Meet Our Team
Lisa Conradi, Psy.D., Interim Executive Director
Lisa Conradi, Psy.D. is the Interim Executive Director at the Chadwick Center for Children and Families at Rady Children’s Hospital – San Diego. In this role, she provides overall leadership support to the Chadwick Center, a children’s advocacy center and one of the largest trauma treatment centers in the nation. She has multiple years of experience in the field of child trauma and in supporting service systems in their efforts to become more trauma-informed. She has authored and co-authored a variety of publications on trauma screening and assessment practices, creating trauma-informed systems and presented nationally on innovative practices designed to improve the service delivery system for children who have experienced trauma. She is a licensed Clinical Psychologist and has received training from the developers on multiple evidence-based trauma-focused treatment practices, including Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) and Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP). She is on the editorial board for the Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment and Trauma and a co-author of the upcoming book, Trauma-Informed Assessment with Children and Adolescents: Strategies to Support Clinicians.
Vicky Gwiasda, Program Manager
Vicky Gwiasda has over twenty years of executive leadership experience in public and not-for-profit organizations at the national, state and local levels, with a focus on building safe, healthy and equitable homes and communities. Most recently, Vicky served as the Executive Director of CALICO, the accredited child advocacy center of Alameda County, California, and previously she worked as the Director of Knowledge Enhancement at the Institute for Community Peace based in Washington DC and as Deputy Director of the Illinois Violence Prevention Authority in Chicago, Illinois.
Salli Kerr, Training Specialist
Salli Kerr has over five years of experience as an Executive Director and CEO in the non-profit sector and was instrumental in the formation and accreditation of the state chapter of children’s advocacy centers in Nevada. As Executive Director, Salli led a multi-service center that housed the Nye County Children’s Advocacy Center, the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Nevada and other service organizations for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and other crimes. Salli’s background of providing direct services, including foster-parenting, provides her with a unique perspective on the impact of trauma in the lives of victims and the positive influence that a coordinated response has on victims’ recovery and wellness.
Patty Terzian, State Chapter Liaison
Patty Terzian has over fifteen years of experience in the non-profit sector developing and directing programs, providing outreach and trainings, and managing grants. In her previous role, Patty served for nine years as the Executive Director/Statewide Coordinator of the Oregon Network of Child Abuse Intervention Centers, the accredited state chapter of children’s advocacy centers. She led the chapter through considerable growth and development and collaborated with professionals across the state to improve services for Oregon’s children when there were concerns of abuse. Patty’s skills in project coordination, communications and training were honed through her early-career work in both the non-profit and corporate sectors.
Clorinda Merino, Rural Mental Health Project Coordinator
Clorinda Merino is currently the Rural Mental Health Project Coordinator with the Western Regional Children’s Advocacy Center. She was a senior trainer at the National SafeCare Training and Research Center at Georgia State University for the past 8 years. She is a private consultant in the area of Child Abuse Prevention and a Master’s level professor at CETYS University. She has traveled the world speaking and training professionals and has over 30 years of experience. She has a BA in Psychology and a Master’s in Counseling from the University of San Diego. Clorinda has worked in different community agencies directing Child Maltreatment and Domestic Violence programs. She is an advocate for children and families and participated in the creation of a national effort to create treatment guidelines when working with Latino Families.
Kelsey Roberts, Training & Communications Coordinator
Kelsey Roberts recently joined the WRCAC team after serving as a supervisor in training and communications for a worldwide, corporate immigration law firm for over four years. In her previous role, Kelsey was instrumental in the success of IT related projects and initiatives through organizing, facilitating and delivering live training to a global audience as well as managing related communications and resources. With a background in psychology and a passion for working with children of adversity, Kelsey was drawn to the Chadwick Center to use her expertise in coordinating training and communications for the betterment of child victims and their families.
Lana Lo, Training & Communications Coordinator
Lana Lo has recently joined the WRCAC team as a Training and Communications Coordinator. Lana previously worked with non-profits managing mental health wellness outreach, suicide prevention, and implementing quality standards for high-quality shared housing. She recently served as technical assistance to the County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency’s Behavioral Health Services, focusing on expanding housing to individuals in substance use treatment, parents with children, and individuals involved with the re-entry system. With a passion for helping individuals navigate the local healthcare system, she brings her expertise with technology and training logistics, including cross-cultural communication and securing strategic partnerships. Lana holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration, emphasizing Information Systems from San Diego State University, and a Master of Arts in Teaching and Learning with Technology from Ashford University.
Madison Stark, Training & Communications Coordinator
Madison Stark served two years with AmeriCorps after graduating from UNC Chapel Hill in 2017, implementing programs targeted towards youth who have experienced adversity. A passion for trauma-informed practices and public health led her to the Chadwick Center in 2019, where she serves as a Training & Communications Coordinator on the WRCAC team. Madison brings her experience in grants and non-profit communications to this role to facilitate behind-the-scenes logistics for WRCAC’s trainings and webinars, as well as manage WRCAC’s communications.
Al Killen-Harvey
Al Killen-Harvey is the co founder of The Harvey Institute, a training and consultation company whose mission is improving health care outcomes through integrating sexual health. For the past 24 years he has worked at the Chadwick Center where he has served in a variety of clinical and training positions. Al is a frequent presenter, nationally and internationally, on a wide variety of topics related to children and adolescents as well as sexual identity and gender identity. He currently serves on the Advisory Board of The Children’s Advocacy Centers of California and is a past board member of CAPSAC (California Professional Society on the Abuse of Children).
Charles Wilson, MSSW
Charles Wilson served as Director of the Chadwick Center for Children and Families for 20 years, retiring in 2020. He previously served as the Executive Director of the National Children’s Advocacy Center in Huntsville, Alabama, Board Member for the Alabama Network of CACs, Project Director for the Southern Regional Children’s Advocacy Center, and ex officio member of the Board of Directors of NCA. Charles is also the former President of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children and former member of the Board of Directors of the California Network of CACs.
Andrea Hazen, Ph.D., Research Scientist
Andrea’s current work primarily focuses on mental health screening, assessment and treatment for children and families involved with child welfare services. She has expertise in child maltreatment and intimate partner violence research and program evaluation, and has published extensively on those topics. Dr. Hazen oversees the treatment outcome program for the Trauma Counseling Program and for the KidSTART Mental Health Clinic and serves as the evaluation lead for WRCAC and other projects focused on the delivery of trauma informed services in child welfare systems and on the implementation of screening, assessment, and evidence-based treatment to address the mental health needs of children involved with child welfare services.
Christopher Perkins, Project Analyst
Christopher Perkins has more than fifteen years of experience with data and website management and administration and served as the project manager for the web-based California Mandated Reporter training portal. Chris manages WRCAC’s electronic learning and communication systems.