Get to know the Speakers
Town Hall One
Joan Gillece, Ph.D.
Dr. Joan Gillece, Director of the Center for Innovation in Health Policy and Practice at the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors, has over forty years of experience dedicated to public mental health. Working in institutions and community-based initiatives, Joan has provided direct service, leadership, training, and support as an innovator in numerous contexts. Her focus is the implementation of trauma-specific, peer-led, strength-based support across systems through a social justice lens.
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Joan and colleagues developed the nationally-used TAMAR program while at the Maryland Department of Behavioral Health and funded by SAMHSA, which is internationally used through faith communities.
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Contact Info: Joan.Gillece@nasmhpd.org
N. Neelley Hicks, M.Div, B.S.
Neelley Hicks, Executive Director of Harper Hill Global (HHG), grew up experiencing the impact of shame on mental health in families and communities. In her ministries with marginalized people, she is passionate about breaking through to provide equitable, knowledgeable, and compassionate community care models and training that help people understand the connection between trauma and the body. This passion led her to NASMHPD, where she now offers their transformational resources to multifaith communities.
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Contact Info: nhicks@harperhill.global
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David S. Smith, M.Div., M.B.A., B.S.
David S. Smith understands what it feels like to lack resources and feel alone; his passion is to ensure that those he serves have equitable opportunities to experience authentic and total wellness. He serves as Senior Pastor of Church of the Redeemer Baptist in Philadelphia, PA, and is an assistant professor in Business Technology at Eastern University. In 2010, he became one of 4 founding members of Netzer, a parachurch organization focused on developing leaders to address societal needs. David also founded the nonprofit organization Winning Wealth Services to provide financial literacy training that addresses the trauma of poverty serving over 10,000 individuals and communities.
Contact Info: David@CortezIT.com
Arsania Wright, QPR, CPRS,
MHFA Trainer
Arsania Wright is passionate about ensuring that individuals don’t suffer because they simply are unaware of available resources. She breaks through to share that recovery is possible, regardless of past stigma. Arsania currently serves as the Shelby County Faith-Based Community Coordinator for the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. In her current role, she works with faith communities to obtain recovery certification. These certified congregations provide resources to their communities by offering free training around suicide prevention and awareness, mental health, and substance use disorders.
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Contact Info: arsaniawfbcc@gmail.com
Charryse N. Wright, M.Div., B.S.W.
Charryse Wright’s passion is tied to the impact of childhood abuse and abandonment on her life in its entirety. She has dedicated herself to advocating for the voiceless and unseen while being a light in their darkness. As a faith-based leader and trauma consultant, Charryse has worked with numerous organizations across the country and Japan to discuss trauma's effects. She consults with NASMHPD and is a lead trainer with Triumph Over Trauma which trains and equips faith communities to lead a 7-week psycho-educational curriculum that defines trauma and its impact on the brain and body and provides steps towards healing. She is also working to introduce Friendship Benches into multiple faith-based spaces in the US.
Contact Info: charryse@harperhill.global