| Janice Bates |
Janice is an experienced municipal clerk, Athenian Dialogue facilitator, and speaker. She has served as Clerk of Council for Tipp City, Ohio since 2011. She is active in both the Ohio Municipal Clerks Association (OMCA) and the International Institute of Municipal Clerks (IIMC). Within the OMCA, she has served in the roles of president, vice president, immediate past president and city board member. While on the OMCA Board, her priority was increasing membership and educational opportunities. In 2019, she was sworn in as the IIMC Region V Director. She is presently an IIMC vice president candidate.
Janice holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in art and art history with a concentration in photography from Wright State University. In addition, she is an Athenian Leadership Society Fellow with Certified Municipal Clerk (CMC) and Master Municipal Clerk (MMC) credentials from the IIMC.
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| Dan Belhassen |
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| Jonathan Buffkin |
Seth Buffkin is a recent graduate of William and Mary and works in the fields of computer science, psychology, and education. He is passionate about equity, inclusion, diversity, and providing everyone the ability to elevate themselves in academics and in health. |
| Abigail Byram |
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| Virginia Chu |
Dr. Chu, a licensed occupational therapist, also serves as an assistant professor with the VCU department of Occupational Therapy. In addition to teaching in the department, Dr. Chu oversees the sensorimotor processing and rehabilitation engineering lab. Her professional interests include sensorimotor integration and motor control, development of sensory processing in children, dyspraxia and developmental delays, pediatric sensorimotor evaluation and assessments, and rehabilitation engineering and assistive technology. |
| Sharon DeFonteny |
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| Mary Dereshiwsky |
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| Jeff Dowdy |
dowdyjl@vcu.edu |
| William Draves |
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| Debra Duke |
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| Dionne Felix |
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| Betsy Flanagan |
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| Katie Francis |
Katie Francis is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Registered Play Therapist -Supervisor™ (RPT-S), and Certified Trauma Practitioner-Clinical (CTP-C). She has been working for ChildSavers for over 10 years providing outpatient therapy to children, teens and families. Katie is also the Program Manager for Mental Health Services Outpatient Program and Immediate Response program and provides clinical supervision to some of our staff. Katie has extensive training in providing trauma focused treatment to children, teens and families as well as training in the use of play, art, sand and attachment-based treatments. She has previously taught for the Play Therapy training courses on Group, Family and Filial work. Katie thoroughly enjoys supporting our community’s children and families by helping them to find healing and build resiliency through the use of play and expressive therapies. |
| Bruce Freer |
Bruce C. Freer received his BSEET from Youngstown State University in 1978.Bruce began his 40-year career with Allen-Bradley in 1979 as an Application Engineer and later moved to Product Marketing where he was responsible for the PLC-3 Product Line. In 1985, Bruce moved to Richmond, Va. as an Area Manager helping customers develop Automation Systems in the Food & Beverage, Pharmaceutical, Pulp & Paper, Mining & Metals, and Marine Industries. These systems involved PLC/Automation Controllers, Safety Controllers, Safety Systems, Industrial Ethernet Switches & Networking, Operator Interface Devices, S.C.A.D.A software, Historian Software, PlantPAx DCS systems, Motion Systems, Vibration Monitoring, Industrial Computers, Industrial Thin Clients, Thin Client Management Software, and VMWare Virtual Servers. Bruce retired from Rockwell Automation in December 2019.
While working at Rockwell Automation, Bruce helped Dr. Klenke configure the first Industrial Automation Class at VCU in 2015 with six (6) workstations. In 2019, five (5) more workstations were added. |
| Vaughn Garland |
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| Zach Gibson |
Zach Gibson is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in the Commonwealth of Virginia with over ten years of experience working with children and families. Zach works with an emphasis on play and expressive interventions and brings creativity to the therapy space in the form of handmade therapy tools, improv acting approaches, art techniques, and individualized therapy models that support clients from the perspective of their own interests and passions. Zach has provided therapy services in the Richmond Public School system for the past 4 school years and has a passion for collaboration across disciplines present in the academic setting. |
| Jo-Carolyn Goode |
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| Andy Helmi |
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| Matt Honsberger |
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| Libby Hume |
Libby Hume is the Town Clerk of the Town of Cape Charles on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and has been in the position since 2008. Libby has over 25 years' experience in administration, fifteen with the Town of Cape Charles, and ten in the private sector. She joined IIMC and the VMCA in 2009 and obtained her CMC in November 2013 and her MMC in September 2016. She was inducted into the IIMC Athenian Leadership Society as a Fellow in May 2018 and is the first clerk in the Commonwealth of Virginia to receive this designation. She is the only clerk in Virginia certified by the IIMC to facilitate Athenian Leadership Dialogues. |
| Susan Hurrell |
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| Mary Beth Izard |
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| Sally Klauss |
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| Robert Klenke |
Dr. Robert Klenke is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at VCU. Dr. Klenke's research interests include system-level modeling and hardware/software codesign for complex, embedded digital systems. His recent research work has been concentrated in the area of digital flight control systems and payload data systems for unmanned aerial vehicles. In 2015, Dr. Klenke developed the first course in Industrial Automation to be taught at VCU. This course has been supported by generous donations from Rockwell Automation and several local industries. In 2016, a second, advanced course was added to the sequence. Thus far, over 100 VCU engineering undergraduates and graduate students have taken the Industrial Automation courses.
Dr. Klenke received his BSEE degree from the Virginia Military Institute in 1982 and his MSEE and Ph.D. (Electrical Engineering) degrees from the University of Virginia in 1989 and 1993 respectively. He joined the faculty in the Department of Electrical Engineering at VCU as an Associate Professor in 1998. Dr. Klenke led the efforts to develop computer engineering as a separate degree program in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering which was first ABET accredited in 2005. He has over 35 years of combined military, education, and consulting experience in engineering and has published over 85 refereed papers and book chapters.
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| Amy Klous |
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| Jeff Kritzer |
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| Marcus Lander |
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| Conrad Brian Law |
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| Ana Yenni Leon Lima |
leonlimaay@vcu.edu |
| Kathryn Lynch-Morin |
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| Greg Marsello |
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| Kathy Nadlman |
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| Robert Nickles |
Bob Nickles is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and registered play therapist™ (RPT) who lives and works in Richmond, VA. Bob has practiced clinical social work since 2009 with a variety of populations across the lifespan and especially enjoys seeing families find new ways to solve old problems. He presently serves as a school-based services manager with the non-profit agency, ChildSavers. Outside of work, Bob enjoys cooking, exercise, and theatre. |
| Joyce Odidison |
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| John Rutledge |
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| Nanette Sanders-Cobb |
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| Jennifer Selke |
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| Cristina Sempe |
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| Nicole Siscaretti |
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| Boris Solomonov |
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| Yedda Stancil |
Yedda Stancil brings a rich tapestry of experience as a mindfulness meditation teacher, spiritual guide, and contemplative life seeker. She refers to herself as a "shunk"—part shaman, part monk. Her journey has been marked by a deep commitment to integrating spiritual wisdom with practical mindfulness practices. Yedda's approach is rooted in creating sacred spaces where individuals can explore silence, stillness, and self-awareness.
With a background in corporate leadership, community health, and transformative engagement, Yedda combines her extensive knowledge in behavior change, mindfulness, and leadership development to foster environments of growth and well-being. Her vision for the InnerWork Center encapsulates a profound understanding of both organizational dynamics and the sacredness of space—honoring wisdom, spirituality, and empirical knowledge alike.
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| Melissa Torres |
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| Jodie Trana |
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| Chaitankar Vijender |
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| Travette Webster |
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| Marion Williams |
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| Jan Williamson |
Jan Williamson serves as the lead instructor with the VCU Play Therapy program. She also serves as a clinical trainer and supervisor. For eight years, Jan served as the clinical supervisor and a mental health clinician providing trauma-informed mental health services for the non-profit agency, ChildSavers in Richmond. In addition, she worked for the Child Advocacy Center and has also been an adjunct professor for the VCU Graduate School of Social Work. She has a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology and a Master's in Clinical Social Work. First licensed as a family therapist, she has over 40 years of experience in the mental health field working with families, adults and children. Jan worked internationally with refugee children and families in Southeast Asia and in Africa in areas of armed conflict and mass displacement. Jan is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), a Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor (RPT-S), and a past member of the board of the Virginia Association for Play Therapy. |