The Wingspan Project (TWP) is a not for profit 501(c)(3) corporation. Our mission is to make mental health and related services available to underserved, marginalized, and/or disenfranchised people through organizational and individual capacity building. We are most notably dedicated to supporting services to people who have experienced discrimination and stigma and to those whose identities and communities are particularly vulnerable to systems of oppression. Our name is reflective of the scope and breadth of our initiatives; that like the span of wings in flight, our programs span a number of areas related to mental health and wellbeing. In addition, our name was inspired by a poem by Mary Oliver about wild geese. In the poem, she speaks of the importance of being able to follow one’s heart and live one’s life to the fullest, finding hope through the enduring cycles of nature. Oliver encourages each of us, no matter who we love, no matter how lonely we are, no matter how much we despair, to remember we have a place in the world. The Wingspan Project, through our various programs and initiatives, also seeks to provide messages of hope and support to those of us who can most benefit from mental health and related services but might be least likely to have access to them.

As a consultant at UCAN since 1987, I have been involved in many different capacities with many of the organization's programs. These have included but are not limited to:•curriculum development/program development for human resources•curriculum development for the agency's clinical philosophy•consultation to residential services for children and adolescents•supervision to the agency's social work staff (toward licensure)•clinical consultation to staff serving pregnant/parenting teens•clinical consultation to the organization's clinical counseling program

In January of 2018, I stepped down from the position of CEO at Live Oak, and remained as one of the Co-Founders and as the Senior Advisor to the organization's current CEO. In this role, in addition to providing psychotherapy, I provided consultation to the current management around financial management, organizational development, and program development. I also provided consultation, training, and supervision to other mental health professionals and social service organizations.

In 2004, Bruce Koff and I founded Live Oak. We are a community of helping professionals working together to enhance the emotional, psychological and spiritual well being of individuals, families, organizations and communities. As the CEO of Live Oak, some of my duties include:•strategic planning and growth•fiscal planning and management•organizational development and program planning•quality assurance•leadership management and mentoring•curriculum development and professional training/consultation*direct practice/psychotherapy (individuals, couples, family, & group)*clinical supervision

During these years, I developed the curriculum for three courses: Introduction to Trauma Informed Practice, Advanced Seminar on Trauma and Violence, and Advanced Seminar in Contemporary Group Practice. The Group Practice course is designed to be a combination of theory, practice, and application of the principles of social group work and group psychotherapy. The Violence and Trauma courses explored the most current practice strategies in the treatment of violence and trauma, combining traditional evidenced based practices with newer interventions based on principles of neurobiology.

The Chicago Training Collaborative was created to develop and implement a comprehensive clinical training program on affirmative practice with LGBTQ individuals and their families. The agencies involved in the collaboration included The Center on Halsted, Howard Brown Health Center, and The Chicago Center for Family Health. Along with colleagues Margo Jacquot, Bruce Koff, Barb Kelly, and Theo Pintzuk, a year-long program was developed comprised of five modules of study. I participated in developing and implementing workshops on the following topics:•Affirmative practice with LGBTQ individuals/families•LGBTQ youth•Trauma and the LGBTQ Community

At Jane Addams College of Social Work (JACSW) I developed and taught a semester long course (twice each year) entitled: Child and Adolescent Mental Health. In addition to teaching biopsychosocial assessment and multiaxial diagnosis, I expanded the course to include vulnerability factors for mental health concerns in children and adolescents including: trauma and violence, homelessness, substance use and abuse, and variations in gender identity and sexual orientation.

In the years I was at Teen Living Programs, my responsibilities included, but were not limited to:•management of all programs serving runaway and homeless youth•organizational development•human resources management and development •program development, implementation, and evaluation•quality assurance•leadership management and mentoring•grant writing (city, state, and federal)•fiscal management for all youth programs

As one of the first therapists at The Center for Contextual Change when it was founded in 1993, my responsibilities included, but were not limited to:•individual, couples, family, and group psychotherapy •group psychotherapy for adult male survivors of childhood abuse•group psychotherapy for adult men convicted of sex offenses•workshop development and training for community-based agencies•consultation and training for community based agencies•new program development•community relations/marketing of new programming

Hired initially as Director of Therapeutic Recreation at Lawrence Hall School for Boys, I participated in the merging of this agency with Mary Bartelme Homes and Services for girls. Both organizations were over 100 years old at the time of the merger and at that time, my position expanded to manage the training and staff development of over 500 staff people coming together from two agencies and two vastly different organizational cultures. My responsibilities included, but were not limited to:•program development, implementation and evaluation•management of multidisciplinary activity therapy program•human resources training and development•new staff orientation and training•consultation with other agencies re: creative/expressive therapies•direct programming for at-risk youth ages 6-21

I was hired at The University of Toledo to develop a graduate and undergraduate program in therapeutic recreation. While there, I developed the following courses:•Introduction to Therapeutic Recreation•Principles of Therapeutic Recreation•Systems Programming in Therapeutic Recreation•Assessment Strategies in Therapeutic Recreation•Therapeutic Recreation and Mental Health•Therapeutic Recreation and Substance Abuse•Therapeutic Recreation and Criminal Justice (Juvenile and Adult)In addition to curriculum development, my responsibilities included, but were not limited to:•workshops and training to community-based agencies•university committee membership•field placement site development and supervision of students

Initially hired as the Recreation Coordinator for this child welfare organization serving primarily adolescents in group homes, foster care, and independent living arrangements, I was promoted to the Director of Therapeutic Group Homes, where I provided program development and supervision for five community-based group homes located in the Bloomington-Normal area. At the time, Kaleidoscope had a "no-decline" policy; the agency accepted all youth referred and was committed to serving some of the most difficult to place youth in the state of Illinois. Several years after leaving Kaleidoscope, the Bloomington-Normal Regions was closed, though the Chicago region currently continues to serve young people in the child welfare system.

After obtaining my Bachelor's Degree in Therapeutic Recreation, my first position was at Adler Mental Health Center, the only free-standing state funded child and adolescent psychiatric hospital in Illinois. Located in Champaign and associated with the University of Illinois, it was seen as one of the flagship treatment centers for children and adolescents in the state. My primary role there was as an Activity Therapist, providing creative, expressive, and other activity programming for youth ages 5-18. I left Adler when statewide mental health cuts resulted in its closure in 1982.