START National Advisory Council

The mission of the Advisory Council is three-fold:

  • To help establish a working relationship between START programs and Learning Communities across the nation;

  • To review outcomes associated with the model and associated approaches, and help transition START from evidence-informed practice to evidence-based practice; and

  • To explore plans for long-term financial sustainability of the START model by working with Managed Care Organizations, CMS, and other federal agencies, state authorities, and important partners. 

START National Advisory Council Members

  • Joan Beasley, PhD (Co-Chair), Director, Center for START Services

  • Karen Weigle, PhD (Co-Chair), Associate Director, Center for START Services

  • Jill Hinton, PhD, Clinical Director, Center for START Services

  • Andrea Caoili, LCSW, Director of Quality Assurance & Research, Center for START Services

Current Members

  • Dan Baker, PhD, Internal Reviewer and Positive Support Lead with the Jensen/Olmstead Quality Assurance and Compliance Office, Department of Human Services, Minnesota

  • Bruce Davis, PhD, BCBA-D, Sr. LPE, LPC, Director of Behavioral and Psychological Services, Department of Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities Office of Civil Rights, Tennessee

  • Meg DePasquale, LCSW-C, Director of Clinical Services, Development Disabilities Administration, Maryland

  • Novella Evans, Program Specialist, Health and Human Services Commission, Texas

  • Alan Galgana, PhD, Phychologist, NYS Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, New York

  • Tawara Goode, Director of UCEDD/Director of CCLC, Center for Cultural and Linguistic Competence, Georgetown University, Washington DC

  • Alexis Harrington, MSW, Deputy Director of Program Implementation, Regional Offices, NY State Office for Persons with Development Disabilities

  • Kelly Hartman,  President & CEO, Insights Consulting, Indianapolis, Indiana

  • Brenda Jackson, Consultant/Principal, Brenda Jackson Consulting, LLC

  • Diane Jacobstein, PhD, Clinical Psychologist/Senior Policy Associate, Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development/UCEDD, Washington DC

  • Dorota Kearney, LMHC, CSIDD Statewide Coordinator, Division of Service Delivery-Regional Offices, NY State Office for Persons with Development Disabilities

  • Susan Klick, Family Member

  • Eric Kurtz, PhD, Executive Director, Center for Disabilities UCEDD, University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine, Sioux Falls, SD

  • Tracy Levesque, Administrator, Division of Developmental Disabilities , Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals

  • Lauren Libero, PhD, Autism Specialist, California Developmental Disabilities Services System

  • Bob Lincoln, LMSW, MBA, Project Director, Elevate, Waterloo, Iowa

  • Mark Lutte, Chief Operating OfficerMaine Department of Health and Human Services

  • Allyson Mead, Assistant CSIDD Statewide Coordinator, Office of People WIth Developmental Disabilities, New York

  • Lorrie Mitchell, Crisis Program Administrator, Office of Aging and Disability Services, Maine

  • Angela Munoz, California Developmental Disabilities Services System

  • Pat Nobbie, PhD, Disability Policy Engagement Director, Anthem, Inc., Washington DC

  • Rachel Noell, IDD/Program Manager; DHHS NC START Liaison, Department of Health and Human Services, North Carolina

  • Gail Paysour, Parent Advocate, Virginia

  • Jill Pettinger, PsyD, Assistant Deputy Commissioner, Statewide Services, New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities

  • Crystal Porter, MBA, Denver IDDEAS Program Manager, Denver Human Services, City and County of Denver, CO

  • Ann Potoczak, Executive Director, Community Bridges, Concord, New Hampshire

  • Cordelia Robinson Rosenburg, PhD, RN, Director, JFK Partners; Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado

  • Leslie Rubin, MD, Associate Professor, Pediatrics, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia

  • Paul Saucier, Director, Office of Aging and Disability Services, Maine Department of Health and Human Services

  • Larry Stang, Executive Director, Developmental Disabilities Providers Association, Little Rock, Arkansas

  • Haley Turner, Associate Commissioner of IDD Services, IDD and Behavioral Health Services, Austin, Texas

  • Wanda Willis, M.Ed, Executive Director, Council on Developmental Disabilities, Tennessee

  • Louisa Wren, Senior Community Programs Leader – Government Programs, Rocky Mountain Health Plans, Colorado