Gina Vincent is a Professor and Co-Director of the Law & Psychiatry Program at UMass Chan Medical School and a faculty of the Implementation Science & Practice Advances Research Center (iSPARC). She has received funding from NIMH, NIDA, NIJ, the MacArthur Foundation, and OJJDP for studies related to the implementation of risk assessment and risk-need-responsivity in juvenile justice settings. She is author of the Risk Assessment in Juvenile Probation: A Guidebook for Implementation manual. She has assisted multiple juvenile justice agencies across the country with the selection and comprehensive implementation of risk assessments for case planning and studies their effectiveness and impact on youth outcomes. She has over 70 publications in the areas of youth risk assessment, racial disparities in risk assessment, and adolescent substance misuse and mental health symptoms.
Thomas Grisso, a clinical and forensic psychologist, is Emeritus Professor at UMass Chan Medical School. His professional research and practice as focused on mental health and development of youth in contact with the juvenile and criminal justice system. As a NYSAP Partner, he manages technical assistance and training to states on mental health screening and assessment in juvenile justice settings, as well as assessments for forensic questions such as competence to stand trial. During his career, he has been President of the American Psychology-Law Society and Executive Director of the American Board of Forensic Psychology. He has received career achievement awards from major psychological and psychiatric associations nationally and internationally.
Ivan Kruh received his PhD in Clinical Psychology with a concentration in Psychology & Law from the University of Alabama in 1998 and subsequently completed fellowship training in forensic psychology through the University of Washington. For ten years, he was the Director of Juvenile Forensic Psychology for Washington State and directed a Juvenile Forensic Psychology fellowship through the University of Washington. He has offered juvenile forensic mental health evaluations privately in Massachusetts and New York since 2012. Dr. Kruh specializes in the conduct and coordination of evaluations of juvenile competency to proceed (JCTP) and has co-authored two manuals with Thomas Grisso regarding creation of state standards for these evaluations. He has provided training, quality assurance and technical assistance for a variety of state agencies nationally since 2010, all aimed at supporting the day-to-day provision of high quality juvenile forensic mental health evaluations.
Keith Cruise is Professor and Director of Clinical Training in the Department of Psychology at Fordham University and Co-Director of the Center for Trauma Recovery and Juvenile Justice (CTRJJ), a technical assistance center that is part of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). He holds a PhD in clinical psychology from the University of North Texas and a Masters of Legal Studies degree from the University of Nebraska. Dr. Cruise has received grant funding (NIJ, OJJDP, SAMHSA) to examine the effectiveness of enhanced mental health screening for poly-victimization, trauma-informed case planning, and the impact of trauma screening on service delivery and legal outcomes for justice-involved youth. Dr. Cruise has provided technical assistance and consultation to local and state juvenile justice systems around the country in implementing trauma-informed screening and assessment practices.
Amy Thornton, BS is the Administrative Assistant for NYSAP, LLC. Ms. Thornton has extensive administrative experience, having worked close to 30 years as an administrator. She has worked on multiple state contracts and research grants in juvenile justice settings, collaborating closing with psychologists, court clinicians, attorneys, faculty, and research staff across various state universities and departments, as well as many entities across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Ms. Kirkland serves as the Training Coordinator at NYSAP, LLC. With a decade of nationwide experience, she has demonstrated proficiency in providing exceptional training services to stakeholders, community members, and government officials. Within NYSAP, Ms. Kirkland offers comprehensive support, including coordination and assistance, to individuals and organizations seeking training services.
Cassandra (Jo) Beinemann received her Master’s degree in Forensic Psychology at Roger Williams University. She has conducted research in juvenile risk assessment and works as a Behavioral Specialist for an Outpatient Competency Restoration Program (OCRP). She provides risk/needs assessment training support for NYSAP, where she manages all the performance evaluations and certifications of staff newly trained on the YLS/CMI and SAVRY.
Kelly Clement retired in June 2015 from the Louisiana Office of Juvenile Justice (OJJ) after 28 years of service. He received his Master of Science in Criminal Justice from McNeese State University. He served as the Regional Manager of the New Orleans Regional Office after having risen through the ranks starting as a Probation Officer. Mr. Clement played an integral role in the MacArthur Foundation’s Models for Change reform efforts in Louisiana which focused on the expanding alternatives to formal processing and incarceration, increasing access to evidence‐based services, and reducing disproportionate minority contact with the juvenile justice system. He was the OJJ State Coordinator of their risk/needs assessment implementation, which included policy development, training, and quality improvement. Mr. Clement has served on several Children and Youth Planning Boards, numerous juvenile justice committees, and as an auditor for the American Correctional Association (ACA). He has assisted multiple juvenile justice agencies throughout the country with their risk/needs assessment and risk-need-responsivity implementation efforts.
Elizabeth (Beth) Fritz brings nearly 37 years’ experience in the juvenile justice field serving in several capacities, most recently as the Chief Juvenile Probation Officer in Lehigh County, Allentown, PA. Ms. Fritz has a B.S in Criminal Justice from Kutztown University and a M.S. in the Administration of Justice from Shippensburg University. Ms. Fritz was an integral part of the juvenile justice reform efforts throughout Pennsylvania as a member of the Juvenile Justice System Enhancement Strategy Leadership Team. She co-chaired the Chiefs’ and Case Plan Committee and was responsible for the guidance around implementation and application of several evidenced- based practices, including risk assessment and case planning, throughout Pennsylvania. As an associate of NYSAP, she has assisted in training and coaching jurisdictions on implementation of risk assessments and case planning practices consistent with risk-need-responsivity, including policy development, quality assurance protocols, and the practical application and strategies for sustainability.
Karli J. Keator has over 16 years’ experience supporting systems and practice improvement initiatives that improve life opportunities for youth with behavioral health conditions. She was formerly the Director of the National Center for Youth Opportunity and Justice and Vice President at Policy Research Associates, Inc. Ms. Keator has a Masters of Public Health from the University at Albany and is a current student at the University of Albany’s School of Social Welfare. In all aspects of her work, she invites reflection on the current state of practice through equal inclusion of data and lived experience; facilitates planning and implementation processes that reflect the empirical knowledge of what interventions work, for whom, and under what circumstances; and supports a workforce to skillfully engage with under-resourced, marginalized, and vulnerable communities. Ms. Keator’s expertise includes assisting communities with enhancing their service referral networks through critical intervention mapping and/or assets mapping, and with developing or enhancing a behavioral health crisis response continuum for youth.
Kathleen Kemp is an Associate Professor (Research) at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology with a specialization in forensic psychology from Drexel University in 2011 and completed a forensic psychology postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Virginia Institute of Law, Psychiatry, and Public Policy. She has served as the Director of the Rhode Island Family Court Mental Health Clinic for over nine years where she directs the Adolescent Forensic and Addiction Psychology fellowship and Juvenile Justice Behavioral Health internship positions. She specializes in the implementation of behavioral health screening in the legal system as well as conducting forensic evaluations including juvenile competency and risk assessments with adolescents involved with the juvenile legal system. Her federally funded research focuses on suicide prevention among youth involved in the juvenile justice system including training juvenile legal staff and clinicians in interventions to prevent suicide. Dr. Kemp has also consulted with justice and behavioral health partners nationally to conduct critical interventions mapping to collaboratively map local networks, identify areas of need, and find opportunities to drive system-change.
Christina Riggs Romaine is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Wheaton College, MA and Licensed Clinical Psychologist in Massachusetts with extensive experience in the juvenile justice system. She completed her post-doctoral fellowship in Forensic Psychology at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in collaboration with the Department of Youth Services, where she worked as an evaluator, trainer, and service provider in pre- and post-adjudication facilities, before working as a full-time forensic evaluator in the MA Court Clinics. Dr. Riggs Romaine studies juvenile’s comprehension of the Miranda warning, juvenile competency to stand trial, juvenile transfer, and risk in juveniles and young adults. She has worked with juvenile justice stakeholders across the country on projects ranging from local consultation and technical assistance to system-wide policy development, training and implementation in the areas of juvenile competence to stand trial and risk/needs assessment for dispositional planning.
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