PSP Certification

Background

The Certification Commission is:

Verlyn “Vee” Boyd is the Executive Director of the Louisiana Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health (LAFFCMH) in Baton Rouge, where she has volunteered and worked for almost  20 years.  She started one of the first statewide family networks.   Vee has represented the parent voice on numerous committees, boards and coalitions, both locally and nationally.  Through local, state and national workshops and conferences she met and made numerous contacts that evolved into friends, confidants, and mentors.  It was through these training opportunities and individuals that she gained a wealth of information that she readily shares with both parents and professionals.

Vee is the mother of two children with mental health issues, who has successful transition into adulthood. She still remains dedicated to advocating for and supporting children and youth with mental health challenges and their families.

Kathleen Ferreira, Ph.D. is a Research Assistant Professor within the Department of Child and Family Studies and is currently involved in several research, evaluation, and technical assistance projects.  She is Principal Investigator of an evaluation for the Trauma Recovery Initiative with Children’s Home Society of Florida, a five-year federally funded project through the SAMHSA National Child Traumatic Stress Initiative Center. Kathleen is also Co-Investigator for a 4-year evaluation of the federally funded Healthy Transitions Initiative, working with ICF International to examine implementation of transition services for youth and young adults dealing with mental health challenges. She also works with ICF International on the Children’s Mental Health Initiative (CMHI) National Evaluation, assisting communities in the development and use of theory-driven logic models to build community capacity for system development. In addition, Kathleen serves as Qualitative Methodologist for Development of an Intervention Model to Improve Educational Outcomes of Youth in Foster Care by Decreasing Runaway Behavior (RUN), a research project funded through the Institute of Educational Sciences (U.S. Department of Education).

Recent research includes the completion of a study examining the structures, processes and relationships that support and impede system level service planning and delivery decisions for families within systems of care—Actualizing Empowerment: Developing a Framework for Partnering with Families in System Level Service Planning and Delivery. Other recent activities include New Communities System Development, a project with the American Institutes for Research to develop materials and facilitate training and technical assistance for system of care communities who are developing service systems for youth with serious emotional disturbance.

In addition to these research and technical assistance projects, Kathleen is co-instructor of MHS 7740, Survey Course in Mental Health Planning, Evaluation, and Accountability, and has served as Education Director for Online Learning in Children’s Mental Health. Kathleen has extensive hands-on experience in the field of mental health, first as an educator, then a Director of Education and Program Director within a community-based mental health agency prior to joining the Department of Child and Family Studies.

Conni Wells is the owner and manager of The Axis Group I, LLC in Butler, Tennessee.  She is the parent, grandparent, and family member of children, youth, and adults with special health care needs, including mental and emotional disorders.  She founded The Axis Group I as a vehicle to provide consultation and publish information about management of non-profit corporations, conflict resolution, disaster planning and response for special populations, and building sustainability capacity. From 1989 until 2009, Connie held various management positions in non-profit corporations in Florida, California, and New Mexico that addressed the needs of families and advocated the use of peer to peer support. She has also worked as a national technical assistance specialist for family-run organizations.

Conni has served on many grant review panels for the federal government.  She is often used as a national speaker in conferences addressing planning, grant writing, non-profit organization management, and policy transformation. She is the author of Straight Talk:  Families Speak to Families about Child and Youth Mental Health.