Melissa M. Houser
Dr. Mel Houser (she/they) is a Board-certified family physician and an expert in neuro-inclusive healthcare and employment, as well as the brain science of mental health.
Archives Speakers
Alexina Federhen
Alexina created a non-profit, The Feel Better Way, to provide information and resources to young adults struggling with mental health issues. Alexina was selected as Miss Vermont in 2022, and dedicated her year of service to mental health advocacy.
Nick Nichols
Nick Nichols, MSW, is the Suicide Prevention Program Coordinator at the Vermont Department of Health and oversees the work of a Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Grant funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Sonny Provetto
Sonny Provetto, LICSW, is an Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing International Association (EMDRIA)-approved trauma consultant, certified EMDR clinician, and trainer for police, fire, and EMS — nationally and internationally.
Kevin J. Crowley
Dr. Crowley’s research to date has emphasized brief interventions for reducing shame and suicide risk, understanding suicide “drivers,” and considerations for optimizing the effectiveness of suicide-focused training.
Deborah Weidner
Dr. Weidner’s mission is to save lives through the aspirational goal of zero deaths by suicide and opiate overdose.
Marissa Sicley-Rogers
Marissa Sicley-Rogers, Psy.D, is the Coordinator of the Institute of Living’s Psychological Testing Service in Hartford, CT, where she supervises psychological assessment for pre-doctoral interns and postdoctoral fellows.
Matt Dove
Matt Dove is a dual-certified Nurse Practitioner in Family Medicine (FNP-C) and Psychiatric Mental Health (PMHNP-BC).
Pete Cudney
Pete Cudney is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has focused his career on understanding child development, attachment, and the impacts of trauma.
Cris Rowan
Cris Rowan is a pediatric occupational therapist, biologist, international speaker, and author passionate about changing how children use technology.
Prachi Kene
Dr. Kene is a Professor in the Department of Counseling, Educational Leadership, and School Psychology at Rhode Island College (RIC).
Shawna Hite-Jones
Shawna Hite-Jones, MPH, MCHES, provides project management, one-on-one consultation, facilitation of learning events, and resource development with the Education Development Center focused on community, school, and state-level suicide prevention.
Julie Ebin
Julie Ebin, EdM, leads projects on state- and community-level suicide prevention at Education Development Center, including their Community-Led Suicide Prevention project and the Suicide Prevention Resource Center project’s Recommendations for State Suicide Prevention Infrastructure.
Peggy Darling
Peggy has been privileged to work with children and their families for over 35 years. During retirement from her full-time role, she continues researching topics for which she is passionate. In 2022 she authored and published her first book, Discover DBT Create a Life Worth Living: Dialectical Behavior Therapy is the Proven 6-Month Solution to Escape Negativity.
Eileen Barendse
Eileen Barendse is a former educator, current Co-Lead of the Vermont Chapter of Moms Demand Action, and the State Lead for the BeSMART program.
Terri Lavely, MS
Terri Lavely, MS AFSP VT Chapter board Bio: Terri Lavely MS, QMHP has been employed at Northeast Kingdom Human Services Inc (NKHS) since 2004, supporting the mental health needs of the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont in a variety of different…
Kheya Ganguly M.A.
Kheya Ganguly M.A. Director of Trauma Prevention and Resilience Development Vermont Department Of Mental Health Bio: Kheya Ganguly is currently the Director of Trauma Prevention and Resilience Development for the State of Vermont. She is an experienced teacher and trainer…
Ryan Price, MPA
Ryan Price, MPA Area Director American Foundation For Suicide Prevention Vermont Chapter Bio: Ryan is a nonprofit leader who has spent over a decade working in various roles at voluntary health nonprofit organizations. In his role as Director of Chapter…
Cheryl Gagne, Sc.D.
Cheryl Gagne, Sc.D. Senior Associate C4 Innovations Bio: Cheryl Gagne is a senior associate at C4 Innovations. Her areas of interest and expertise are workforce training and development, especially peer workers, transforming behavioral health programs and systems to promote recovery,…
Nina Gutin, Ph.D.
Nina Gutin, Ph.D. Clinical Psychologist Didi Hirsch Suicide Prevention Center Bio: Nina J. Gutin, Ph.D. is a Clinical Psychologist in private practice in Pasadena, California. She conducts trainings in Suicide Assessment, Intervention, and Postvention facilitates “Survivors After Suicide” groups for…
Kristy Hommel, M. Ed. ECE
Kristy Hommel is a Reducing Traumatic Stress for Children in the Emergency Department trainer and loves it.
Tripti Sharma, MA LPC
Tripti Sharma, MA LPC Senior Trainer Partners for Children’s Mental Health Bio: Tripti Sharma MA, LPC is a Senior Trainer at Partners for Children’s Mental Health. A graduate of the University of Northern Colorado, she spent nearly a decade working…
Yvette Bonilla, LMSW
Yvette Bonilla, LMSW Owner and CEO Suicide Care Consulting Services, LLC Bio: Yvette Bonilla, LMSW, is the Owner and CEO of Suicide Care Consulting Services. She has seen firsthand the fateful effects of the revolving door effect and how it…
Heather White
After nearly losing her life to post-partum depression and suicide, Heather White dedicated her personal and professional life to mental health advocacy and suicide prevention efforts.
Maureen Monahan, PhD
Dr. Monahan is a Project Administrator at the Suicide Prevention– Training, Implementation & Evaluation (SP-TIE) Program at the Center for Practice Innovations at New York State Psychiatric Institute and Assistant Professor of Clinical Medical Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University. She assists in the development, dissemination, and evaluation of suicide prevention programming for mental health professionals across New York State.
Kelly Posner, PhD
Dr. Kelly Posner is a Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University and her work is saving lives all over the globe. The former President of the American Psychiatric Association noted her work with the Columbia Protocol could be “like the introduction of antibiotics.” The U.S. Department of Defense said her work is “nothing short of a miracle” and that "her effective model of improving the world will help propel us closer to a world without suicide.” The CDC noted that her work is “changing the paradigm in suicide risk assessment in the US and worldwide.”
Matthew MacNeil, M.A., M.Ed., Ed.D., LCMHC (he/him)
Matthew MacNeil is the Director of Evaluation and Co-Chair of the Staff Wellness Committee for Howard Center. He is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor in the state of Vermont.
Jodi Girouard, B.A. in Education and English, PWLE (she/her)
I have a book entitled, Living with the Neighbors coming out as an ebook in August of 2021. It is a journey through what it is like to live through my mental illness.
Lisa Horowitz
Dr. Lisa Horowitz is a Pediatric Psychologist and a Senior Associate Scientist at the National Institute of Mental Health at NIH.
Susan Swindell, Licensed Psychologist–Master (she/her)
Sue Swindell is a Licensed Psychologist and has worked in community mental health for more than 30 years. She believes fervently in the principles of hope, relationship, respect, and recovery.
Cheryl Sharp, MSW, ALWS (she/her)
Cheryl S. Sharp, MSW, ALWF is CEO of Sharp Change Consulting, Inc. Prior to creating Sharp Change she created and led the National Council for Behavioral Health’s Trauma-Informed Care initiatives as Senior Advisor as well as Advisor for Suicide Prevention efforts.
Mercedes Avila, PhD (she/her)
Dr. Maria Mercedes Avila holds an appointment as an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics in the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont. She is the Director of the Vermont Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (VT LEND) Program, an interprofessional maternal and child health leadership training program.
Stan Collins, NREMT (he/his)
Stan Collins has worked in the field of suicide prevention for over 20 years since losing a friend to suicide in high school. Currently he is working as a consultant, focusing on technical assistance in creation and implementation of suicide prevention curricula and strategies.
Simone Arnold, MC, QMHP (they/them) Adult Outpatient Therapist LCMHS
Simone Arnold is currently employed as an adult outpatient therapist through Lamoille County Mental Health Services (LCMHS) in Vermont working with a wide range of clients.
Tracy Binet-Perrin, M. Ed (she/her)
Tracy Binet-Perrin, M. Ed serves as an elementary school counselor in a K-6 school in Brattleboro, VT, and has been fortunate to work in education for the past 20 years in different roles.
Annalisa MacDonald, LCMHC (she/her)
Annalisa MacDonald, LCMHC is the Assistant Director of the School Services Program for Howard Center.
Mark Gebo, M.Ed. (he/him)
Mark Gebo is a School Counselor with the Bellows Falls Union High School and a Crisis Intervention Specialist (QMHP) with Health Care and Rehabilitation Services.
Amelia Franck Meyer, Ed.D, LISW (she/her)
Dr. Amelia Franck Meyer is the founder and CEO of the national non-profit, Alia: Innovations for people and systems impacted by childhood trauma. Amelia and Team Alia are leading a national movement to keep children safe with, not from, their families.
Rachael Comeau, EdD (she/her)
Rachael Comeau is the former Assistant Director of the Vermont Child Health Improvement Program in the Department of Pediatrics at the UVM Larner College of Medicine.
Shelby Rowe, MBA (she/her)
Shelby Rowe is the program manager for the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, an award-winning artist, mother of three sons and suicide attempt survivor. She is the recipient of the 2021 American Association of Suicidology Transforming Lived Experience Award and the 2016 Chickasaw Nation Dynamic Woman of the Year.