PRESENTERS. Yolanda Arredondo. Candace Bailey. Joe Beaver. Lauren Blakely. Nora Brahe

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1 Yolanda Arredondo Yolanda is the Child Welfare Hotline Supervisor for Denver Human Services. She is also the Child Welfare After-hours Program Coordinator for Denver Human Services. She has 6-1/2 years of experience in child welfare with a focus on Hotline and child abuse investigations including fatalities, near fatalities and egregious harm. Yolanda earned her Bachelor s Degree in Women s Studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Candace Bailey Candace Bailey has worked with vulnerable and underserved children for over ten years. She currently serves as the Children s Waiver Specialist Lead and oversees the administration of the Children with Life Limiting Illness Waiver and the Children with Autism Waiver at the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing. In this capacity, she ensures compliance with all federal and state requirements for Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) waivers that serve children. This also includes communicating the waiver requirements to providers and case managers and ensuring providers deliver services consistent with the specific standards and requirements. She collaborates with families, case managers, providers, state legislators, and with federal partners to ensure children receive services they need. Joe Beaver Joe Beaver was passing out literature for JFK while he was a senior in high school, before he could even vote. Joe spent most of his life working behind the scene in the political process, but he even ran for Treasurer of Jefferson County in 1992 and got 49.2% of the vote. It was about that time that he realized that he was the only one with an obvious physical disability participating in the grass roots of Jefferson County politics. In his efforts to change that scene he discovered Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition. He quickly became a member of the board and served as Treasurer until elected Board President in He served as Board President until resigning in He continues to serve as CCDC s Controller. Lauren Blakely Lauren Blakely is currently a writer of books and stories for children. She has held various positions in the disability community primarily focused on educating others about disability issues from a variety of perspectives. She previously worked at Arc Thrift Stores where she brought awareness of people with disabilities to the arts community. She has also worked at Rocky Mountain Village, a camp for people with disabilities, where she assisted the director in researching accessibility for trips. Ms. Blakely also worked at the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition as a volunteer and while at CCDC designed training on augmentative communication. Ms. Blakely has been involved in various trainings including programs for both Frontier Airlines and RTD. Ms. Blakely has her Associates Degree in Not for Profit Management. Nora Brahe Nora Brahe has 30 years of experience working with health care delivery for individuals with disabilities. She has extensive knowledge of long term care program design and service delivery for individuals with disabilities. Her experience includes 9 years with the Medicaid long term care system in Colorado and 21 years with the community mental health system. Currently, Nora is a member of the Long Term Services and Support, Community Options Section at the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF). She is the Transitions Administrator for the HCBS-EBD waiver and Colorado Choice Transitions (CCT). Nora is a licensed clinical social worker.

2 Jenn Conrad Jenn manages the care management team at Colorado Access for RCCO regions 2, 3, and 5. Jenn is accountable for key performance indicator outcomes, quality initiatives, innovative approaches to meeting care management contract requirements, member/ provider needs, and coordination across systems of care. Previously, she has managed programs and clinics in the community behavioral health system, directed utilization management in a behavioral health organization, and engaged with the provider networks and community partners to improve coordination across systems. She has over 15 years of social work experience primarily in the healthcare industry and brings expertise working with behavioral health, developmental disabilities, and vocational training programs for the underserved and disabled. Jenn earned a BA in Psychology from Luther College in Iowa and earned a Master of Social Work with an emphasis in Public Administration from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Kathy Crusan-Ford Kathy has had over 20 years of experience as a trainer and has been working with Denver Human Services for over 8 years in a variety of different roles with multiple eligibility programs. She is currently an Agency Trainer for Denver Human Services SNAP Into Health Initiative that focuses on community engagement and resources. Her training focuses on working with community organizations to help them navigate the waters of Denver Human Services and the variety of programs that are offered. Alexis Giese Alexis A. Giese, MD is the Senior Vice President of Behavioral Health at Colorado Access. She provides executive oversight to the Medicaid Behavioral Health Organizations and integration of behavioral health and physical health. Dr. Giese is a board-certified psychiatrist with over 20 years of experience in both clinical practice and in program development and administration. She earned her Doctor of Medicine from the University of Texas at Houston and completed psychiatry training at Georgetown University Hospital. In addition to her work with Colorado Access, Dr. Giese is the Director of Community Programs for the University of Colorado Denver Depression Center and is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado Denver-School of Medicine. Todd Grove Jeff Helm Todd Grove is the Healthcare Access Unit Lead at the Colorado AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP). Part of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment s HIV Care and Treatment Program, Colorado ADAP provides wrap-around assistance to individuals living with HIV in accessing medical and prescription drug treatments through Medicare, Medicaid, private/employer insurance, and for those who cannot access insurance. He is a graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, and has been with CDPHE since Jeff Helm is the Healthy Communities program and contract manager for the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF). Healthy Communities provides outreach, case management and care coordination to children (0-20) and pregnant women on Medicaid as well as children and pregnant women on CHP+ via 24 local agencies throughout the state. Before working for the state, Jeff was a disability advocate in private practice and for non-profit organizations.

3 Joanna Martinson Joanna Martinson, BSN, ADS is the Director of Care Coordination for the North Colorado Health Alliance (NCHA). Joanna is passionately committed to the art of nursing. She developed her philosophy of unconditional care over the course of a diverse career that has included community health nursing, school-based nursing, mental health and substance abuse nursing, health education, and all aspects of medical nursing. Joanna supervises NCHA s Care Management Team, which works to: 1) improve the quality of care for Medicaid patients enrolled in the Regional Care Collaborative Organization (RCCO), 2) improve patient satisfaction, and 3) lower the costs of providing that care. Before joining NCHA, Joanna served as Program Director of Medical Services at North Range Behavioral Health, where she managed providers and integration of behavioral health with primary care. Joanna was also Program Director of Residential Treatment for children with severe behavioral and emotional needs at North Range. Francesca Maes Francesca Maes has been a member and non-attorney advocate with Colorado Cross- Disability Coalition for the past 3 years. She trains informal dog obedience with her dogs and has competed in various venues for the past 14 years. Her trainer was the late Barbara Handler. Along with the study of dog behavior, she is a concerned citizen, community activist and loves her service dog Blue. Chandra Matthews Chandra Matthews is the Director of Access Long Term Support Solutions (ALTSS). She oversees all functions of the Single Entry Point (SEP) within Colorado Access including day to day care management operations, internal and external partnership coordination and participation in the state s redesign of the long term services and support network. She received her Masters of Social Work from the University of Denver, focusing her studies in the area of aging. She has spent her career working in the long term services arena including mental health centers, long term care facilities, home health patient care, patient advocacy, grant writing and contract management. Her efforts have always maintained a focus on improving the lives of older adults and people with disabilities. Mitch McKinney Mitch McKinney attended Arapahoe Community College and Metropolitan State College in Denver. He knew he wanted a career dedicated to helping others so he enrolled in the Human Services Program. After a couple years of developing relationships and contemplating his best path he decided on a focus of non-profit administration. Since college, he has benefited the community in several ways. He has been a board member of Advocacy Denver for 14 years. During his tenure he has been able to create changes in the organization that will benefit people with disabilities. He has participated in several actions with ADAPT. His goal is to leave the community more tolerant of people of different circumstances. Heather Morrow Heather Morrow was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at the age of one and began attending school at the age of two. Her family (more specifically her mom) encouraged her to become independent at an early age by teaching her activities of daily living. Currently, Heather lives independently and works as the Advocacy Assistant for the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition.

4 Daniel Obarski Daniel Obarski, MS, LPC has a Master s degree in Experimental Psychology and spent the first ten years of his career in the mental health field. He joined Colorado Access three and a half years ago as a Care Manager and now manages the Access Advantage Care Management Team. Julie Reiskin Julie Reiskin has been the Executive Director of the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition (CCDC) since CCDC is a statewide disability rights organization with a mission to advocate for social justice on behalf of people with all types of disabilities. Cross-Disability is a philosophy that says that people with different types of disabilities have more in common than not, and that we do best working together. Ms. Reiskin has focused a great deal of time on issues of health equity, particularly in community based long term care, and promoting client directed services. Ms. Reiskin has spent her entire career on social justice related work. In 2010 she was appointed by President Obama to serve on the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation. Locally, Ms. Reiskin has served and continues to serve on numerous boards of foundations, non-profit organization and has had several gubernatorial appointments. Shari Repinski Shari has worked in the service delivery system for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities for over 25 years. Shari spent over 10 years working at the Colorado Department of Human Services-Division for Developmental Disabilities. During that time, she managed the quality assurance system, developed instructional manuals, and developed and implemented rules and regulations to monitor the quality of services to persons receiving services. Additionally, as the Assistant Division Director, Shari provided oversight of the administration of HCBS waiver and state-funded programs to persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities throughout the state. Shari currently works at Rocky Mountain Human Services as the Chief Strategy Officer and is responsible for strategic planning, fostering partnerships with public and private organizations, and implementing the agency s performance management systems. Shari has a Master s degree in Community Counseling with specific training in acute psychiatric treatment and crisis counseling. Juanita Rios-Johnston Juanita Rios-Johnston is a graduate of Mercy Hospital School of Nursing and has a Gerontology Certificate from the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs. In her nursing career she designed and implemented the first Alzheimer Care Unit in Brush, CO. Juanita has over 25 years of work experience in human services and is currently the Program Manager for Denver s Adult Protective Services. She serves as a commissioner on the Denver Commission on Aging, a Board member of the Colorado Gerontological Society, and a founding partner of Denver s Forensic Collaborative for Older Adults in partnership with Denver s City Attorney s Office and Denver s District Attorney s Office. Juanita is the lead organizer for Denver s annual World Elder Abuse Awareness event.

5 Gina Robinson Gina Robinson has been a demonstrated leader in advancing policies that promote health care access for vulnerable and underserved children for over twenty years. She currently serves as the contract administrator for the Early and Periodic, Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT) and Early Intervention program as well as the Help Me Grow program at the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF). Gina serves on a number of statewide boards and committees that promote the coordination and provision of health care services for children. Gina was recently awarded the Regional Commissioner Citation Team Award from the Social Security Administration for her work with the children of Colorado as well as a co-recipient of the Child Health and Welfare Award for 2009 from the Colorado Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Kerry Salter Kerry Salter obtained her LPN while on active duty in the U.S. Navy and is a graduate of Bastyr University where she obtained her undergraduate degree in Nutrition, followed by a graduate degree in both Nutrition and Clinical Health Psychology. Kerry has worked in the following settings: community family practice clinics (care/case manager, nurse, therapist, and nutritionist), skilled nursing facility (nurse), emergency medicine (nurse), jail/law enforcement (nurse, therapist, and nutritionist) as well as a state-run Medicaid/Medicare payer source (case manager and clinical quality program manager). Working in a variety of settings within healthcare has allowed Kerry to recognize gaps within the system as well as appreciate the many opportunities available for improving patient centered care within our community. Teri Slater Teri Slater joined the Colorado PEAK Outreach & Training team in the summer of She holds a Bachelor s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Finance from the University of Colorado and has always been drawn to personal finance. Teri is passionate about helping people learn money management skills and strives to help people know what resources are available to them in order to develop a healthy relationship with money and begin to thrive. As a part of the PEAK team, Teri hopes to raise awareness about Colorado s Human Services programs and how they can integrate into a path toward self-sufficiency. Darla Stuart Darla Stuart has been the Executive Director of The Arc of Aurora for more than 21 years. The Arc of Aurora provides advocacy support for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families. Throughout her tenure at The Arc of Aurora, she has lead local, state, regional, and national projects impacting the lives of people with IDD. Darla has co-authored two nationally-distributed training manuals, People with Developmental Disabilities and the Justice System: Access Denied and Have We Gotten Too Big for our Genes. In addition, she has served as Project Supervisor for two DOJ/OVC nationwide projects devoted to addressing victimization of people with IDD. In Colorado, Darla was instrumental in the passage of Colorado s Hearsay Exception for Victims with Developmental Disabilities. Brought to you by: