CL22 - II-C3, Intermediate-Level: HealthySteps As Behavioral Health Prevention And Promotion—Guidance For Your Practice

Laura is the HealthySteps Senior Subject Matter Expert and leads the development of professional development for HealthySteps sites, including eLearning modules, virtual learning events, and resources for caregivers and medical professionals. Laura is also the onboarding lead and guides prospective HealthySteps practices through the exploration phase of implementation.  

Laura brings over a decade of experience as a HealthySteps Specialist at the Montefiore Medical Group in Bronx, NY, where she was also the director of quality. As the first HealthySteps hire at Montefiore, she helped grow the program from one trial intervention site to 20 pediatric and family medicine practices in 10 years. Laura was critical to the program’s success and expansion by creating enthusiasm and clinic buy-in, establishing procedures and workflows, training new practices in the model, supervising HealthySteps Specialists, generating innovations and enhancements to the program, and ensuring program fidelity.   

Laura is a licensed clinical social worker who has always focused on families and mental health. Before HealthySteps, Laura worked as a therapist in a variety of settings including residential treatment, school, and private practice. She earned her Bachelor of Arts at Emory University and Master of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Laura also completed the Parent-Infant Study Center, a two-year postgraduate training program of the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services in New York City. When her children were babies, well before discovering HealthySteps, Laura dreamed of creating a program just like HealthySteps, so she was thrilled to find it, work in it, and then lead its scaling throughout the country. 

Jennifer Byrd has been a HealthySteps Specialist for three years. She began her social work career in the field of early intervention and has over 20 years of experience promoting healthy development and relationships in infants, toddlers and their families. 

I grew up in Auburn, Washington, and graduated from both Seattle Pacific University with a BA in Sociology, and the University of Kentucky with a Masters in Social Work.  My programs had me travel to Mexico and Rwanda to learn more about how families and communities thrive, and move toward healing after traumatic times.  I've also had the privilege of working with refugees, adoptive parents, and many families who are facing hard challenges.  I love coming alongside families, and finding ways to grow in health together.  My husband and I have four kiddos, and I work at Skagit Pediatrics as both a Behavioral Health Specialist and Healthy Steps specialist.

Amy Huffer, PhD, LCSW, IMH-E (IV-C)  is a Training and Technical Assistance Specialist HealthySteps, a program of ZERO TO THREE. Dr. Huffer began her work at ZERO TO THREE in 2019 and currently supports the dissemination of HealthySteps in California.  She has supported various specialties in applying infant and early childhood mental health principles, including pediatric clinics, child welfare, court systems, child care, and community mental health.  Dr. Huffer has been endorsed as an Infant Mental Health Mentor by the Alliance for the Advancement of Infant Mental Health and regularly provides trainings and reflective consultation to professionals serving infants, toddlers, and their families.

Stacey Carpenter, PsyD, IMH-E® (IV-C), is a licensed clinical psychologist and Training and Technical Assistance Specialist for HealthySteps a program at ZERO TO THREE. Dr. Carpenter obtained her doctoral degree from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and her experience has concentrated on integrated behavioral health through direct care, training, and supervising. Dr. Carpenter has a certificate in Infant Mental Health from Chatham University and obtained her Infant Mental Health Mentor Endorsement through the Alliance for the Advancement for Infant Mental Health. She is a founding member and Past President of the Pennsylvania Association for Infant Mental Health (PA-AIMH). Dr. Carpenter is dedicated to educating communities and providers on trauma informed care, the two-generation approach, and improving the social-emotional development among children and families.