CCWRC Board of Directors, 2017-2018

Chair – Eric White

Eric joined the board of the CCWRC in 2013. He retired from Penn State at the end of 2012 after working at the University for 42 and a half years. His work at Penn State involved psychological counseling, academic advising, administration, and teaching. He sees all of these endeavors as helping him as a board member at the CCWRC. In the area of academic advising especially, advisees often share private information with their advisers. It is then up to the adviser to determine whether some sort of referral might be necessary. Here, a knowledge of resources in the community is of value and it is important that advisers are aware of the CCWRC and its services.

He came to the CCWRC on the suggestion of a long time friend, Judy Kelly, who had served both as a volunteer and on the board for many years.

He serves on the Finance, Facilities, and Governance committees and is the 2017-2018 chair of the board. “Over the course of the years, I have come to appreciate more fully the importance of the work done by the staff of the CCWRC, how challenging the work is both personally and in context with current societal norms and policies, and how devastating it would be for our community if this work was not done.”

Vice Chair — Katherine Hamilton

Katherine joined the CCWRC Board of Directors in July of 2013 as one of two volunteer representatives. She started volunteering at the CCWRC in December 2012 as a counselor/advocate and has helped out on the hotline, in shelter, and in the school programs. Her involvement on the board has included participating in fundraising committees, serving on the Strategic Planning Committee, and chairing the Personnel Committee. She currently works as an Assistant Teaching Professor in the College of Information Sciences and Technology at Penn State, where she teaches classes in research methods and statistics and does research on how to improve the effectiveness of teams. Her background in industrial/organizational psychology enables her to best contribute to the personnel/human resource needs of the organization.

“I volunteered both as a counselor/advocate and as a board member in order to better build an awareness in the community of the struggles faced by those that experience sexual and domestic violence on a daily basis. I’ve seen its devastating consequences among friends and family members of mine. The evidence-based proactive and reactive practices that the organization uses are unparalleled, and I am happy to help them succeed in any way that I can.”

Secretary — Diane Conrad

This is Diane’s second term on the Board; she first joined while serving as the Chief of Police in Ferguson Township. She retired this past June, but her 40 years of police experience (first with State College PD and most recently at Ferguson Township PD) and, specifically, as a member of the Centre County Domestic & Sexual Violence Task Force in that capacity since the 1990’s have provided a perspective of service from both the field and administrative levels of a partner agency.  She has seen the benefits and difference that collaboration makes and hopes to impart that to fellow board members.  She also understands the grant funding process, having had responsibilities for assistance in drafting and overseeing the collaborative VAWA grant application processes (for the police components) and carrying out the deliverables as specified therein.

“Heretofore my experience with the CCWRC and staff have been from an outside agency; those experiences have been very positive and so I thought I would like to continue that experience in a different capacity.  I have seen the difference the CCWRC has made in our community and how the breadth and depth of services of the agency have grown and continue to grow to meet the need.  I hope to help that legacy continue.”

Ann Lehman — Past Chair

Ann is in her fourth year on the CCWRC board. She is the General Manager at CrossFit Nittany, a full service gym in State College. Prior to changing careers, she was the Executive Director of Annual Giving at Penn State, so she brings an extensive knowledge of fundraising to the CCWRC board.

“I’ve always thought of the Center as an integral part of our community so when I was offered the chance to be part of the board to show my support in a bigger way, I jumped at the chance.”

Kristine Charles

Kristine is a gynecologist currently working at the Pennsylvania Dept of Health and at Centre Volunteers in Medicine.  After being in private practice for 20+ years, she is now focused on women who have been underserved by the traditional health care system.

“Domestic and Intimate Partner Violence is one of the most important health issues I discuss with my patients so I really see my work on the CCWRC board as an outreach of what I am doing in my professional life.  Many of my patients have benefited from the work of this organization and I am so happy that I have been invited to give back by serving on the board.”

Kristie L. Kaufman

Kristie has served on the CCWRC board for five years, in addition to serving on the Outreach Committee for two years prior. She is a pediatrician with Mount Nittany Physician Group, working in general pediatrics, as a Children’s Advocacy Center Pediatrician, and as a Mount Nittany Health Systems Board Member. Her experience working with situations of child abuse, as well as her medical knowledge and skills with event planning, are valuable assets to the CCWRC board. She has a passion for preventing the cycle of domestic violence, child abuse, and toxic stress as well as an interest in making Centre County a more educated, healthier, and safer community.

Philip Miles

Phil Miles has served on the CCWRC Board since July 2016. He currently works as a Shareholder Attorney at McQuaide Blasko in State College, PA where he focuses his practice on employment law and litigation. Phil also teaches labor and employment law as an adjunct faculty member of Penn State’s School of Labor and Employment Relations and publishes the employment law blog Lawffice Space. As a member of the CCWRC Personnel Committee, Phil provides knowledge regarding human resources issues, and general legal expertise. Born and raised in State College, Phil has generally been aware of CCWRC, and has seen the tremendous impact it has had on the area, for most if his life. When a co-worker mentioned that CCWRC was looking to fill a position on the Board, he was excited to pursue this opportunity to make a positive impact on our community.  His support for CCWRC stems from his strong belief that everyone is entitled to the core, fundamental right of personal safety and a life free from violence.

Duane Reese

 

 

 

Kathleen Rider

 

 

 

Kevin Barron

 

 

 

Debbie Shephard

Debbie has served several terms on the CCWRC board, starting in 2008. She is the Vice President of Creative and Brand at Snavely Associates—a communications firm focusing mainly on development communications for educational, healthcare and cultural institutions. With her experience, she has been able to contribute to the design and production of materials used to promote the CCWRC as well as to participate in the branding exercises for the organization.

“On a personal level, I think it’s important to help make our community a stronger, safer and more vibrant place for us all to live and thrive. CCWRC is one of the organizations that does just that and I am happy to be a able to help with the advancement of their services.”

Meg Small

A board member since the fall of 2015, Meg is the Director for Social Innovation in the Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center (PRC) at Penn State University. She also is the director of the Health and Human Development Design for Impact Lab, an interdisciplinary collaborative that translates research into practice using innovative approaches and design methods. Her work in the PRC is deeply connected to CCWRC as healthy relationships in early childhood and adolescents are foundational to preventing interpersonal violence. Specifically, Meg’s lab is the design and evaluation partner for CCWRC’s middle school prevention program, Allies in Action. CCWRC’s commitment to evidence-based prevention inspired Meg to join the board and support all aspects of the Center. Meg began her career at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention where she served as a liaison to the World Health Organization in Geneva and as a member of the White House Council on Youth Violence. Meg received her Ph.D. in Community and Pubic Health from the University of Maryland.

Kate Tosto

Kate is currently in her second year on the CCWRC board. She is one of the owners of RE/MAX Centre Realty and manages its daily operations as Broker of Record. Being in real estate puts her in contact with many different people at many different stages in life. She enjoys informing her growing network about the CCWRC.

“I am so thankful to serve on the CCWRC board. This is my second year serving and I am very grateful to a past board member for nominating me to join. I did not have any prior experience with the CCWRC. Being a board member has allowed me to understand how the CCWRC helps community members, so I can now advocate for its services.”

Adrianne Vasey — Volunteer Representative

 

 

 

Anne K. Ard — Executive Director

Anne K. Ard has served as Executive Director of the CCWRC since 1997. In that role, she has provided leadership at both the state and local level. Anne was appointed by Governor Rendell to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency in 2007 and served until 2010 on the Commission and as Chair of the Victims Services Advisory Committee. Anne has also served on the Board of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape and currently serves as Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence. In October 2015, she was appointed by Governor Tom Wolf to the Pennsylvania Commission for Women. Locally, Anne serves as the Chair of the Centre County Domestic and Sexual Violence Task Force and as a member of the Criminal Justice Advisory Board. She writes a monthly column, Healthy Relationships, for the Centre Daily Times newspaper.

Prior to her work at the CCWRC, Anne was a Senior Diversity Planning Analyst in the Office of the Vice Provost for Educational Equity at Penn State. In that role, she worked with the Commission for Women and the Commission for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Equity. An ordained Presbyterian minister, Anne came to State College in 1981 as a campus minister specializing in women’s issues and social justice, a position she held for nearly ten years. Anne received her BA from Centenary College, a Master of Divinity from McCormick Theological Seminary, and her Ph.D. from Penn State.

Jordan Gibby — Staff Representative

Jordan has been with the CCWRC since 2014, starting as a volunteer and now working as a Prevention Educator on the Outreach and Education Team.  He has also worked at the CCWRC’s Child Access Center, a facility for supervised visitation and safe custody exchanges. He has facilitated numerous violence-prevention programs in local schools; educated groups such as medical professionals, college students, and faith-based groups; and organized community awareness campaigns to promote CCWRC’s services and spread general knowledge about the dynamics of domestic violence and sexual assault. He also manages CCWRC’s social media pages to help further spread awareness. In addition, after having spent two years working with families in South America, Jordan is able to provide bilingual assistance with CCWRC’s counseling and advocacy services for Spanish-speaking clients. Most recently, he is serving as the staff representative to the CCWRC board for the 2017-2018 term and holds positions within the CCWRC’s Male Survivor and Human Trafficking work groups.  He graduated from Penn State with a degree in Human Development and Family Studies.