Peter R. Correia III, MSW; Director
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Cultural Diversity • Child Welfare • Team Building

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.
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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.
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TeRessa Kaemmerling, MSW; Assistant Program Director
Fields of Expertise: Residential Services • Independent Living • Strategic Planning

TeRessa is responsible for the management of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) 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 of social work degree from The University of Oklahoma.
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Jean Carpenter-Williams, MS, CYC-P; Director of Training Development
Fields of Expertise: Youth Worked Development • Trauma Informed Care • Residential Issues

Jean has been with The University of Oklahoma’s 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.
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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.
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Kathy Chamberlain, BS; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Therapeutic Foster Care • Permanency • Child Welfare • Adoptions • Transition Planning • Tribal Foster Care

Kathy works under a contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program as an IL Specialist. She provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers, community collaborators and young adults. She also coordinates area and statewide projects including group work and case management. Kathy also assists in providing life skills training through teen conferences, youth service boards and seminars. She works closely with the OKDHS SWIFT Adoption unit in Area V to help place older youth for adoption through matching party. Kathy has twenty-one years of experience in working at OKDHS and is a certified trainer for Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment, S.T.A.R.T. (Trauma Informed Care), Creative Life Skills, Person Centered Planning, and Residential Child and Youth Care Professional. She earned her bachelor of science degree from Northeastern State University.
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James C. Daman, MSW; Program Development Specialist
Fields of Expertise: Capacity Building • Substance Abuse • Program & Proposal Development

James helps manage online training for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Training Center. He also assists with report writing, evaluating literature, and researching emerging trends and promising practices for working with youth. James provides expertise in using technology to manage projects for NRCYS. James has a master's degree in social work from the University of Oklahoma and has worked in the youth services field as a resident youth care worker and substance abuse counselor.
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Velina L. Davenport, MPH; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Public Health Education • Human Sexuality • Kinship Care • Foster Care • Adoption

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.
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Matthew Ferree, BA; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Group Homes • Housing • Transition Planning

Matt works under a contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program as a statewide IL Specialist. He provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers, community collaborators and young adults. He also coordinates area and statewide projects including group work and case management. Matt is a certified trainer for Residential Child and Youth Care Professional and Managing Aggressive Behavior. He has direct care experience working in hospital, day treatment and residential settings. Matt has bachelor or arts degrees in psychology and criminology from The University of Oklahoma.
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Clay Finck, MSEd, LCPC; Program Director
Fields of Expertise: Youth Advisory Boards • GLBTQ Issues • Youth Development/Independent Living • Permanency for Adolescents • Managing Aggressive Behavior • Ansell Casey Life Skills Assessment

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.
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Onreka Givens, BA; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Direct Care • Child Advocacy • Youth Service Boards • Community Collaboration • Program Development

Onreka works under the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program as an IL Specialist. She provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers, community collaborators and young adults. She also coordinates area and statewide projects including group work and case management, and she is a certified Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment and Residential Youth and Child Care Professional trainer. Onreka has direct care experience working with youth in E-level group homes. She participates in community collaborations with youth focused organizations and boards and the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy Fall Forum. Onreka has additional experience in foster care and adoption home assessments and is an active Court Appointed Special Advocate. Onreka has a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy with a minor in pre-law from The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC.
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Maya Hering, MBA; Program Development Specialist II
Fields of Expertise: Outreach • Peer Education • Staff Development, Training, and Supervision • Rural Programming • Runaway and Homeless Youth

Maya Hering is responsible for the planning, coordination and implementation of Technical Assistance for FYSB funded RHY grantee programs. Maya also gathers information and analyzes data associated with program specific projects to disseminate to the field on emerging trends and promising practices for working with runaway and homeless youth. Maya is a certified trainer for Residential Child and Youth Care Professional, Youth Development: The Vital Link and Managing Aggressive Behavior Training programs. She has worked in youth services for more than 10 years with positions as an AmeriCorps work crew leader and a Runaway and Homeless Youth Street Outreach Program Supervisor. Maya has an Interdisciplinary Bachelor of Science degree from Humboldt State University and a Masters of Business Administration from American University.
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Susan Hull, BS; Program Development Specialist
Fields of Expertise: Database Administration • Reporting • Systems and Process Analysis • Communications

Susan works under a contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) and serves as a program development specialist for the Independent Living (IL) Program. She manages the IL databases, reporting, and web pages. Susan provides supervision to two conference specialists. She earned a bachelor of science degree in management of information systems from the University of Tulsa.
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Joe E. Johnson, Conference Coordinator
Fields of Expertise: Meeting Planning • Conference Programming • Communications

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.
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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

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.
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Steven Mullen, BA, CTRS; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Managing Aggressive Behavior • Residential Care Issues • Recreational Therapy

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.
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Kristal S. Nicholson, MA, LPC; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Residential Care Issues • Managing Aggressive Behavior • Spiritual Development

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.
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Lupe Ortiz-Tovar, BA, Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Youth Leadership Development • Young Adult T/TA Network & Alumni Networks • Transition Planning

With a youth development and engagement focus, Lupe will administer the Young Adult Training and Technical Assistance Network, the summer internship and various opportunities that that YD offers for youth and alumni from the child welfare system. Lupe will oversee the Youth Port site and Social media efforts with a primary focus of the promotion of youth engagement and empowerment as a standard in child welfare practices. Lupe will also interact with Youth Advisory Boards, and partnering networks that work with a Youth Development focus.
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Laura Osbun, MS; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Direct Care • Life Skills • Case Management

Laura works under a contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program as an IL Specialist. She provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers, community collaborators and young adults. She also coordinates area and statewide projects including group work and case management. Laura is a certified Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment, S.T.A.R.T. (Trauma Informed Care), and Residential Child and Youth Care Professional trainer. Previously, Laura has worked as direct care staff and case manager in a group home setting serving adolescent girls. Laura has a master’s degree in behavioral science from Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma.
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Mary Catherine Plank, MHR; Program Development Specialist
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Case Management • Child Advocacy

Mary provides services to eligible youth through the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program and the Yes I Can! Program. These services are designed to help youth transition to adulthood and to assist young adults leaving foster care. Services include case management and referral to other community resources. Mary 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.
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Jennifer Price, MSW, LCSW; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: School-based Social Work • Domestic Violence Intervention and Advocacy

Jennifer works in the Resource Family Training Program and is involved with curriculum development and the implementation of the statewide training of kinship, foster, and adoptive parents for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. Jennifer has worked for Domestic Violence Intervention Services as an advocate and for Tulsa Public Schools as a school social worker. She received her master of social work degree from The University of Oklahoma and is a licensed clinical social worker.
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Heather Ratliff, BA; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • National Youth in Transition Database • Child Welfare

Heather works under a contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program as an IL Specialist. She is the National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD) Team Lead and is responsible for statewide survey completion of certain youth at ages 19 and then again at 21. Heather provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers, community collaborators and young adults. She also coordinates area and statewide projects including group work and case management. She previously worked on NYTD for OKDHS as a Child Welfare Specialist III. Heather received a bachelor of arts degree in anthropology from The University of Oklahoma.
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Cynethia Rayford, M.Ed.; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Vocational and Educational Counseling • Separation and Placement • Cultural Diversity

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.
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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.
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Mitch Tindell, M.Ed; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Youth Service Boards • Transition Planning • Curriculum Development

Mitch works under a contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program as an IL Specialist. He provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers, community collaborators and young adults. He also coordinates area and statewide projects including group work and case management. Mitch's experience in youth development includes working for the Oklahoma State Department of Human Services as a child welfare specialist, as a supervisor in detention centers, and in wraparound services. He is a certified Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment, Managing Aggressive Behavior (MAB), S.T.A.R.T. (Trauma Informed Care), and Residential Youth and Child Care Professional trainer. Mitch has a master’s degree in education from Southwestern Oklahoma State University.
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Lou Truitt, MHR; Program Supervisor
Fields of Expertise: Child Welfare Issues • Foster 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.
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Theresa West, BA; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Independent Living • Supervised Practice

Theresa works under a contract with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Independent Living (IL) Program and serves as an IL Specialist. She provides training, conducts assessments, and serves as a resource person for child welfare, tribes, care providers, community collaborators and young adults. She also coordinates area and statewide projects including group work and case management. Theresa has worked as a supervisor for Oklahoma Children’s Services and Director of a Day Treatment Program with Integris. She has also worked as a Director of an Independent Living Home through Youth and Family Services of North Central Oklahoma. Theresa is a certified trainer for Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessment, S.T.A.R.T. (Trauma Informed Care), and Residential Child and Youth Care Professional. Theresa earned her bachelor of arts degree in sociology, with a minor in psychology, from The University of Central Oklahoma.
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Lynne Wright, MHR; Trainer/Consultant
Fields of Expertise: Child Welfare• National Youth Transition Database • Community Collaborations

Lynne is Program Development Specialist with National Resource Center for Youth Development. She serves as a resource person for implementation of the National Youth in Transition Database. Lynne helps manage the Solutions Desk Community of Practice for Helping Youth Transition overseeing the website and coordinating interagency dialogue among states through Webinars and resource management. She also writes the Youth Development eUpdate and researches emerging trends and promising practices for developing and sustaining youth programs through interagency collaboration. Lynne has a master's degree in Human Relations from the University of Oklahoma. She has worked in the youth services field in prevention, child protective services, permanency planning, Resource Family Training, Child and Family Services Review, and as child welfare advisor for post adjudication review.
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