Susan Damico, M.A., Director
Susan is a graduate of Bucknell University and received her Master’s degree in Social Service Administration from University of Chicago. Prior to returning to graduate school, Susan worked in Washington, D.C. as a Legislative Assistant on Capitol Hill. Susan joined the Devereux Early Childhood Initiative after completing her graduate studies in 1996. In her current role, Susan is responsible for managing and coordinating all aspects of the Devereux Center for Resilient Children, including customer relations, marketing, funding, and new resource development. Susan is also responsible for overseeing the development and delivery of DCRC resources electronically via web-based platforms.
Debi Mahler, LICSW, Director of Professional Development
Debi received her Bachelors’ degree in Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin and received a Master’s in Social Work from Columbia University. Debi spent 7 years working in community mental health as the program manager for an elementary day treatment program and an early childhood services program. During her 13 year tenure at Devereux, she has provided professional development to programs around the country, developed training and resources, and currently manages all aspects of professional development offered by the Devereux Center for Resilient Children. Debi is a Certified Trainer for the DCRC.
Rachel Wagner, MSW, Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist and National Trainer
Rachel received her Bachelor’s degree in Clinical Sociology from Ithaca College in New York and received her Master’s in Social Work from The University of Albany. Rachel began her career as a preschool teacher for children who were deaf and hard of hearing. Rachel has worked in therapeutic preschool settings as a teacher and therapist. As a Mental Health Coordinator and consultant for Head Start, Rachel has first-hand experience implementing the DECA Program. Rachel also worked as the coordinator of an Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Service located in Albany, NY. Most recently she has developed FLIP IT, a strategy to address challenging behaviors and has authored a book on FLIP IT, called FLIP IT: Transforming Challenging Behavior. Rachel is currently responsible for providing training and technical assistance to early childhood programs throughout the nation. Rachel is a Certified Trainer for the DCRC.
Nefertiti Bruce Poyner, Ed.D., Early Childhood Specialist and National Trainer
Nefertiti received her undergraduate degree from Virginia State University, and her graduate degree from Chestnut Hill College in Pennsylvania. Prior to joining the Devereux Center for Resilient Children, Nefertiti worked as a Preschool and Kindergarten teacher in the city of Philadelphia. Over her 10 year tenure with Devereux, she has provided professional development and presentations that focus on educating parents, teachers and administrators on the importance of paying attention to not only how our children perform academically, but also how they feel on the inside. Most recently she has co-authored two resources, Building Your Bounce: Simple Strategies for a Resilient You and the award winning Socially Strong, Emotionally Secure: 50 Activities to Promote Resilience in Young Children. Nefertiti is a certified trainer for the DCRC.
Deborah Alleyne, M.S., Early Childhood/Child Welfare Specialist
Deborah Alleyne is an Early Childhood/Child Welfare Specialist and Certified Trainer for the Devereux Center for Resilient Children. Deborah has worked in the field of Early Childhood, Special Education and Mental Health for over 30 years. Prior to joining the Devereux Center for Resilient Children, she worked as an Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant for a CCR&R, and as the Disabilities and Mental Health Services Manager for Early Head Start and Head Start in New York State. For a number of years, Deborah was a Preschool Special Education Teacher and Program Administrator in New York State. She currently resides in Tampa, Florida where she most recently worked in collaboration with Heartland for Children to develop a resilience building and social emotional wellness program for foster parents in Polk, Highlands and Hardee Counties. In partnership with Heartland for Children, Deborah also provided community training that focuses on resilience and the social emotional wellness of all young children as well as those who have experienced trauma. Deborah co-authored DCRC’s newest resource, Your Journey Together, a strength-based curriculum designed to promote the social and emotional well-being and resilience of vulnerable children and their families. She is currently providing training and technical assistance on the variety of resources available through DCRC along with training on general topics related to social and emotional wellness of young children and the adults who care for them.
Rich Rinaldi, MBA, Business Analyst
Rich Rinaldi graduated from Georgetown University with a BSBA in Operations Management and from Chaminade University with an MBA in Non-Profit Management. Rich joined in DCRC in 2015 to assist in all aspects of business development, including financial analysis, operational management, and marketing. He also provides customer support for the e-DECA system. Prior to joining DCRC, Rich worked as a program director at the YMCA of Honolulu, where he was responsible for delivering programs focused on youth development, coordinating community events and volunteers, and ensuring successful professional development for seasonal and year-round staff.
Caroll Berridge, Office Manager
Caroll has spent over 25 years with Devereux, previously in the finance department and various centers in Pennsylvania. For the last 7 plus years she has been the Office Manager with the Devereux Center for Resilient Children. Caroll is responsible for managing all aspects of the central office and plays a critical role in preparing materials for professional development.
Aperture Education, LLC Research Affiliate Staff
Paul LeBuffe, M.A.
Paul LeBuffe is the Vice President for Research and Development for Aperture Education (www.Apertureed.com). He is a graduate of St. Mary’s College of Maryland and received his Master’s degree in experimental psychology from Bryn Mawr College. For the past 25 years, Paul’s career has focused on strength-based approaches to promoting social and emotional competence and resilience in children, youth, and the adults who care for them. Believing that such approaches should be data-drive, Paul has authored many widely-used, strength-based assessments of behaviors related to children and adolescents’ social and emotional strengths and needs including the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment for Infants (DECA-I), Toddlers (DECA-T) Preschoolers (DECA-P2), and most recently, the Devereux Student Strengths Assessment (DESSA). These assessments have been adopted by more than 5,000 school districts, out-of-school-time programs, Head Start, and other early care and education programs both in the United States and internationally.
In addition to the assessments mentioned above, he has authored numerous research articles and chapters on resilience and related topics. Paul has presented to varied audiences including psychologists, teachers, school administrators, out-of-school-time professionals, and parents throughout the United States and internationally on promoting resilience in children, youth, and adults.
Jennifer Fleming Robitaille, M.S.
Jennifer Fleming Robitaille is a Senior Research Associate for Aperture Education (www.Apertureed.com). Jennifer is a graduate of Bloomsburg University and received her Master’s degree in Experimental Psychology from Villanova University. Prior to joining the Devereux Center for Resilient Children in 2010, Jennifer conducted applied research in early intervention and child care settings to examine and enhance the quality of services for families and their children with special needs. In her work with Aperture Education and the Devereux Center for Resilient Children, Jennifer develops standardized assessments to measure social-emotional competence in children and youth. She also conducts applied research and evaluation studies to support the use of social-emotional assessments and instructional strategies in practice. Her primary research interests involve the measurement and promotion of social-emotional competence and resilience in children, with a focus in school and out-of-school time settings.
Alyssa Ciarlante, M.A.
Alyssa Ciarlante is a Research Associate for Aperture Education (www.Apertureed.com). Alyssa is a graduate of Boston University and received her Master’s degree in Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences from Columbia University. Prior to joining the DCRC team, Alyssa worked in Columbia University’s Early Childhood Parents and Children’s Lab, where she supported the implementation and evaluation of projects promoting social-emotional development, stress management, and physical activity in preschool and elementary school students. Alyssa joined the Aperture Educaation team in 2017 and currently supports Aperture Education and the Devereux Center for Resilient Children in resource development and evaluation through research design, data analysis, and dissemination.
Consultants
Linda Likins, Lead Advisor
Linda has been a zealot regarding the need for high quality services for children and families throughout her entire career. She began as a teacher, moved on to direct a large multi-county Head Start Program in Western Kentucky and later built on her grassroots experience to become the Director of Governmental Affairs for the National Head Start Association. In this position, and later as Director of Policy for the National Center for Family Literacy, Linda focused on raising awareness and promoting collaboration for high quality programs serving young children and their families. She has provided consultation services for the National Head Start Bureau, the U.S. Department of Education, Proliteracy Worldwide as well as being active on many state and national boards including PBS Ready to Learn, National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, and Region IV Head Start. Linda joined Devereux in 1997 to head up the Devereux Early Childhood Initiative. Linda has provided leadership to this National Initiative to create working partnerships among educators, families and behavioral health professionals to optimize the social and emotional development of children.
Karen Cairone, M.Ed., Consultant
Karen is a graduate of Lafayette College and received her Master’s degree in Education from Rutgers University. Karen worked as the Disabilities and Mental Health Specialist for Head Start prior to joining Devereux in 1999. Karen was hired as an Early Childhood Specialist with the Devereux Early Childhood Initiative where she provided training and technical assistance on children’s social and emotional health for programs across the country. Karen is currently a consultant for the Devereux Center for Resilient Children. She is the co-writer and co-producer of the Facing the Challenge DVDs, Classroom Moments DVD and accompanying training. Karen is also a co-author for DCRC’s 2011 award winning publication, Socially Strong, Emotionally Secure: 50 Activities to Promote Resilience in Young Children. Most recently she has co-authored Promoting Resilience in Preschoolers: A Strategy Guide for Early Childhood Professionals and Promoting Resilience For Now and Forever: A Family Guide for Promoting the Social and Emotional Health of Preschool Children. Karen is a certified trainer for the DCRC.
Mary Mackrain, M.Ed., IMH-E® (IV), Consultant
Mary Mackrain is a National Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant. Mary has worked in early childhood supporting the development of research-based resources and services that foster quality early childhood mental health outcomes for young children and families for over 20 years. Currently, she serves as Project Manager through the Education Development Center for the National Home Visiting Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network (HV CoIIN). Mary also serves as an Infant Mental Health Mentor for the Michigan Department of Community Health, supporting policy and systems work to build positive mental health outcomes for young children and families. She also has extensive experience with development and implementation of early childhood mental health consultation approaches. In her work with the Devereux Center for Resilient Children, Mary provides certified training on the Devereux Early Childhood Assessments and program resources and has co-authored several publications regarding early childhood mental health including Promoting Resilience in Preschoolers: a Strategy Guide for Early Childhood Professionals as well as a standardized assessment program for 0-3 early childhood providers and families, the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment Program for Infants and Toddlers. Mary serves on the Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health Board, and participates in many other state committees related to early childhood systems in her home state.
Gabriel Smith, M.A., LSW, Consultant
Gabriel Smith received her Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology from Carnegie Mellon University, and holds a Master’s in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago. Gabriel began her work with the DCRC team as a Professional Psychology Trainee in 2008 and is now a licensed Social Worker. At the University of Chicago, Gabriel interned as a case manager and counselor for senior citizens and an evaluator of after-school arts programming in Chicago Public Schools. Prior to coming to DCRC, she spent three years as a Research Assistant in the Carnegie Mellon Infant Cognition Laboratory. In addition, Gabriel has worked with children in inpatient, camp and early care and education settings, and has worked in multiple settings supporting adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Gabriel’s primary focus is supporting the development and evaluation of DCRC resources for child welfare settings through research design, project management, data analysis, and reporting.
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