Meet Our Staff
Susie Weller
Children First, Inc. Executive Director
As the Children First, Inc. executive director, Susie continues to grow advocacy and awareness throughout the community. In her position, she oversees all aspects of Children First and furthers the goal of promoting safe homes for children in times of family crisis. Susie has dedicated over twelve years to child welfare through her work with Children First and as program coordinator for Athens-Oconee CASA. Susie earned her Bachelors of Social Work and Masters of Social Work from the University of Georgia. Her goal is to help children have better outcomes. When not in the office, Susie enjoys a plethora of activities such as reading, singing, walking, basketball, bike riding and experiencing new things!
Contact Susie:
susie@childrenfirst-inc.org
706-613-1922 x 1
Children First, Inc. Executive Director
As the Children First, Inc. executive director, Susie continues to grow advocacy and awareness throughout the community. In her position, she oversees all aspects of Children First and furthers the goal of promoting safe homes for children in times of family crisis. Susie has dedicated over twelve years to child welfare through her work with Children First and as program coordinator for Athens-Oconee CASA. Susie earned her Bachelors of Social Work and Masters of Social Work from the University of Georgia. Her goal is to help children have better outcomes. When not in the office, Susie enjoys a plethora of activities such as reading, singing, walking, basketball, bike riding and experiencing new things!
Contact Susie:
susie@childrenfirst-inc.org
706-613-1922 x 1
Mary Joyce
Associate Director / SafeCare Home Visiting Program Director
As Associate Director, Mary handles many "behind the scenes" tasks such as accounting and grant reporting. Mary also enjoys making a practical difference in the lives or families and getting to meet people that she might never get to know otherwise. As the SafeCare Program Director, Mary has the opportunity to enjoy just that while getting to something different everyday. She provides in-home parenting education for families with children ages 0-5 at risk for abuse or neglect and handles bookkeeping and grant reporting. In her past, Mary worked with several non-profits before pursuing her Masters in Nonprofit management in 2007.
Contact Mary:
mary@childrenfirst-inc.org
706-613-1922 x 2
Cassandra Smith
Operations Director
Cassandra is a native Athenian with over 25 years of administrative experience. She has served in administrative roles where she has effectively managed people and resources that met or exceeded expected goals and produced high quality results. Her desire to make a difference in the lives of children and families led her to Children First.
Cassandra enjoys interacting with people, listening to podcasts, and loving on her two grandchildren.
Contact Cassandra:
cassandra@childrenfirst-inc.org
706-613-1922
Emily Dant
Athens-Oconee CASA Program Director
Program Director Emily Dant found her way into child welfare after an internship with the Children First’s Family Time visitation program. Emily found the work interesting and challenging. Being able to help a family in hard times, even in just a small way, was very rewarding. With a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Fort Valley State University, Emily manages the training program and CASA program, assists in recruiting, and supports CASA volunteers. In her spare time, Emily enjoys spending time with her husband, two kids and animals.
Contact Emily:
emily@athensoconeecasa.org
706-613-1922 x 4
Arden Bakarich
Athens-Oconee CASA Community Outreach Coordinator
Arden Bakarich came to Athens Oconee CASA as a Bachelor of Social Work intern from the University of Georgia. After participating in the Fall 2017 CASA training she was able to take on the additional role of volunteer. Both roles came with a unique set of challenges, but provided her invaluable experience as a social worker and now as CASA's Community Outreach Coordinator. Arden obtained her BSW in May 2018 and hopes to one day return to school to pursue a master's degree. She currently heads marketing, recruitment, and outreach for the Athens Oconee CASA program as well as managing her volunteer load.
Contact Arden:
arden@athensoconeecasa.org
706-613-1922 x 6
Jon Kirkpatrick
Athens-Oconee CASA Program Support Coordinator
Program Support Coordinator Jon Kirkpatrick began his work in child welfare as a CASA volunteer. From there he moved into a peer coordinator role, supporting other CASA volunteers. Finding both roles challenging and rewarding, he took the next step and joined the Athens-Oconee CASA team. Prior to this, Jon served overseas for 18 years as a member of the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service. In his spare time, Jon enjoys spending time with his family, watching UGA baseball, and attending theater productions in the local community.
Contact Jon:
jon@athensoconeecasa.org
706-613-1922 x 4
Allison Lange
Athens-Oconee CASA Advocacy Coordinator
Allison graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice, with a concentration in Forensics, and a minor in Psychology from the University of North Georgia in 2017. After receiving her degree and completing an internship with No One Alone, her local domestic violence agency, she was hired as a legal, shelter, and children’s advocate. Throughout this time, she found her passion in ensuring that every child has an environment where they feel safe and loved. This passion led her to Children First, where she is now one of the Advocacy Coordinators. During her free time, Allison loves reading, spending time with her support system, and enjoying the little things.
Contact Allison:
allison@athensoconeecasa.org
706-613-1922 x8
Tasha Nicholson
Athens-Oconee CASA Advocacy Coordinator
With a Master of Science in psychology with an emphasis on behavior management, Tasha has always been an advocate for the child. Before joining CASA as a volunteer in 2012, she worked in public school special education classrooms and provided after school tutoring to ESL students. As a CASA advocacy coordinator, Tasha keeps up with program data and numbers. Additionally, she edits reports and supports CASAs in meetings and court. On the weekends, Tasha’s role is just “mom”. She can be found traveling to soccer games and music lessons or finding time to scrapbook.
Contact Tasha:
tasha@athensoconeecasa.org
706-613-1922 x 5
Courtney Thurston
Athens-Oconee CASA Advocacy Coordinator
Courtney is driven by the desire to give parents, caregivers & communities all the tools and support necessary in order to provide children with the opportunity to thrive in healthy and positive environments. Courtney has a Bachelor's degree in Sociology from the University of Florida and a Master's of Social Work from UGA and has worked in the field of Child Welfare in various capacities, including Operations & Therapeutic Caregiving at the Child Abuse Prevention Center in San Francisco, an MSW internship with the CEASE law clinic in Athens, as well as Foster care case management with Barrow DFCS. Outside of work, Courtney finds joy in music, being outdoors, traveling, exploring new places and spending time with loved ones.
Contact Courtney:
courtney@athensoconeecasa.org
706-613-1922 x9
Athens-Oconee CASA Advocacy Coordinator
Courtney is driven by the desire to give parents, caregivers & communities all the tools and support necessary in order to provide children with the opportunity to thrive in healthy and positive environments. Courtney has a Bachelor's degree in Sociology from the University of Florida and a Master's of Social Work from UGA and has worked in the field of Child Welfare in various capacities, including Operations & Therapeutic Caregiving at the Child Abuse Prevention Center in San Francisco, an MSW internship with the CEASE law clinic in Athens, as well as Foster care case management with Barrow DFCS. Outside of work, Courtney finds joy in music, being outdoors, traveling, exploring new places and spending time with loved ones.
Contact Courtney:
courtney@athensoconeecasa.org
706-613-1922 x9
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Audey Lee SafeCare Home Visitor Audey has always been passionate about youth rights and has grown a passion for helping families. Before joining Children First staff, Audey was a CASA volunteer, worked with Jackson County DFCS and Rose of Athens Theatre. With a LMSW and MNPO from the University of Georgia, Audey's role as the SafeCare home visitor involves visiting families and teaching parenting skills. They also have a BFA in theater performance furthering their interest in performance arts, crafting, as well as gardening! Contact Audey: audey@childrenfirst-inc.org 706-613-1922 x 3
Rob Turner SPARC Program Director Originally from Cochran, GA, Rob moved to Athens, GA in 2007. Rob found his way into child welfare while taking a year off from school and reading an article about a local social worker. He then enrolled in the bachelors of social work program at the University of Georgia and decided that the realm of child welfare is where he could make his impact. After a year internship with Family Time and two years as an CPS investigator, Rob now works as the SPARC Program Director in which he provides legitimation services to illegitimate fathers, assists in gaining visitation for noncustodial parents and markets the program in the community. Rob is also an avid collector of vinyl records and enjoys cooking. When not in the office, Rob can also be found playing the banjo. Contact Rob: sparc@childrenfirst-inc.org 706-613-1922 x 7 |