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Candace R. Charkow

Candace Charkow has worked in child protective services for 14 years, providing direct services in protective treatment, foster care and adoption, and supervising child protective workers. She has extensive experience in curriculum development and training in AOD issues for protective workers. As Treatment Program Manager for the Delaware Division of Family Services, she has worked to incorporate substance abuse treatment services into protective treatment services for families experiencing both substance abuse and child abuse and neglect in Delaware. She developed and authored Delaware's request for a Title IV-E Child Welfare Waiver, which established multi-disciplinary teams of substance abuse counselors and child protective workers.

Philip Clemmey , M.P.P.

Dr. Clemmey's background as a behavioral health psychologist is diverse and encompasses project management, research, and clinical activities. His research and clinical background has specialized in drug abuse, HIV/AIDS, and tobacco. Prior to joining NASADAD, Dr. Clemmey was the director of both the Access Center and Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Services at the Whitman-Walker Clinic in Washington, D.C., the largest HIV/AIDS service organizaton in the D.C. area. While at Whitman-Walker Clinic, he developed and managed a centralized client access and resource center for persons with HIV/AIDS, and managed the daily operations of a multi-site outpatient mental health and addiction treatment clinic serving the HIV/AIDS populaton. Previously, he was a post-doctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, where he served as a project director of various substance abuse treatment research projects.

Dr. Clemmey received his bachelor's degree from the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth and his doctoral degree in clinical psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology, San Diego. He completed a NIDA-funded post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Clemmey is a licensed psychologist in the District of Columbia and Maryland.

Rick Dauer

Rick Dauer has been working in the chemical dependency treatment field since 1983. He is currently the clinical director for Twin Town Treatment Centers in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. Mr. Dauer is also a peer reviewer for the Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Minnesota. He is active with the Ramsey County Citizens Advisory Council ad hoc committee on welfare reform.

Laura Feig , M.P.P.

Ms. Feig is a social science analyst in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). She has worked for ASPE since 1989, analyzing policy issues regarding the provision of services to children, youth, and families. She specializes in issues related specifically to children and families affected by substance abuse and in child welfare service issues in general.

During the welfare reform debate, she was responsible for HHS's analyses of proposals relating to substance abuse. In addition, she has directed several research projects on substance abuse among welfare recipients. These include an analysis of the prevalence of substance abuse among Aid to Families With Dependent Children recipients and a recent study examining substance abuse treatment outcomes for women receiving welfare. Ms. Feig holds a bachelor's degree from Princeton University and a master's degree in public policy from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Shelly Gehshan, M.P.P.

Prior to joining NCSL, Ms. Gehshan served for 6 years as the Deputy Director for the Southern Regional Project on Infant Mortality, where she published research on barriers to substance abuse treatment for women. She is currently completing a consulting project for the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism on access to treatment for women in Medicaid managed care.

Ms. Gehshan has a bachelor's degree in English from Cornell University, and a master's degree in public policy from the University of California, Berkeley.

Andrea Kane, M.P.A.

Prior to joining the National Governors' Association in 1996, Ms. Kane held several positions with the Department of Human Development (now Family Services) in Fairfax County, Virginia. This department has responsibility for public assistance, social services, homeless and refugee services, and employment and training programs. She previously served as Manager of Research and Communication with the Houston Job Training Partnership Council (now Houston Works), where she coordinated implementation of several pilot projects for target populations and performed a variety of external-relations functions including liaison to the City Council and national organizations. Ms. Kane also worked in the California Legislative Analyst's Office, where she performed program and budget analysis of employment and welfare programs, including JTPA and GAIN. This work included reviewing the Governor's budget and legislative proposals, producing analyses for use by legislators and the public, and testifying before legislative committees on findings and recommendations.

Ms. Kane attended Smith College and received her bachelor's degree in government from Cornell University. She earned a master's degree in public affairs from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.

Georgia T. Karuntzos, M.S.I.R.

Ms. Karuntzos has a bachelor's degree in industrial/organizational psychology from Purdue University and a master's degree in human resource management from Loyola University in Chicago.

Gwen Rubinstein, M.P.H.

Ms. Rubinstein has led training sessions on public policy and drug and alcohol issues for many national and State organizations, including the New Jersey Department of Human Services, the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, the National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems, and the National Alliance to End Homelessness. She served as a legislative aide to Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources Chairperson Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.). She has also served as a public health policy analyst for the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She has a bachelor's degree in languages from Georgetown University and a master's degree in public health from the University of Michigan.

Gale Saler, M.A., C.R.C.-M.A.C., C.A.S., C.P.C.

Ms. Saler received a master's degree in education from George Washington University and a bachelor of arts in psychology from American University.

Barbara J. Spoor, M.P.A.

Ms. Spoor is a Project Director at the American Public Welfare Association (APWA). She is currently coordinating a training grant from the Annie E. Casey Foundation dealing with substance abuseand welfare-to-work issues. Prior to her work at APWA, she held a variety of program/policy positions in both the public and private sectors in New York, focusing on children/family and disability issues. She has also served as a consultant to several national non-profit organizations in areas such as systems change, program development and evaluation, and staff training.

Ms. Spoor has a bachelor's degree in social work from the State University of New York and a master's degree in public administration from Russell Sage College.

Ellen M. Weber, J.D.

Ms. Weber has served as a LAC staff counsel since June 1985. In November 1988, she initiated the LAC's National Policy Project in Washington, D.C.
Prior to her tenure with the LAC, Ms. Weber served for 5 years as trial lawyer with the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, where she developed and litigated cases throughout the southern United States to enforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Ms. Weber earned her juris doctorate at New York University School of Law.

Nancy K. Young, Ph.D.

Dr. Young currently holds a position with California State University, Fullerton, School of Human Development and Community Service, and serves as a research consultant to the Directorate of the State of California, Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs. She is also on the faculty of the University of Southern California School of Social Work. From 1993 to 1994, she held a position with the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Public Policy and Social Research, and served as academic coordinator and research consultant to the Directorate of the State of California, Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs. Dr. Young specialized in social policy issues affecting children of substance abusers during her doctoral studies at the University of Southern California School of Social Work.

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