Our Staff

The staff of CHRIS Kids are highly trained professionals with expertise in a wide variety of treatment modalities that are effective in working with abused, neglected and rejected children, adolescents and their families. The overarching treatment philosophy is based on family systems. Licensed professionals oversee the provision of all services. CHRIS Kids staff is composed of people from different backgrounds and with different types of training and specialization but they all have one thing in common, a commitment to CHRIS Kids.

Executives

Kathy Colbenson, LMFT, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with 30 years experience and has been the Chief Executive Officer of CHRIS Kids since 1987. Under her leadership, CHRIS Kids has grown from four group homes to include nine group homes, two independent living programs and a comprehensive community program, all serving more than 850 children and families each year.

Mary Esposito, LCSW, ACSW, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 33 years of experience and is the Chief Operating Officer. Ms. Esposito has extensive management and clinical experience ranging from child and adolescent mental health to adult and juvenile corrections.

Mark Sauls, Chief Financial Officer, holds 25 years of healthcare and non-profit financial management experience. Mark spent 11 years in financial management with Charter Medical, including serving as CFO for three hospitals, the last being Charter Peachford Behavioral Health System. He received his BBA and MBA from the State University of West Georgia.

Raj Natarajan, General Counsel, is a Partner at Kilpatrick Stockton LLP.

Kevin Lynch , Director of External Affairs, joined CHRIS Kids in 2005. Lynch is charged with building corporate and community partnerships; brand management and growth; government affairs; client development; and capital projects, including housing development.

Robert Pfaff , Director of Development, has earned his Master’s Degree in International Business -Finance from the nationally ranked Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina (US News & World Report) and also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature. He has spent his entire, eighteen-year career in the philanthropic sector, with experience in grant-writing, special events, direct mail, capital campaigns, strategic planning, planned giving and major gifts.

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Clinical Leadership Team

Ashley Tricquet, LPC, CRC, MAC, is the Clinical Director of the group Homes Program. As a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, Ashley most recently has worked with the DeKalb Community Service Board leading various DeKalb County agencies in the planning and development of a proposed county-wide assessment center for children and adolescents for DeKalb County. She also served as the Director of the Community Service Board’s Child and Adolescent Day Treatment program. She previously worked for the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice, for Bainbridge College Mentoring Project, and as a Behavior Specialist at Charter Behavioral Health Systems at Laurel Heights in Atlanta. Ashley attended Georgia State University and the University of Georgia.

Jana B. Glass, LPC, MAC, is the Director of Community Programs. Jana is a Licensed Professional Counselor with over six years experience working with children and families throughout the metropolitan area. Her experience includes working with Georgia Parent Support Network, Devereux Treatment Network, The Bridge, and Cobb County Children’s Center. Her varied background includes experience both as a clinician and a supervisor in crisis management, intensive family intervention, group counseling, life skills development, family therapy, and short term residential shelter care. Jana attended the University of Florida and the University of Georgia. Jana’s accomplishments include the publication, “Effects of Witnessing Severe Marital Discord on Children’s Social Competence and Behavioral Problems,” in The Family Journal with C.R. Marks, B.A. Glaser and A.M.Horne in 2001.

Jill C. Anderson, Psy.D. is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist. She is a graduate of Argosy University/Atlanta and has 10 years of experience working with children and families. Dr. Anderson has worked in residential, group home, and outpatient settings. She specializes with children, adolescents and families, with a particular emphasis on children/adolescents who have experienced trauma or have been sexually abused.

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Administrative Leadership Team

Sarah Ziegler is the Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Director and has over ten years working in the Information Systems industry, with experience in both ISO 9000 and CQI methodology. In the private sector, Sarah worked for one of the industry’s leading providers of on-line psychological and skills assessments. She is a member of the Quality Leaders Network – a national organization of Quality Improvement professionals in the social services.

Jeff Wolfson, MBA is the Management Information Systems Director. He has over 25 years of experience working in the information technology field. He began his career with IBM and later joined Hewlett-Packard. The focus of his work was providing enterprise-level consulting at a variety of Fortune 500 companies, as well as providing support for internal corporate systems.

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