In Such a Time as This...
Responding Wisely in Difficult Times
March 7-9, 2010 Sheraton Imperial Hotel & Convention Center
Durham, North Carolina, USA

Speaker Bios

	Caroline Ambrose is a native of Raleigh, NC and she had cerebral palsy. She has worked with the United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County as an intern. Ms. Ambrose has also worked at the Episcopal Diocese of NC as an assistant to the Secretary of the Diocese. Currently, she is a peer advocate at Alliance of Disability Advocates ~Center for Independent Living where she is not only a peer advocate but the youth coordinator for Carolina Health and Transition. She is on several committees: First in Families (FIF) of Wake County, NC Council on Developmental Disabilities (NCDD) member, and Consumer and Family Advisory Committee. She was on Arts Access for several years as well. Besides, working she enjoys shopping, computers, drinking coffee, and spending time with friends and family. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from Peace College in 2001 majoring in Communications and a minor in Information Technology.
	Carol Baker is the Community Supports Branch Manager for the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s Division of Mental Retardation.  She has been in this role for 4 years. The focus of this Branch is to regulate provision of supports to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities by the Commonwealth’s 14 Regional Community Mental Health Centers.  In 2007, this Branch collaborated with these regional centers to develop and implement community-based crisis prevention and intervention services for adults with I/DD.    Carol obtained her B.A. in Psychology from Transylvania University and her M.A. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Louisville.  In addition to providing both outpatient and inpatient clinical services, she served as Directory of Psychology for Central State ICF/MR in Louisville, KY for 5 years before becoming Program Director of the unit for the Dually Diagnosed.  Carol then served as the Executive Director of a non-profit community-based provider prior to returning to employment with the Commonwealth of Kentucky in her current position.
	Daniel Baker, PhD is Director of Community Positive Behavior Support, Transition, and Supported Employment Projects, and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the Elizabeth M. Boggs Center on Developmental Disabilities. Dr. Baker's focus at The Boggs Center is on positive behavior support, models of community and educational support, transition services, and mental health services for persons with disabilities.
	Thomas Beaulac, PsyD has been the Clinical Director of the Whitney Academy for the past eight years, a residential treatment program specializing in the treatment of adolescent boys with cognitive deficits, psychiatric diagnoses and sexual behavior problems.  Dr. Beaulac graduated from the Illinois School of Professional Psychology, Chicago in 1999 and has been working exclusively with adolescents who are victims of neglect and trauma and present with a wide range of sexual behavior problems.  Dr. Beaulac has been on the board of Directors of the Massachusetts Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (MATSA) and has presented at a number of conferences on the topic of treating sexually abusive and reactive adolescents and victims of sexual trauma.  He has been a member of the Association of Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA) for the past 10 years.
	Mary Beth Clemons served for over twenty years as the Assistant Director and Director of Programs for Liberty Corner Enterprises, a private non-profit innovative agency in Asheville, N.C.  dedicated to positive support and the belief that all people have gifts to share with their communities.  Liberty Corner is currently in its third year of participation of Building Person Centered Organizations with the North Carolina Division of MHDDSAS, Support Development Associates, and DDTI.  Thirty six years working in the field of mental health and disability has included supported employment and job coaching, executive director of residential services, case management, and counseling.  Goal and passion is to ignite change through teaching and telling stories; telling and listening to stories motivates and opens us to new ways of thinking. Over ten years experience teaching Dialectical Behavior Therapy and wise mind to persons with developmental disabilities, Person Centered Thinking Trainer, PATHS, Gentle Teaching, and Person Centered Facilitation Trainer.  For the last two years, served as the Mentor Trainer for the NC Long Term Supports Project.
	Adonis Brown in the spring of 2001 began his emergence as an advocate serving on the Durham Mayor’s Committee for Persons with Disabilities.  In January 2002 he was elected as the new Second Co-Chair of the committee and from 2004 thru 2009 served the committee as Chairman.   Through his leadership they established Durham's first MCPD Office/Disability Resource Center in City Hall, published their first official newsletter, and led this committee to greater focus on Durham’s disabled population. On June 17, 2004 he was selected as a member of the first Board of Directors of the newly formed Disability Rights Center of North Carolina, Inc. (DRC-NC) which was originally established to become North Carolina’s new Administrators of the Protection and Advocacy Systems formerly administered by the Governor’s Advocacy Council for Persons with Disabilities (GACPD).  On November 20, 2004 he was unanimously elected as Chair to the DRC-NC Board.  Since that time he has been very active as a voice for the rights and social-economic inclusion of all persons living with a disability.
	Bruce Cannon is the Emergency Services Director for the Columbia Area Mental Health Center. He has worked for the South Carolina Department of Mental Health for 36 years. He has worked with children and adults on both inpatient and outpatient settings as well as in hospital emergency departments. He is known for his extensive experience in suicide risk assessment, as well as doing extensive training and consultation in the area of identifying mental health problems in people with developmental disabilities. He was recently honored as the “Mental Health Professional of the Year” by the South Carolina Chapter of NAMI. When he is not working, Bruce continues to be active with his Boy Scout troop and does a great deal of adult leader training. He is a consummate outdoorsman and is a certified Wilderness First Responder and part-time professional outdoor guide who continues to camp, hike, backpack and kayak wherever and whenever he can.
	Al Condeluci has been an advocate and catalyst for building community capacities and understanding culture since 1970.  Born and raised in the steel town of Pittsburgh, PA, still making his home there, Al received his Bachelors Degree in Psychology from Youngstown State University, his Masters in Social Work and Ph.D. in Education from the University of Pittsburgh.  Since 1973, he has worked as an attendant, caseworker, advocate, planner, program director and now, CEO of his organization, UCP/CLASS.  UCP/CLASS has created a family of corporations and is dedicated to its mission - “working towards a community where each belongs.”  UCP/CLASS, under Al’s leadership, has grown to become the 3rd largest disability specific agency in Western PA (with a new office in Erie PA) with a budget of $32 million and a staff and payroll complement of 700.  UCP/CLASS was listed in the 50 “Best Places to Work” in Allegheny County, PA in 2007.  Through Al’s efforts, UCP/CLASS is “empowering people…building communities.”
	Barton Cutter is husband, poet, writer, disability rights activist and coach. Through Blooming Lotus Coaching he works with families impacted by disability to enhance the independence of each member while encouraging alignment within the family as a whole. In Addition, Barton and his wife Megan co-own Cutter’s word, LLC through which he serves as Communications Manager for the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities. With a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona, Barton relocated to Raleigh where he has written on disability-related issues for The Raleigh News & Observer, ABILITY Magazine, the NC Council on Developmental Disabilities, Persona Magazine, the NC Office on Disability & Health, and the NC Disability Action Network. Together with his wife Megan Cutter, Barton speaks at conferences and to organizations around the country on relationships and disabilities, self-advocacy, and personal protection.
	Megan Cutter is the co-owner of Cutter’s Word, LLC, offering services in professional communications. She is a writer, editor, and photographer specializing in using writing as a therapeutic tool for health and healing. In addition, Megan teaches writing and wellness and creativity journaling workshops in addition their professional communications work. She graduated from Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in 1998, majoring in English/Creative Writing with a minor in Sociology. Her non-fiction work has been published in The News and Observer (North Raleigh News), Natural Awakenings, The Tuscaloosa News, Jubilation, The SAWA Log, among others. Her non-fiction and photography have been included in the recently published anthology, A Taste of Taffy: Samplings From the Triangle Area Freelancers. Together with her husband Barton Cutter, Megan speaks at conferences and to organizations around the country on relationships and disabilities, self-advocacy, and personal protection.
	Debbie Diamond, M.S., LMHC graduated with a Masters degree in Counseling from Indiana University in 1977.  She has been an active clinician in the field for many years working with both adults and adolescents.  She has been an ongoing clinical member in good standing of The Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers since 1994.  Much of her work has addressed the need for healthy attachment and self-regulation while addressing the impact of psycho social trauma and ways to prevent sexual assault recidivism.  For the last five plus years, she has worked in a residential setting in Massachusetts where there is a multi-modal approach and a multidiscipline approach to address the needs of adolescents with cognitive and behavioral challenges.  In 2007, she co-presented at the MATSA Conference on the Developmental Model for Treating Sexually Abusive Youth.  She has given other presentations in the state of Rhode Island on reducing sexual assault risk and anger management for sexual offenders.  She has had many years of experience working with sexual offenders in a variety of settings, including civil commitments and outpatient juveniles and adults on probation and parole.  She is furthermore is very experienced conducting comprehensive risk assessment on adults and juveniles for the department of probation and DCYF in R.I.
	Derrick Dufresne is a co-founder and Senior Partner of Community Resource Alliance, a consulting firm that has provided training and management consultation regarding issues related to people with disabilities to more than 40,000 people since 1982. He is dedicated to promoting full community inclusion for people with disabilities. Derrick works extensively in the closing of residential facilities, transforming systems that support individuals with disabilities to implement best practice, and establishing community wraparound services for individuals who are in crisis.  He is also deeply involved in teaching and coaching how to pair person-centered planning with individual budgets as part of the implementation of self-determination in a Medicaid environment. He is genuinely committed to assisting individuals with disabilities “get a life,” one person at a time.
	Trish Farnham loves doing what she can to build inclusive communities. As a former executive director and longtime disability "professional," Trish has lots of opinions about how people with developmental disabilities can become valued community members, but learned long ago that the best approaches usually emerge from the communities themselves. She currently supports community inclusion efforts throughout New Mexico and North Carolina.
	Gordon Gogola has facilitated NAMI Support group meetings for 15 years. The first five years were in Houston, Texas. The last ten years were in Raleigh, NC. In addition to facilitating support groups, Gordon is a Support group facilitator for NAMI NC. He has trained support group facilitators in both North Carolina and in Virginia. He holds a Degree in Chemistry from Niagara University and advances studies in Mathematics from the American University and the University of Alabama.  Currently, he works as engineering project manager for O’Neal in the Pharmaceuticals Division and is the Business Unit manager for all GlaxoSmithKline projects. The support groups that Gordon has facilitated have assisted over 5,000 families over the years in assisting their mentally ill relatives in recovering from mental illness. He is currently co-authoring a book on family aspects of mental illness with a fellow facilitator in the UK.
	Dave Hasbury is an organizational and community development consultant, educator, and facilitator. For almost 30 years he has been committed to engaging the power of CoCreation --- people gathering together to creatively shape the world around them. He has worked throughout Canada, the US, and abroad. Among his methods of education and group work Dave utilizes "group graphics". This innovative model dynamically captures a group's words, images and colors enabling participants to, quite literally, "see what we are saying", getting everyone on the same page and positioned for action. Dave has worked extensively with diverse groups, large and small. He has supported groups interested in youth, people with disabilities, community development, the arts, inclusive education, literacy, health and social services, social planning, coalition building, and community economic development. Since 2008 Dave has worked for Neighbours Inc, an innovative non-profit organization created specifically to support people with disabilities and their families in choosing and designing a life for themselves within their local towns and neighborhoods. Through Neighbours, Dave partners with Patti Scott (Neighbours C.E.O.), in supporting people with disabilities, families, communities, organizations, and governments in making it possible to live as contributing citizens and community members, where we can all make a difference. His work captures vision, forming a crystallizing catalyst, and charting a course of action. His work captures vision, forming a crystallizing catalyst, and charting a course of action. Learn more about Neighbours Inc. and CoCreation by visiting www.neighbours-inc.com &  www.cocreation.ca.
	Jennifer Helton is a seasoned veteran with more than 12 years of experience in the field of intellectual & developmental disabilities and currently serves as the Executive Vice President of Programs at Ralph Scott Lifeservices, Inc. located in Burlington, NC.  She is a native of North Carolina who has experienced firsthand the trials and triumphs of a family member living with a mental illness.    Jennifer considers one of her strongest character traits is her love of family and her ability to connect with people from all walks of life.
	Joan Johnson is the Executive Director of Beyond Academics, North Carolina’s first post-secondary education program in the UNC system for young adults with intellectual disabilities. This unique demonstration project is operated in partnership with the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Ms. Johnson is a North Carolina career developmental disabilities professional of over 35 years. Her career has spanned local and state systems serving infants and toddlers, children, adolescents, adults and senior adults with intellectual disabilities and other developmental disabilities.  Her experience as a direct support service provider, in mid-level clinical management services coordination and as senior administrator within three local management entity structures equips Ms Johnson with a deep understanding of all facets necessary to a competent community system of care. Ms Johnson’s local experiences led her to work at another level of the North Carolina service system.  For more than 10 years, she was the Regional Coordinator for Developmental Disabilities in the North Central Region of the Division of Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities/Substance Abuse Services, covering 16 counties and providing technical assistance, consultation and oversight in clinical, policy, regulatory and fiscal issues for local programs. Later she returned to the local service system in a large LME, serving for 12 years in various senior management roles until her retirement in 2005.  Ms. Johnson returned to North Carolina’s service system as a special projects consultant with various private companies later in 2006. She assumed the full-time responsibility of Executive Director for Beyond Academics in April 2008. Ms Johnson is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a graduate of the State of North Carolina’s Public Manager Program. She is a proud native North Carolinian and currently resides in Browns Summit, North Carolina.
	Cynthia (Cindy) Shima Kauffman has a Master's degree in Special Education from the George Washington University and post graduate work at Johns Hopkins University. She has worked in the field of developmental disabilities for more than 30 years in a variety of roles and settings including the private and public sectors. Currently, Cindy is the Central Region Director of the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Administration serving approximately 10,000 people with developmental disabilities throughout four counties and Baltimore City. Several of Cindy's other key positions were as the Vice President of Accreditation and Business Development for CQL (Council on Quality and Leadership), Director of Program Integrity of the District of Columbia Developmental Disabilities Services, and the Associate Director of the previous Maryland University Affilated Program of the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins. Cindy's vision remains focused on helping government and private systems create opportunities for people with disabilities to control the ways in which they live their lives.
	Bob Laux, President of Wild River Consulting Corp., has over 35 years of experience in the creation of community services and the development of housing options for people with disabilities.  As President of Wild River Consulting Corp., Bob has become nationally recognized for his creative “home ownership” and “asset development” efforts on behalf of people with disabilities as well as others in need of affordable housing.  Under his leadership this management group has provided real estate and financial planning consultation, non-profit management services, training events and technical assistance in 48 states, Canada, Australia and New Zealand involving over 250 non-profit agencies and state governments.  Bob is also the President of Wild River Realty, Inc., a real estate development and property management company serving New Hampshire and the mountains of western Maine.  He is an active member in AAIDD, National Association of Realtors and continues to be a featured speaker at national, regional and statewide conferences.
	Sarah Keller-Boyd has been associated with NAMI since 1999 when she helped form the local affiliate, NAMI Rowan, in Salisbury, NC.  Sarah served as President of NAMI Rowan eight years.  Sarah is an In Our Own Voice presenter and state and national trainer.  She has traveled to within North Carolina and to New York and South Carolina to do trainings.  She is a Peer-to-Peer mentor and mentor trainer and has led classes in Salisbury and trainings in Raleigh and Greensboro during the past two years.    She is also a NAMI Connections facilitator and has facilitated groups in Salisbury. Sarah has an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Appalachian State University and a graduate degree in Public Health from the University of Tennessee – Knoxville.  Her life’s work has been in the areas of Aging, Mental Health, and Education. Sarah is active within her community as a member of the local LME (PBH) Consumer and Family Advisory Committee (CFAC), PBH’s Rowan County Advisory Council, five years as a Peer Specialist with the Mental Health Association of North Carolina at the local psychosocial rehabilitation program in Salisbury and she recently received training and certification as a Peer Support Specialist in North Carolina. Sarah has a special project that she is currently working with: The Resource Center for the Brain – Rowan, Inc.  A consumer-based, consumer-run enterprise, its mission is to educate others about brain disorders and how a healthy brain differs from one that is disordered.  Sarah is Vice-President of this organization and, when in operation, she plans to continue to dispel myths about mental illness and reduce stigma through the programs that will be offered.  Her life’s goal now is to help others maximize life’s potential.
	Julia Leggett is the Assistant Director for Government Relations for The Arc of North Carolina and is the chief blogger for The Arc of North Carolina Policy Blog. Ms. Leggett’s began her career in policy and advocacy working to promote inclusion in the arts in North Carolina. Since then she has worked as staff on the Erskine Bowles for Senate 2004 campaign and as an administrative assistant for the North Carolina Coalition for Lobbying and Government Reform. Ms. Leggett began her lobbying career with the Alliance of Disability Advocates. She currently serves as a board member for the North Carolina Professional Lobbyist Association and the Covenant with North Carolina’s Children. Ms. Leggett graduated from Meredith College in with a degree in Political Science. She is a member of Pi Sigma Alpha the national political science honor society and Silver Shield.
	Peter Leidy has been learning from people with disabilities since 1983.  For almost 20 years he worked for Options in Community Living, a supported living agency in Madison, Wisconsin.  His roles included direct support, service coordination, recruiting and supporting direct service staff, community building, and administrative responsibilities.  Peter consults with individuals, families, organizations, counties, and states in areas such as supported living, self-determination, organizational development, building community relationships, and supporting and valuing direct support staff.  Peter also writes and sings humorous and thought-provoking songs about life in the human service system and is an award-winning singing commentator on Wisconsin Public Television.  He lives with his wife Betsy in Madison, Wisconsin.  www.peterleidy.com
	Jodi Love is a young woman that thru no fault of her own suffered at the hands of others and from a system that tried diligently but was just never able to meet her individual needs. Jodi had endured a childhood and teenage years of being held down “for her own good”, went thru every school in her district and all surround districts, 52 foster care families from the age of 2 to 19 all them just not working.  All the time creating a reputation that was to follow her everywhere she went.  Then one day, Christmas day, her current home provider “just couldn’t take it anymore” and called the provider agency and said “come get her”.  She ended up, as a last resort, going to a person’s house for just 5 days, they will recently celebrated their 2500th day anniversary.  Although this is not a forever situation, it has been a successful one.  Jodi and those around her have found some things that just plain work for Jodi.  People now get who the “real Jodi is” This Jodi has a plan, a future, a job, and a micro-enterprise.  This Jodi has found her VOICE, and is surrounded by people who listen, not only to her words but to her heart.  This is her story told by her in her way.
	Chris Mackey Since December of 2000, Chris Mackey has worked as the Healthy Communities Coordinator for the North Carolina Office on Disability and Health, (NCODH), a CDC-funded project that works to promote the health of persons with disabilities throughout NC.   Chris leads efforts in implementing a community training model called Removing Barriers To Fitness Environments.   This project, named after one of the Office’s major publications, is designed to teach fitness professionals how to incorporate accessibility and universal design into a typical fitness environment, and to build a community’s capacity to promote health for persons with disabilities.  On a national level Chris participated in a work group convened by the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Center on Physical Activity & Disability that created a new personal training certification focused on persons with disabilities.  Chris also developed and implements Work Healthy, Live Healthy, a worksite health promotion program for individuals with disabilities who work in Community Rehabilitation Settings.  Some of his additional work with the NCODH addresses access to other types of health promotion environments, including rape crisis centers, dental practices, and medical care facilities.  He has an extensive background in issues concerning the Americans With Disabilities Act.  In September of 2003 he was named to the Regional Training Team for the Southeast Disability and Business Technical Assistance Center.  He and NCODH also work to ensure that state and local public health policy is inclusive of the needs of individuals with disabilities. He has served on the Advisory Board for the UNC Center for Development and Learning and on the Board of Directors for the Exceptional Children’s Assistance Center.  Chris has also participated in many state and national youth transition activities. In 2001 Chris was named a National Youth Leader for the Healthy and Ready to Work initiative of the federal Maternal and Child Health Bureau.  A North Carolina native, Chris graduated from East Carolina University with a BS in Therapeutic Recreation.  He has participated in wheelchair basketball and swimming at both a regional and national level.
	Mike Mayer is a Senior Partner of Community Resource Alliance. He is an internationally known author, speaker, consultant, and trainer. Prior to joining CRA he was the Executive Director of the Institute on Complex Disabilities for 12 years specializing in crisis services and helping people transition from institutions. His humorous and dynamic approaches have led to him working with over 500 organizations and training over 70,000 people worldwide.
	Michael Murray is a highly motivated and enthusiastic individual.  Michael has lived with disability his whole life. His father has Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and is a cancer survivor and Michael’s wonderful wife is deaf. Michael himself is diagnosed with a learning disability and ADHD. Michael’s best friend, Jeremy, has down syndrome. These personal experiences are what motivate Michael in his daily work as director of the North Carolina Disability Action Network. Michael will continue to work with the disability community to support our grassroots movement. We are strong…lead on!
	Rosemary Nelson Ph.D. is the Director of Clinical Services at Charles Hines and Son, Inc. in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.  She has been a licensed psychologist in North Carolina since 1988 and holds a Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro.  She has over 25 years experience in clinical private practice working with individuals, families and groups prior to involvement in the provider network for Medicaid services in North Carolina.  Her current responsibilities at Charles Hines and Son, Inc. include developing and directing programs and mental health/developmental disability services, staff training and supervision, developing behavioral management programs, and completing diagnostic and comprehensive clinical assessments.
	Amy Pulliam is a graduate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a B.A. in Public Policy Analysis specializing in Health Policy.  She is in the process of completing her MPH –Health She has worked in the Communicable Disease Division of NC Department of Health and Human Services for the past 4 years.  Amy works out of the Winston Salem Regional Office.  Her job entails following up on new cases of syphilis and HIV diagnosis.  Some of her job responsibilities consist of discussing safe sex practices and educating about different types of STDs.
	Michael Rench began his service as the Administrator of the Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission on July 1, 2009 after his appointment by Governor Ted Strickland. During 29 years working in the field of disability services, Rench led three private provider firms and held executive-level jobs at three county boards of mental retardation and developmental disabilities. Before RSC, Rench was deputy director of community services for the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities. Rench earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Wright State University, a master’s degree in divinity from the United Theological Seminary and he has done post-graduate work in management and special education at the University of Cincinnati.
	Doreen Rosimos was part of the original team in New Hampshire that implemented the principals of self-determination and helped create true freedom for people with developmental disabilities.  She is one of the founding members of the Center for Self Determination, a national organization.  She and her associates have become a resource for helping those that have tendencies toward violence or other legal issues find a safe fulfilling life outside of locked walls.  She fully believes that if we look at the person and look at the issues all people can have a life that has meaning to them in the community.   Employment is looked at for them thru the use of micro-enterprise development, therefore being able to control an environment and not having to control a person! Doreen has worked to help implement self determination and more specifically micro-enterprises in 48 states and 15 countries, including the US, England, Scotland, Wales, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore.  She brings a wealth of experience because everyday still she is in the trenches, not just a philosophy believer but a person who still gets the brunt force of being one on one with people.  Doreen believes that there is NO ONE that cannot be served in the community, the key to success if the supports and enough money to pay for them.
	Nicole Saltzman LCSW is the Director of Arthur Center’s community re-integration program, Hope Center, in Fulton, Missouri. Her research and professional interests are in person-centered service delivery for clients with a wide range of complex and co-occurring disorders and their ability to have equal access to services. She has over 17 years of experience working with oppressed populations such as the homeless population, women and children in poverty, ethnic and religious minorities and the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Community. She is a member of the National Association of Social Workers, Arthur Center’s Cultural Competency Committee and the Missouri Change Agent Cadre. She received her MSW from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a specialty in Children and Family Therapy.  She completed clinical internships with Missouri Department of Mental Health, Kansas City Community Center’s inpatient Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing substance treatment program and Audrain Medical Center.
	Patti Scott co-founded Neighbours, Inc. in 1995. Neighbours, Inc. is an innovative agency that affords people with disabilities the opportunity to take control of their own lives; to be self-directing. Patti believes that these individualized supports are essential to lay the foundation for a meaningful life as a citizen, neighbor, and community member. She is currently Chief Executive Officer of Neighbours, which is supporting individuals and families throughout NJ and southeastern Pennsylvania.
	Terri Shelton is Director of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s Center for Youth, Family, and Community Partnerships and Professor in the Department of Psychology, the Carol Jenkins Mattocks Distinguished Professor, and currently serves as Interim Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development.  She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with a minor in Child and Family Studies and a clinical internship in Pediatrics and is a licensed psychologist and health service provider in the state of NC.  She has over 25 years of experience in clinical intervention, teaching and technical assistance, workforce development, and large scale community-based participatory outcome research working with children, families, and communities at-risk. In her role as Director, she oversees the Center’s 35 federal, state, local, and foundation grants and contracts that build the capacity of families, service providers, researchers, teachers, and communities to ensure the health and well-being of youth, families, and communities by engaging partnerships that bridge research, policy, and practice. Her research interests include designing and evaluating family-centered, culturally congruent, coordinated services in community-based settings. She is co-author of the text Assessing Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and the monograph, Family-Centered Care for Children Needing Specialized Developmental Services.
	David A. Smith, BS, PhD, received a NAMI NC Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.  He has served on the Board of NAMI Durham in a number of capacities since 2000, including a term as President in 2004-2006.  He has co-taught (with his wife Dorothy) the NAMI Family to Family course three times and the NAMI Basics course once.  He is Chair of the Human Rights Committee at Central Regional Hospital, and he serves on the Durham Consumer and Family Advisory Committee.  Before his retirement in 2002, he was a faculty member at Duke University for 40 years, where he co-authored a national award-winning calculus curriculum.  He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and an EDUCOM Medalist.
	Dorothy R. Smith, RN, BSN, has served on the Board of NAMI Durham since 2000.  She has co-taught (mostly with her husband David) the NAMI Family to Family course four times and the NAMI Basics course once.  Before retirement, she worked as a nurse in hospitals in Durham NC and Cleveland OH, at Triangle Hospice in Durham, and at Carol Woods Retirement Home in Chapel Hill.  She is also an award-winning quilter.
	Vicki Smith Prior to becoming the Executive Director of Disability Rights North Carolina, Vicki Smith, CEO/President, was the primary trainer for Disability Advocacy Training & Technical Assistance (DATA), a 501(c) (3) organization.  While at DATA, Smith was a consultant to the Governor’s Office during the redesignation of North Carolina’s Protection and Advocacy System.  Smith was the Deputy Director of the National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems for ten years.  Smith has extensive experience working with groups that include broad based representation of individuals with different abilities including those with intellectual disabilities, hearing and visual impairments, and mental illness.   Smith has a Master in Early Childhood Early Intervention and taught special education for 13 years in rural West Virginia.  Smith has a disability.
	Tish Thomas, MS, is the Project Director for the CMS Person-Centered Planning Implementation Grant for the University of Missouri at Kansas City Institute for Human Development and the Department of Mental Health. She has 25 years of experience in aging and mental health. Her areas of interest include quality of life and the promotion of community-based services.
	Ed Walsh has had the privilege of assisting folks with Intellectual and Developmental Needs in North Carolina for 20 years. He is currently excited to provide support to folks with RHA/Howell Care Centers in Greensboro NC.  Prior to that, he learned much with his time at Gaston-Lincoln Area Program (now Pathways) and Cape Fear Group Homes in Wilmington. He has a long commitment to assisting folks to build better lives and enhance the communities that they live in. In the process he has served in roles including direct support, case management residential management, job development, administrative and program development. Prior to this life he completed his degree at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah GA and was a teacher with Savannah-Chatham Public Schools along with many other endeavors.
	Mike Weaver is a peer-someone who began his recovery journey in 1987 after a diagnosis of bi-polar disorder.  He has a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration, is a certified Peer Support Specialist, Recovery Educator, WRAP facilitator and Qualified Professional.  His career as a public school teacher included recognition for excellence by receiving awards as Teacher of the Year and mentor teacher.  After a short stint as a school administrator, he found his true passion working as a crisis counselor.  It was at that time in 1995, that he began to supervise peers.  He has continued his work serving and helping peers as a recovery educator and director of services such as Community Support, Assertive Community Treatment, Day Treatment for children, and in developing peer support groups in several counties.  He served as the President of NAMI in Guilford County , board member of NAMI NC and chair of the NAMI NC Consumer Council and now serves on the board of  NAMI Charlotte.  He is the currently the Program Director for Mecklenburg’s Promise an entirely peer staffed organization dedicated to providing quality wellness/recovery education and services.  His commitment is assisting others who want to explore their hopes and dreams and find more meaning, purpose and enjoyment in life.
	Brett Webb-Mitchell is a Presbyterian pastor, an advocate with people with disabilities in communities of faith, and a pilgrim.  Dr. Webb-Mitchell has been ordained for over twenty-five years in the Presbyterian Church (USA), having worked as an interim pastor in several North Carolina churches.  In his work, worship, advocacy and play with people with disabilities, Dr. Webb-Mitchell has a broad experience of integrating people with disabilities in local, national, and international arenas.  He is the author of four books on persons with disabilities in communities of faith including God Plays Piano, Too (1993); Unexpected Guests at God's Banquet (1994 and re-issued in 2009); Dancing with Disabilities (1999); and his soon to be published Beyond Accessibility: Toward Full Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Faith Communities (Seabury Press, 2010).  Dr. Webb-Mitchell is also the Director of The School of the Pilgrim, an educational outreach programs that takes people of all faiths on pilgrimage around the world, enabling people to find their inward bound path right where they are (www.schoolofthepilgrim.com).
	Nancy R. Weiss, MSW has worked in the disabilities field for over thirty years. Prior to her affiliation with the University of Delaware, she was the Executive Director of TASH, an international advocacy association committed to full inclusion for people with disabilities. Ms. Weiss also served as an adjunct faculty member at Johns Hopkins University and was the Director of Community Services for the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore. Ms. Weiss is the former Executive Director of Community Systems, Inc., an agency providing progressive supports for adults with disabilities in Delaware. Ms. Weiss advocates for person-centered, ethical, and humane supports; she has written and spoken extensively on these topics.
	Rae Williams is the Trainer for the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s Division of Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities.  For five years her role has been to train and educate providers, staff and individuals about the best practices in Supported Education, Core Values, Abuse Prevention, Crisis Prevention & Intervention and Sexuality Education.  In 2007, our Branch collaborated with these regional centers to develop and implement community-based crisis prevention and intervention services for adults with I/DD.  Rae Williams holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Kentucky.  She has fourteen years of experience working in the Cabinet for Families and Children.  As a volunteer for she demonstrates her enthusiasm for community inclusion and education.
	Stacey Williams, BA, is the Residential Supervisor at Hope Center in Fulton, Missouri. She has been supervising employees for over eight years.  Her areas of interest are wellness recovery planning and helping clients move toward empowerment and self-sufficiency. She is certified as a Wellness Recovery Action Plan Facilitator.  She received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Columbia College in Columbia, Missouri.