Learn more about the functions and duties of the NAEHCY Board of Directors:

• If you are a NAEHCY member, you are invited to participate in a NAEHCY Board of Directors conference call. Contact Tim Stahlke, Immediate Past President, for the call-in number and access code.
• Contact a board member to discuss their experiences as a NAEHCY Board member.

Board of Directors | Committee Chairs | Professional Staff

Board of Directors

Executive Committee

President: Christina Endres (Indiana) — Bio
Immediate Past President: Tim Stahlke (Texas) — Bio
Vice President: Mattie McVey Lord (Arizona) — Bio
Secretary: Susana Vilardell (New York) — Bio
Treasurer: Danny Jones (Pennsylvania) — Bio

At-Large Members

Deborah Boone (South Carolina) — Bio
Karen Fessler (Ohio) — Bio
Christine Hamlett (New Jersey) — Bio
Mary Herrington (Virginia) — Bio
Brenda J. Myers (South Carolina) — Bio
Dana Scott (Colorado) — Bio

Committee Chairs

Awards

Melinda Dyer (Washington) — Bio

Conference

Diana Bowman (North Carolina) — Bio

Tim Stahlke (Texas) — Bio

Development

Jared Stein, JD (New York) — Bio

LeTendre Education Fund

Patricia Popp, Ph.D. (Virginia) — Bio

Membership

Elizabeth Hinz (Minnesota) — Bio

Professional Staff

Policy Director and Media Contact

Barbara Duffield — Bio
4701 Connecticut Avenue, NW #402
Washington, DC 20008-5625
Ph: (202) 364.7392
F: (202) 318.7523
: bduffield@naehcy.org

Webmaster

Christina Dukes — Bio
National Center for Homeless Education
P.O. Box 5367
Greensboro, NC 24735
Ph: (336) 574-8729
F: (336) 574-8729 (call before faxing)
cdukes@serve.org

Business Manager

Darlyne Erickson — Bio
National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth
P.O. Box 26274
Minneapolis, MN 55426
Ph: (763) 545-0064
F: (612) 605-3331
: info@naehcy.org

Counsel

Patricia Julianelle, JD — Bio
: pjulianelle@naehcy.org

Communications Director

Jodi Mincemoyer — Bio
2925 Noble Avenue
Richmond, VA 23222
Ph: (804) 447-3490
jodim@naehcy.org

Back to top

—————————————————————

Bios

Executive Committee

Christina Endres, President, has been the McKinney-Vento State Coordinator for Homeless Education for Indiana since 2001. Prior to that, she worked in a variety of direct service agencies focusing mainly on mental health and family preservation where she provided mentoring, counseling, and family preservation assistance to teenagers. Working for both not-for-profit and for-profit agencies has provided great insight when trying to negotiate on behalf of homeless children. Recently, Christina also accepted duties as the Even Start coordinator. She completed a BA in psychology at Earlham College and has a Master's degree in social work from Indiana University. 

—————

Tim Stahlke, Immediate Past President, is a senior program coordinator for the Texas Homeless Education Office. Among other responsibilities, Tim conducts training for educators, school administrators, and parents about the laws and rules regarding the education of highly mobile and homeless children, resolves school enrollment and attendance complaints regarding students experiencing homelessness, addresses legislative issues that have an impact on children and youth in homeless situations, and provides assistance to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act discretionary grant recipients in Texas. Born and raised in Central America, Tim has language and cultural skills well-suited for the changing communities across the country, especially in major urban areas. Prior to working at the Dana Center, he worked in South Texas with Colonia, immigrant/refugee programs, and multiple-county human service initiatives. He has also worked with urban renewal and family/youth intervention programs in Kansas City, Missouri and El Paso, Texas.

Professional interests have involved Tim in NAEHCY, conflict resolution and management training, administration of small groups, planning processes, and adult education and distance learning. He has received the Staff Excellence Award from the Dean of the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin, the Sandra Neese Lifetime Achievement Award from NAEHCY, the President's Award from the Texas Homeless Network, and is a recent graduate of Leadership Austin. Tim serves on the board of the Texas Homeless Network and is a construction coordinator for the Austin Habitat for Humanity affiliate.

Tim holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in religion, sociology, biology, and classical languages from Baylor University and a Master of Divinity with a concentration in counseling and biblical archaeology from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis. He also holds a Certificate in Non-Profit Management from the University of Texas at Austin.

—————

Susana Vilardell, Secretary is the Senior Program Manager for Students in Temporary Housing (STH) in the New York City Department of Education. In that role, Susana takes the lead on policy and planning for the STH Program and is responsible for the development, administration, monitoring, evaluation, and budget of the STH program citywide. Susana works closely with STH Liaisons in each borough in a cross-functional manner to improve delivery of services to homeless students in schools and shelters.  Susana conducts training for school administrators, educators, STH staff (over 125 staff members), and parents about the educational rights of homeless children and youth, implementation of the McKinney Vento Act, and procedures to address the unique needs of the STH population. Furthermore, Susana manages the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grant Application process for NYC’s 32 Community Schools Districts and allocates AIDP (Attendance Intervention Dropout Prevention) funds, which provide funding to approximately 150 shelters and over 20,000 homeless students.  She serves as the key liaison between the DOE and other NYC partner agencies to increase collaboration and improve the quality of programs and services.

Susana holds a BA in social work from University of Texas at El Paso and has a Master's degree in public administration from City University of New York. She was a National Urban Fellow and completed a 14-month Executive Leadership Development program in public policy and administration with government agencies and not-for-profit organizations.

—————

Mattie McVey Lord, Vice President, currently serves as the State Homeless Coordinator at the Arizona Department of Economic Security. Her office addresses the issue of homelessness by providing coordination and assistance to organizations that help individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Previously, Mattie served as the State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth at the Arizona Department of Education and for ten years as a public school teacher. In addition to teaching, Mattie's career has allowed her to coordinate programs for various assessments, professional development, English Language Learners, and Gifted services. Mattie holds a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Arizona and a Masters in Education with a Curriculum & Instruction focus from Chapman University.

—————

Danny Jones, Treasurer, is Coordinator of Student Assistance Programs for the Erie City School District and serves as the homeless liaison and a McKinney-Vento funded program coordinator. He works with school staff to address barriers to learning through school-based student assistance programs (e.g., mental health counseling, interventions, bully prevention, etc.)

Danny serves on a variety of community boards, including the United Way, Greater Erie Community Action Committee, Erie Community Foundation Advisory Committee, Community Access Television, St. Mary's Home, Erie Conference on African American Affairs, Junior Achievement of NW Pennsylvania, State SAP advisory committee, Erie County Policy and Planning Council & Erie County Drug and Alcohol Coalition.

He has a BS in psychology from the University of Pittsburgh and has completed Master's level coursework in counseling at Edinboro University (Edinboro, PA). Since the late 70's, Danny has been electrifying audiences of his radio jazz show as Mr. J., which is offered through a local college station. In addition, Danny enjoys golf, traveling, hanging with friends and going to jazz concerts. Danny and his wife, Angela, live in Erie, Pennsylvania, with their dog, Coco.

 

Back to top

At-Large Members

Deborah Boone, At-Large Member, has served as the McKinney-Vento Coordinator in Richland County School District One for nearly 15 years. The Parents and Students Succeed (PASS) Project is Richland One’s homeless initiative. PASS is a comprehensive program that utilizes district and community resources to help students succeed. Under her capable leadership, the needs of students and families experiencing homelessness are being met on a daily basis.  Deborah has served on numerous state, community and district-wide committees/advisory boards. She is the past chair of the local continuum of care and serves on the Board of Directors for two area homeless shelters.

—————

Karen Fessler, At-Large Member, is Director of Project Connect, the McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children and Youth program, for the Cincinnati Public School System. Prior to that, she taught at-risk youth in the schools and served as Adolescent Manager for Project Connect. In her career, Karen has worked with thousands of young people, keeping them connected to their education, helping them to overcome barriers and obstacles, and supporting their goals and dreams. She has worked with advocates at the state and national levels on issues affecting homeless unaccompanied youth. She participated in the development of the Emmy winning documentary, America’s Invisible Children, and received “America’s Unsung Heroes” award. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Communications from the University of Cincinnati (GO BEARCATS!) and a Master’s Degree in Education from Xavier University.

—————

Christine Hamlett, At-Large Member, is the supervisor of attendance in Newark, the largest school district in New Jersey. She has served as the Newark Public School District Homeless Liaison since 2006. In that role, Christine leads a department of more than 70 attendance counselors and staff, including those in the Homeless Unit. The staff of the Homeless Unit work tirelessly to provide barrier free opportunities, learning activities, and enrollment for all students who are displaced, homeless or unaccompanied children and youth. The district’s McKinney-Vento program operates an after school tutoring program, collaborates with other agencies in the school and community to serve students. They celebrate their accomplishments with an Annual Homeless Dinner and Scholarship Award Program to recognize and parents and students who are homeless but persevere to stay in school.

—————

Mary Herrington, At-Large Member, coordinates an educational program for children, youth and families who are experiencing homelessness in Richmond City Public Schools, Chesterfield County Schools, and  Petersburg City Schools. She has experience as a group facilitator and provides parenting groups and relationship groups on a weekly basis in the Richmond-area shelters for homeless men and women. She has presented at various local, state, and national conferences on homeless education program development and designing and implementing parenting programs for homeless families. Mary has designed a parenting curriculum that she uses in her trainings. She is a certified facilitator for the Nurturing Program and has used the Nurturing Program for Parents and the School Nurturing Program for parents and students in Richmond Public Schools. In addition, Mary is in private practice in Richmond, providing therapeutic services to individuals, couples, and families.

—————

Brenda J. Myers, At-Large Member, is the State Coordinator of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Program at the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) in the Office of Youth Services. She is a native of Richmond, Virginia. Brenda received her Bachelor's Degree from the University of South Carolina (Columbia). Prior to her current position, she served as the Youth Court Coordinator for the SCDE. She was a Paralegal for Richland County Department of Social Services (DSS) Legal Department. Also while at DSS, Brenda served as a caseworker in the Child Protective Services division and as a caseworker in the Medicaid division.

As State Coordinator for Homeless Education, her primary responsibility is overseeing compliance of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act; Subtitle B of title VII, in South Carolina's public school districts, ensuring that homeless children and youths are given equal access to quality public education, including preschool education. Brenda provides training and technical assistance to homeless liaisons, school personnel, service providers, faith-based organizations, and any other agencies that request it.

—————

Dana Scott, At-Large Member, is a senior consultant in the Prevention Initiatives Unit at the Colorado Department of Education. As State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth, she works with school districts and community agencies statewide to remove educational barriers and to provide educational and support services to children, youth, and their families who experience homelessness. Dana has eight years of experience working with homeless issues in the public and nonprofit sectors and was principal writer for Denver's 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness. She has an additional seven years of experience as a program officer at the Daniels Fund, LMC Community Foundation and El Pomar Foundation. Dana also serves on the Board of Directors for Families and Allies Working Together. In addition, she is a member of the Colorado Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH), the Colorado Special Education Advisory Council, the Colorado Interagency Coordinating Council for Early Intervention, Denver's Commission to End Homelessness, and the Colorado Advisory Committee on Homeless Youth.

Committee Chairs

Melinda Dyer, Awards Chair, is the Washington State Coordinator for the McKinney-Vento Education of Homeless Children and Youth Program and has served in that capacity since 1995.  Prior to her employment with the State of Washington, Melinda was a classroom teacher at the secondary level, teaching health, reading and language arts. Melinda earned a BS in Education and an MEd in Health Education, both from Oregon State University. Melinda has served on the NAEHCY Board since 1999 as the chair of the Awards and Nominations Committee.

—————

Diana Bowman, Conference Co-Chair, directs the National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE) at the SERVE Center at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, NCHE provides information and resources to help educators, service providers, and other stakeholders improve educational opportunities for children and youth experiencing homelessness. Diana has presented workshops on meeting the educational needs of homeless children and youth at national and state conferences and has conducted trainings for local homeless education liaisons across the nation. She has facilitated national symposia on the transportation needs of homeless children and youth, collaboration between Title I and homeless education programs, and the role and responsibilities of state coordinators for homeless education in implementing the McKinney-Vento Act. She has authored a variety of practitioner-oriented publications and articles in the areas of homeless education, collaborative program planning, and meeting the needs of children at risk.  Formerly, Diana was employed at Appalachia Educational Laboratory (AEL) in Charleston, West Virginia, where her responsibilities included program coordination and strategic planning to help schools and school districts address the needs of at-risk children. Before her work at AEL, Diana worked in various classroom settings with at-risk children and youth and conducted workshops on adult literacy. She holds a Master's degree in public administration from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University (MA), Master's degrees from Marshall University (WV) and the University of Akron (OH), and a Bachelor's degree from the College of William and Mary (VA).

—————

Jared Stein, Development Chair, is the Associate Director of the New York State Technical and Education Assistance Center for Homeless Students (NYS-TEACHS). He facilitates workshops regarding the McKinney-Vento Act and related New York State laws for school district administrators, social service providers and advocates throughout New York State. NYS-TEACHS is funded by the New York State Education Department and is housed at Advocates for Children of New York, a not-for-profit organization that works to ensure the provision of appropriate educational services to the most vulnerable students within New York's public school system. Prior to becoming Associate Director of NYS-TEACHS, he was a staff attorney at Advocates for Children and provided legal representation to parents of children with special needs. Jared graduated with a BS from Cornell University. He earned both a JD and aMaster's in social work at the University of Michigan, during which time he also served as Hotline Supervisor at the Ozone House, a Guardian ad Litem in the Child Advocacy Law Clinic, and a Social Work Intern at the Huron Valley Child Guidance Clinic. He is admitted to the New York State and Commonwealth of Massachusetts bars.

—————

Patricia Popp, LeTendre Education Fund Chair, is the State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth, Project HOPE - Virginia, a collaborative initiative between The College of William and Mary and the Virginia Department of Education. Pat is a part-time professor for the Curriculum and Instruction Department at The College of William and Mary. She received her Ph.D. in Educational Policy, Planning, and Leadership with an emphasis in Special Education at The College of William and Mary, her Master's degree in learning disabilities at Virginia Commonwealth University, and her Bachelor's degree in elementary and special education at Boston University. Areas of interest and research include collaboration, children and youth experiencing homelessness and other forms of mobility, and students with disabilities. She is a past president of the Virginia Council for Learning Disabilities and past president of NAEHCY.

—————

Elizabeth Hinz, Membership Chair, is the District Liaison for Homeless and Highly Mobile Students for Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS). Her responsibilities with MPS have included design and management of the school district's student placement system; management of desegregation policy, strategic planning and city-county project liaison. Hinz is co-author and coordinator of the Kids Mobility Study, has published articles and spoken at national forums about student mobility, homelessness and student achievement, and consulted on a student mobility study for the Columbus, Ohio Community Foundation. She is one of the initiators of the project It's All About the Kids, a partnership to provide stable housing and stable school communities for children with MPS, the Public Housing Authority, City of Minneapolis, and Lutheran Social Services. Elizabeth has a Master's degree in social work from the University of Minnesota and worked in urban planning prior to becoming a school administrator. Her son attends Lewis & Clark College, and her husband directs Community Learning International, an NGO based in Laos.

Professional Staff

Barbara Duffield, Policy Director, began her involvement in homeless issues in 1990 as a tutor for homeless children in Washington, DC. She subsequently joined the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) and served as Director of Education for NCH from 1994-2003, working closely with educators, service providers, federal agencies and Congressional offices to strengthen policy and practice on children’s issues. Barbara has conducted hundreds of trainings around the United States for school districts, community organizations, and local, state, and national groups to assist in the implementation of the McKinney-Vento Act. She is a frequently-quoted source in print media, and has appeared on television and radio news programs to discuss issues relating to homeless children. In addition, she has published several academic articles on policy and advocacy issues relating to the education of homeless children and youth. She is co-author of Educating Children Without Housing, published by the American Bar Association.

In addition to her work with NAEHCY and NCH, Barbara is a founding and continuing Advisory Committee member for the LeTendre Education Fund for Homeless Children, which provides scholarships for homeless and formerly homeless young people who wish to pursue post-secondary education. Barbara also serves on the Board of the National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness.

Barbara Duffield was born and raised in Michigan, and she received her Bachelor's degree summa cum laude in Political Science from the University of Michigan.

—————

Christina Dukes, Webmaster, has worked at the National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE) at the SERVE Center since 2003, using her knowledge of highly-mobile lifestyles to help schools and homeless families learn about the educational rights of children and youth experiencing homelessness. She also oversees many of NCHE's technology activities, including maintaining the NCHE website and facilitating online trainings. Christina began working at the SERVE Center in October 2000 for the Anchor School Project, a migrant technology project funded through the Office of Migrant Education.  She taught technology to migrant families to help the children excel in school and help the parents acquire skills that would increase their employability and knowledge of English. She then worked for Project Kaleidoscope, a 21st Century Community Learning Center grant serving families in southwest Florida. Kaleidoscope provided extended-day learning activities throughout the county, including after-school and family literacy programs. Christina was born in South Carolina but has spent most of her life living in South Florida. She received a BA in Spanish from Tulane University and an MA in Latin American Studies from Vanderbilt University.

—————

Darlyne Erickson, Business Manager, is a Certified Association Executive (CAE) who manages NAEHCY's conference and association logistics, along with several other organizations. She has worked with non-profit associations for the past 17 years as a business manager, and has also volunteered for several organizations starting 25 years ago with Women for Change, Inc. and Girl's Club of Dallas.

Since 1990, Darlyne has participated with a non-profit group called the Minneapolis Aqua Jesters, a group of clowns! She lives in St. Louis Park, MN, a western suburb of Minneapolis, and is the single mother of a 26 year old son. She enjoys bicycling and golf in the summer, and hibernating in the Minnesota winters. Darlyne has called New York City, Columbia, SC, and Dallas, TX, home but returned to Minneapolis 24 years ago.

—————

Patricia Julianelle, Counsel, works as an independent Legal Consultant for state and local governments and non-profit organizations, including the National Center for Homeless Education. Formerly, Patricia was staff attorney and Acting Legal Director at the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty in Washington, DC.

Patricia advises attorneys, educators, and policymakers across the country on the rights of children and youth experiencing homelessness and works to enforce those rights through direct advocacy, education and outreach, and legislative advocacy. Patricia has conducted workshops on the rights of children and youth at national, state and local conferences.  She has written articles for the Children's Legal Rights Journal, Journal of Negro Education, and the Journal of Poverty Law and has co-authored two books, one of which, Educating Children Without Housing, was published by the American Bar Association. Patricia is also a founding board member of a nonprofit education organization in Santiago, Chile.

Patricia has served for six years on the American Bar Association's Commission on Homelessness & Poverty. A former Deputy Monitor for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and special education attorney, Patricia graduated from Yale University and received her JD summa cum laude from Northwestern School of Law of Lewis & Clark College.

—————

Jodi Mincemoyer, Communications Director, coordinates NAEHCY’s outreach efforts, including the monthly e-news, The BEAM; annual reporting; and the Annual Conference. She worked most recently as Grants Administrator at Project HOPE-Virginia, the Office of the State Coordinator for Homeless Education, 2002-2008, where she provided technical assistance to homeless education liaisons in Virginia and directed outreach efforts. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Richmond Behavioral Health Authority, a public entity serving community needs in mental health, intellectual disabilities, and substance abuse. She is a member of the governing board of Virginia Organizing Project, a private nonprofit devoted to community organizing.

A native of rural Pennsylvania, Jodi received a BA from The College of William and Mary and a Master's degree in social work at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Back to top