Terrence D. Walton, Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP), is among the nation’s leading experts in providing training and technical assistance to drug courts and other problem-solving courts. Prior to being named COO in October 2015, Terrence Walton was the NADCP Chief of Standards. In addition to being responsible for the daily operation of NADCP and planning the national conference, he retains his responsibility for establishing and implementing best practice standards nationwide. Previously, Terrence Walton was Director of Treatment for the Pretrial Services Agency for the District of Columbia (PSA), in Washington, D.C. During his nearly 15 years at PSA, he was responsible for directing the PSA operations that provide substance use disorder and mental health assessment, treatment, and social services for all adults released under PSA supervision in the District of Columbia. His responsibilities included overseeing the city’s adult Drug Court, the DWI Initiative, the Mental Health units and various other programs for assessing, treating and supervising justice system involved men and women. Previously, he excelled as the director of what was then the District of Columbia’s leading adolescent outpatient substance abuse treatment center.
Terrence Walton has directed programs in Dayton, Ohio and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He has helped evaluate a multi-million-dollar White House Anti-Drug Media Campaign and served on the substance abuse task force as a part of the White House Best Practices Collaborative. In addition to his extensive work domestically, he has assisted addiction treatment programs in Bangladesh, Barbados, Guam, Mexico and Bermuda.
Terrence Walton is an internationally certified alcohol and other drug abuse counselor with over twenty-five years of experience helping individuals and organizations champion positive change. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and a Master of Social Work degree with specializations in program administration and substance abuse. Noted for his practical strength-based approaches to complex issues, Terrence Walton is actively sought out for insight on treating and supervising justice system involved individuals who are living with substance use and mental health disorders. Terrence Walton is a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT). A gifted and entertaining speaker, Terrence Walton travels extensively informing and inspiring audiences across the globe.
Aaron Arnold is the director of technical assistance at the Center for Court Innovation. In this capacity, he oversees all of the Center’s national work related to treatment courts, community justice initiatives, prosecutor-led diversion programs, tribal justice, and more. Aaron has provided assistance to hundreds of jurisdictions around the country during more than 12 years at the Center for Court Innovation. Before joining the Center, Aaron was a prosecutor with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office in Phoenix, Arizona, where he gained first-hand experience working in several problem-solving courts. Aaron is graduate of Cornell University and the University of Arizona College of Law.
Vanessa Price – Division Director, National Drug Court Institute was employed as a police officer with The City of Oklahoma City from October 1990 through January 2012. She retired at the rank of Inspector and was assigned to Operations Administration as the Interim Executive Director for Weed and Seed Programs. Mrs. Price held that position from September 2009 through January 2012. Her prior assignment from May of 1998 to September 2009 was with the Oklahoma County Drug Court. She was instrumental in the development of The Oklahoma County Drug Court Program, including policy manual development, budgeting, and staff training. Training presentations and curriculum development include recognizing the signs of mental illness, identification of a subject under the influence of drugs, effectively communicating with consumers, strengths-based interviewing, team building, drug testing, program planning and development, grant writing, community supervision, cultural proficiency for consumers served, ethics & confidentiality in treatment programs, psychopharmacology of drugs for first responders, community resource identification and development. In May 2014, Mrs. Price was appointed by the Governor of Oklahoma to serve on the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board. In January 2015 she was reappointed to a four-year term and elected to serve as Chair of organization. Mrs. Price joined the staff of NADCP in August of 2016 to serve as the Director of NDCI. Mrs. Price has an Associate Degree from Oklahoma State University in Applied Police Science; a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Central Oklahoma, in Criminal Justice.
James Eberspacher is the Director for the National Center for DWI Courts (NCDC). NCDC is the professional services branch of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) providing training and technical assistance to DWI Court professionals. Jim’s background in the Drug Court models includes experience at the state and local levels. For seven years, he was the State Drug Court Coordinator for the State of Minnesota, providing oversight in forming Drug Court policy and strategic planning, state standards, funding, assisting in research, and providing training and technical assistance to Drug Court teams. Jim also served as the Coordinator on three Drug Court teams – DWI Court, Hybrid Drug/DWI Court and Family Dependency Treatment Court – in rural Minnesota. Prior to his involvement in the Drug Court field, Jim was a Probation Officer in community supervision and a juvenile institution. Overall, Jim has 17 years of combined experience in Drug Courts, corrections, policy development, and training/technical assistance.
Judge Floerke is a district court judge of the 6th Judicial District of Minnesota, chambered in Duluth. He was appointed to the bench July 2004. Before taking the bench he served as a lead prosecutor, litigation attorney in a private law firm, and as a senior attorney in government civil litigation.
Judge Floerke founded and presides over the South St. Louis County DWI Court, one of four National Center for DWI Courts Academy Courts in the nation. He serves as Co-Chair of the Minnesota Treatment Court Initiative and is a past member of the Minnesota Judicial Council, the governing body for the judiciary in Minnesota. He trains judges and other professionals on domestic violence issues nationally with the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) and also with the Duluth Domestic Abuse Intervention Project (DAIP). He is a faculty member and trainer for the National Center for DWI Courts. He was awarded a judicial leadership award by Minnesota Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) in 2011 and again in 2017 for his work to effectively address impaired driving.
Judge Floerke is husband to Sara and father to five children who are not impressed by what he does for a living, but are much more interested in who he is and whether he is present.
Judge Floerke’s full bio is at: http://www.mncourts.gov/?page=JudgeBio_v2&ID=30367
Maria Cristina Fuentes was appointed as Director of the Governor’s Office of Youth, Faith and Family (GOYFF) by Governor Doug Ducey in November 2017.
GOYFF serves vulnerable communities to help prevent and address five key areas: child safety, human trafficking, domestic and sexual violence, juvenile justice and substance abuse. Additionally, the office works to strengthen service and volunteerism through the AmeriCorps program and faith-based community engagement.
Previous to Ms. Fuentes’ appointment to GOYFF, she worked at Casey Family Programs, where she furthered the foundation’s mission to safely reduce the number of children in foster care and improve well-being outcomes of children and families.
Ms. Fuentes also served six years in the Administration of President George W. Bush in the U.S. Departments of Labor and Justice. Ms. Fuentes also served in the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives working to help states across the country develop and establish their own faith-based initiatives.