AC21 - E2 - Implementing Standardized Assessment in Safe Baby Courts Utilizing the Toddler/Infant Needs and Strengths (TINS)

Dr. Giovanni Billings IMH-E is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and a team member at the Center of Excellence for Children in State Custody. He trained at Children's Hospital Colorado, The Kempe Center, and in the Irving Harris Fellowship at University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Denver. Throughout his education, training, and work, Dr. Billings' focus has been on serving children and families who have experienced trauma, with a particular focus on infant and early childhood trauma. This work includes parent-child relational assessment, relationship-based therapeutic interventions, and training/consultation in the court and child welfare systems on the needs of young children. Dr. Billings is a rostered Child Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) therapist and endorsed as a Clinical Mentor in infant mental health.

Mindy Kronenberg, Ph.D., IMH-E, a clinical psychologist in private practice in Memphis, Tennessee, specializes in infant mental health and the assessment and treatment of trauma across the lifespan. She completed the Irving Harris Infant Mental Health Fellowship at LSU Health Sciences Center where she previously served as Assistant Professor. Dr. Kronenberg has provided crisis intervention as well as direct and consultative services in multiple settings including state agencies, schools, head starts, dependency courts, and child welfare agencies. Dr. Kronenberg provides national training on evidence-based and evidence-informed assessments, practices, and treatments including Child-Parent Psychotherapy, Psychological First Aid, Reflective Supervision, and Relationship-Based Assessment. Dr. Kronenberg is a National Child Traumatic Stress Network affiliate member, and a past co-chair of NCTSN's Zero to Six Workgroup. She was a founding board of the Association of Infant Mental Health in Tennessee (AIMHiTN) and is currently AIMHiTN's endorsement co-chair and member of the Advisory Council.

Kathy Gracey received her M.Ed. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Mississippi. She has been a member of the department of psychiatry since 1992. She serves as the administrator, responsible for oversight and implementation, of multiple programs serving at risk children, youth and families. Ms. Gracey has been the key person within the Vanderbilt Center of Excellence to assist the Department of Children Services (DCS) with the implementation of a statewide assessment intervention for all children/families in DCS custody along with the implementation of a statewide assessment for non-custody families. She has assisted with a roll out of the Juvenile Justice Assessment that has been implemented in approximately 55 juvenile justice courts, training over 300 court staff in Tennessee. This entailed significant collaboration within the Tennessee state system (i.e., Department of Children Services, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services along with the Administrative Office of the Courts, which included multi-regional training, networking and on-going technical assistance. In 1986 Ms. Gracey moved to Nashville to become Director of a not for profit organization that served youth who had experienced sexual trauma. She has been implementing programs at Vanderbilt for at-risk youth and youth who have experienced complex trauma for the past 36 years.

Jennifer Fisher joined the statewide leadership team for Safe Baby Courts in October 2019. Since joining the Safe Baby Court leadership team, Ms. Fisher has contributed to the development of a Safe Baby Court work-aid for DCS staff, a protocol for the implementation of the Toddler Infant Needs and Strengths (TINS) assessment for DCS staff, a Safe Baby Court fidelity tool, and a Best Practice Standards Guide for Safe Baby Courts. Since the implementation of TINS in Tennessee Safe Baby Courts, Ms. Fisher continues to support staff in best practice around TINS and the Safe Baby Court approach. Ms. Fisher has over 20 years of experience in child welfare prior to joining the statewide leadership team.

Stephanie Etheridge is the Juvenile Court Manager/Statewide Judicial Safe Baby Court Coordinator for the Administrative Office of the Courts. She has led in the development and implementation of 12 Safe Baby Courts throughout Tennessee. She is a member of a multi-disciplinary team comprised of leaders from the Departments of Children's Services, Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and the Administrative Office of the Courts. She is also responsible for coordinating conferences and trainings for the Juvenile Court Judges, Court Administrators, Youth Service Officers, and other Juvenile Court personnel. She represents the Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges in a number of statewide initiatives, task forces, advisory councils, and work groups. She previously served as conference coordinator. Prior to the Administrative Office of the Courts, her work experience includes two years as a foster care case manager for the Tennessee Department of Children's Services and almost six years as a Child Protective Services Investigator. Stephanie received her Bachelor of Science degree from Tennessee Technological University with concentrations in early childhood education, special education, and child and family development/relations.