Advisory Board

Dr. Ryan Kirk is a Licensed Psychologist and Director of Psychological Services for Meridian Health Services, working remotely from Denver, Colorado. 

He has conducted trainings around continuous process improvement models targeting rapid improvement projects and whole-organization culture shifts. He has a background in specialized clinical interventions such as psychological and neuropsychological assessment, pediatric and family medicine, and a biofeedback certification for pain management. In his current role, Dr. Kirk oversees quality assurance for documentation and evidence-based clinical practices and drives integrated care initiatives to better serve vulnerable populations. His efforts center on developing real-time behavioral health consultation programs within primary care and addressing physical health needs during behavioral health visits.

Dr. Kirk holds a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Adler University and a Master’s in Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis. An avid runner, snowboarder and guitarist, he brings a well-rounded perspective to his mental health leadership roles.

Kim Anderson, PhD, MSSW, is a professor in the School of Social Work (SSW) and the Public Affairs (PAF) Doctoral program at the University of Central Florida, where she teaches clinical practice and evaluation courses, qualitative methods, social inquiry, and public policy. Dr. Anderson is the Co-Director of the Center for Behavioral Health Research and Training. For 30 years, Dr. Anderson conducted research in the trauma field, including evaluating service delivery and impact. Dr. Anderson has worked with several social service agencies regarding community needs assessments, program evaluations, and implementation of best practices.

Dr. Mindy Eaves is Chair and Program Director of the School of Social Work at Kentucky State University, Kentucky’s only public HBCU, a Whitney M. Young Scholar, Advisory Board Member of Continued, consultant for the Wellness Group ETC, co-editor of The A to Z Self-Care Handbook for Social Workers and other Helping Professionals, (Grise-Owens, Miller, & Eaves, 2016, Eds.) Dr. Eaves has over 17 years of experience in the areas of ombudsing, leadership, administration, education, child welfare, community mental health, and advocacy.

Dr. Eaves’ passion is equity, teaching, and sustainability of social workers with specific attention to disparity, blackness, identity, cultural inclusivity, and practicing radical self-care as a guiding principle. Dr. Eaves is a Kentucky Board Certified Social Worker and proud graduate of the University of St. Thomas DSW program where teaching is practice.  Additionally, she graduated with an MSW from Spalding University and a BA in Sociology with Certificates in Pan African Studies and Criminal Justice Administration from the University of Louisville. 

Dr. Eaves is a proud Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and Phi Alpha Honor Society member.  She is a past recipient of the Cabinet for Health & Families Award for Excellence, Social Worker of the Year, and Kentucky Court of Justice KLEO Award. 

Dr. Sherry Courtney received her MD from the University of Kansas School of Medicine. She did her residency and neonatal fellowship at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. She has a Masters of Science in Clinical Research and Statistical Analysis from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She has published widely in the areas of neonatal respiratory care, especially high-frequency ventilation and non-invasive ventilation. Currently, she is Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Director of Clinical Research for Neonatology at the University and at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock.

From the streets of Newark, New Jersey, having two incarcerated parents to featured on PBS’s Emmy award-winning show, Virginia Currents. Quniana Futrell, also known as “Author Q.”, is a real success story and champion for change. Quniana is an educational specialist in early childhood education and she is the founder and executive director of Building Resilience in Communities, which is a nonprofit organization that focuses on restoring hope to families impacted by incarceration. Quniana captivates audiences from all over the world, from the United States to Uganda, with her straightforward and realistic methods to resilience and healing. She builds champions from the inside out using her proven methods. Quniana has been recognized by both international and local media outlets for her work. She is a captivating keynote speaker and filmmaker known for shaking up the norm and healing families.

This proven Children’s Champion’s motto is; Change the Family, Change the World.

Giselle Levin, PsyD (they/she/he), is a licensed psychologist in the state of California specializing in transgender healthcare and sex therapy. Giselle completed their doctorate at Pace University in New York, NY, and trained as a postdoctoral resident in LGBT mental health at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. They currently work as a gender specialist at the University of California San Francisco –Child and Adolescent Gender Center. Giselle is a member of UCSF’s Mind the Gap consortium of gender-affirming providers for youth and is in the process of completing their AASECT sex therapy and WPATH transgender healthcare certifications. 

Dr. Madell is a licensed audiologist and speech-language pathologist, as well as a LSLS auditory verbal therapist. Her clinical and research interests include hearing in infants and children, management severe/profound hearing loss, including HA’s, CI’s, FM’s, and auditory processing disorders. She has published 5 books, numerous book chapters, and articles. She writes the Hearing and Kids section of the HearingHealthMatters.org blog. Dr Madell presents nationally and internationally on topics related to hearing loss in children.

Deanna Metropoulos is a licensed clinical psychologist. She earned her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degrees in psychology at the University of Denver. Before completing her internship and forensic psychology fellowship at Saint Elizabeth's Hospital, Dr. Metropoulos worked with diverse populations at various forensic locations, including an emergency shelter, a day program for adults with severe and persistent mental illnesses, a halfway home for individuals with dual diagnosis, a jail-based competency restoration program, a maximum-security correctional facility, a substance abuse clinic for individuals on parole or probation, and a civil inpatient state hospital. Currently, Dr. Metropoulos continues her work in a forensic inpatient hospital, providing treatment and conducting forensic evaluations. She is an active member of the Ethics committee and facilitates the Ethics seminar for our pre-doctoral interns. Dr. Metropoulos is licensed in Washington, D.C. and Virginia.

Dr. Matt Moore earned his BA from Hanover College and his MSW and Ph.D. from Indiana University. He is an Assistant Professor and BSW Program Director in the Department of Social Work at Ball State University and the President of the Alliance of Social Workers in Sports. Dr. Moore is a former NCAA tennis player, former college coach, and has coached varsity high school teams for over a decade. Dr. Moore's research focuses on the integration of social work in sports from a macro perspective (e.g., policy and organizational development). Dr. Moore wrote the first-ever Social Work in Sports textbook (released 2018), has several publications on Sport Social Work, and has presented at several dozen national and international conferences. He currently represents ASWIS on the NCAA Task Force on Sleep Disorders and Wellness and is overseeing the Substance Use and Abuse Survey for the NAIA. Dr. Moore was the recipient of the 2017 Excellence in Teaching Award at Ball State University and a 2019 Fulbright Scholarship Award. He teaches macro social work courses covering policy, research, and non-profit development.

Alison D. Peak, LCSW is the Executive Director of Allied Behavioral Health Solutions in Nashville, TN. Alison has spent the majority of her career dedicated to two primary passions: integrated behavioral health services in primary care settings and Infant Mental Health. Alison is privileged to be a member of ZERO TO THREE 2020-2022 Fellows and to work alongside state and national colleagues to further Infant and Early Childhood services and workforce development.  Clinically, Alison is passionate about working with families with children who are adopted, who have histories of early trauma, and families with infants/very young children.

Dr. John Smith is the Director of Education and Training at Social Model Recovery Systems (SMRS). He has been a Professor of Addiction Counseling at Mt. San Antonio College since 2000, and he has also been in Private Practice in California since 2000. Dr. Smith has over 40 years of experience working with mental health and addictions, and he is the author of “Co-occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Disorders: A Practitioner’s Guide.” He is the “Best-Selling” author of “The Authentic Man: A Guide to Happiness and Purpose.”

Dr. Sotor is a licensed Clinical Psychologist based in Chicago, with over 10 years of experience providing evidence-based behavioral therapies. Notably, he is a DBT-Linehan Board of Certification Certified Clinician, underscoring his expertise in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). As the founder of Chicago Behavior Therapy, he offers not only therapy services but also professional consultation and clinical training. He is known for his clarity in communicating complex concepts, Dr. Sotor is proficient in bridging theory and practical application in his presentations.

Nicole Steward is a social worker and registered yoga teacher (RYT) with a focus on community engagement, public education, foster youth advocacy, and trauma-informed yoga.  With more than a decade of social work practice in non-profits and K-12 education, Nicole has noticed the need for radical self-care to discharge toxic stress we absorb through our work. This awareness drives her to study trauma as well as the ways yoga and mindfulness affect our brains and bodies, keeping us engaged and renewed. Nicole teaches yoga, mindfulness, and offers self-care workshops and retreats. Nicole believes self-care is a way of being we must adopt if we are to sustain ourselves as service providers, educators  and  human beings.