Center Board, and Post Adjudication Review Board. She received her master of human relations degree from The University of Oklahoma. Email: ltruitt@ou.edu |
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Barbara Wells, MSW;
Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Child Welfare• Kinship Care • Foster Care • Adoption • Trainer Development |
Barbara is part of the Resource Family Training Program and is involved with curriculum development and training for kinship, foster, and adoptive parents, and OKDHS foster and adoptive staff. She contributed to the creation of a curriculum designed around the unique needs of Kinship caregivers and to the updating of the 12-hour Behavior Crisis Management Training offered nationally by NRCYS. Barbara’s responsibilities for RFT include the scheduling, coordination, and delivery or pre-service training to resource parents across the state, as well as the training and development of contracted trainers for the Resource Family Training program. She provides contracted trainers with a vital link to programmatic changes through the RFT newsletter Keeping Up. Barbara has a master’s degree in social work from the University of Oklahoma and worked in the mental health field through the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse before moving into the area of child welfare services. Barbara brings 10 years of experience in child welfare to the RFT program. Her areas of specialty include permanency planning, court related services, investigation, and foster care services. |
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Stacy Williams, BA;
Trainer/Consultant Fields of Expertise: Independent Living |
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Stacy provides independent living services under
the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) Independent Living
Program and serves as an independent living resource person in the
Oklahoma DHS Area 4. She conducts training for child welfare workers,
provides life skills training to youth and coordinates youth advisory
boards. Stacy worked in a residential treatment center with latency-age
children and adolescent females and as an IL coordinator and a therapeutic
foster care counselor. She has a bachelor of arts degree from Northeastern
State University. Email: swilliams@ou.edu |
| TC Cassidy, MPA; Senior Program Development Specialist Runaway and Homeless Youth Technical Assistance Center Fields of Expertise: Runaway and Homeless Youth •Basic Center •Transitional Living • Street Outreach •Youth Development |
| TC plays a key role in the assessment, design, and provision of technical assistance services for The University of Oklahoma’s Runaway and Homeless Youth Technical Assistance Center (RHYTAC). She has extensive experience in the field of youth services and has worked in both direct care and supervisory positions in Basic Center, Transitional Living, and Street Outreach Programs. TC earned her master’s degree in Public Administration from the The University of Tennessee. Email: tccassidy@ou.edu |