Education Summit
Sponsored By: OVCS / AmeriCorps
Speaker Bios
Ronnie Gehring, MSWGraduated with a Bachelor's degree in Social Work from Eastern Kentucky University (1997) and Master's in Social Work from the University of South Carolina (2000).Ronnie spent one year as a foster care social worker for Durham County (NC) Department of Social Services and from 2002-2007 was the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) program coordinator in Portsmouth, Va. From there I spent the next 10 years at The Up Center with their Therapeutic Foster Care program: 4 years as the Resource Family Clinician and 6 years as the Director of Resource Home Development. In October 2017 I became the Program Manager for Embrace Treatment Foster Care, a National Counseling Group partner, in the Virginia Beach office
Dyverynce Lambertis the Clinical Director at Integrated Health Services based in Hampton, Virginia Beach, and Richmond Virginia. In this position, she manages a staff of fifty in three programs dedicated to serving at risk youth through the intensive in-home program, sexually reactive youth and juvenile sex offenders through the S.H.A.R.E. program, trauma survivors through outpatient services, and their families. Her practice uses modalities such as Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), Trauma Focused CBT, Gestalt Therapy, and other trauma forced interventions that produce life-changing results. Dyverynce is a Virginia State Licensed Professional Counselor who graduated from Radford University with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology in 2006 and a Master in Counselor Education in 2008. Dyverynce also holds a degree in Ministry and has received honors for extraordinary character and leadership. In her years of experience in the field, Dyverynce has worked with individuals and families who have overcome extreme trauma such as physical abuse, sexual molestation, attempted murder, domestic violence, surviving war, etc. deeming them “Trauma Conquerors” for overcoming life’s challenges.
Jenna L. Fosterhas been actively involved in child and youth initiatives for over 10 years. In recent years, Jenna has served on the Board of an Education Foundation that promotes positive and engaging learning environments for K-12 students in the public education setting. She has been requested to present at several national and international conferences on topics focusing on women’s rights, child and youth initiatives, and equality issues and currently serves on the World YWCA Board of Directors, based in Geneva, Switzerland.
Calvin Nunnally, Sr.is the founder and chief executive officer of Know More Bullying Training and Consultation Services. He has been a public school teacher and administrator. He spent a number of years working in educational television producing programs and providing technology training to teachers and school administrators. In 2009, he retired from the Virginia Department of Health Division of Injury and Violence Prevention where he served as the Manager of Virginia’s Multi-Site Youth Suicide Prevention/Early Intervention Program, which included, among other things, the coordination of statewide suicide and bullying prevention initiatives. He has conducted numerous suicide prevention trainings and related presentations at the local, state, and national level (including presentations to Congressional Committees, the President’s Commission on Mental Health Reform, and training for command personnel for the United States Navy). He currently serves as a consultant for the Federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). He is a certified Olweus Bullying Prevention Trainer and conducts anti-bullying sessions and suicide prevention trainings all across the United States.
Ronnie Nelson Sidney II, MSWis a therapist, author, publisher, professional speaker, and business owner. He is the author of "Nelson Beats the Odds", "Tameka's New Dress" and "Rest in Peace RaShawn". In 2015, Sidney developed the Nelson Beats The Odds Comic Creator app to help young people celebrate their strengths and feel good about themselves. Sidney works full time as an Outpatient Therapist at the MPNN-CSB. Please visit more information about the author.