Ashley Brown is President of KVC Nebraska where she ensures the organization is responsive and agile to the needs of Nebraska youth, families and individuals, focusing specifically on prevention and early intervention services. She also supports a diverse and compassionate team of 60 professionals who make a positive difference in Nebraska communities every day. She is particularly passionate about strengthening KVC Nebraska’s culture by building an exceptional employee experience.

Throughout her career in child welfare, Ashley has worked in a variety of fields–including foster care, in-home services and outpatient mental health services. Ashley earned a master’s degree in social work from the University of Nebraska-Omaha and is a licensed clinical social worker in Nebraska. She received a bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of South Dakota.

Cassandra is Director of Family Preservation and Model Fidelity at KVC Nebraska. In this role, she collaborates with internal and external stakeholders and partners to support families and protect children from abuse and neglect. She is currently focusing on preventing child maltreatment through prevention and early intervention programs.

For more than a decade, Cassandra has helped vulnerable and at-risk populations and believes safe, secure, and connected relationships within families and communities are key to child safety and optimizing human potential. Her KVC team has supported the preservation and reunification of hundreds of families.

Cassandra is licensed in Nebraska as an Independent Mental Health Practitioner and a Marriage and Family Therapist. She holds a master’s degree in Family and Consumer Sciences from University Nebraska-Lincoln. She is an Approved Supervisor with the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists and serves as a Marriage and Family Therapist representative on the Nebraska Board of Mental Health Practice. She is also a certified Gallup Engagement Champion.

Liz currently provides clinical and programmatic oversight as the Program Director for Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities. Liz has worked in the Human Services field for approximately 15 years and graduated with her Master’s Degree in Social Work in 2007. Liz’s work in the field has primarily focused on mental health, behavior modification, and developmental disabilities. Her current position allows her to work closely with individuals with developmental/intellectual disabilities, their families and other supports, and DHHS administration and Service Coordination. Additionally, Liz has experience working closely with community providers on several initiatives to increase quality of life for individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities and mental illness.

From mental health to Juvenile Justice, Theresa Goley has been working with youth for over 20 years. Theresa accepted a new opportunity with KVC in 2014 as a Service Area Director and is now serving in her role as Permanency Director. Theresa began her career working on an acute mental health unit in South Dakota. She moved to Nebraska in 2002 started doing in-home work and eventually moved on to be the Program Therapist on an acute mental health unit for adolescents. When the Child Welfare Reform started in Nebraska in 2009, Theresa saw this as an opportunity to be part of a much needed change and accepted a position with KVC. She served as a Supervisor and was then promoted to Director a little over a year later.

During her time as Director of OJS, Theresa was involved with both the Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative in Douglas and Sarpy Counties and the Crossover Youth Practice Model in Douglas County.. While employed with State Probation, Theresa served as the statewide JDAI Coordinator and took the lead in working with the Georgetown Center for Juvenile Justice Reform on the expansion of Crossover from Douglas County to other counties across Nebraska.

Theresa holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of South Dakota and a Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from the North American Baptist Seminary. She is currently licensed in Nebraska as a Licensed Mental Health Practitioner.

Lucy is proud to be a part of the KVC family as she believes in being an advocate for the children and families we serve. Lucy graduated in 2008 from the University of Omaha with a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and Psychology. In 2010 she pursed her Master’s degree at Bellevue University in Clinical Counseling. Lucy has worked in Child Welfare for over 12 years. She has gained excellent experience in working at DHHS as a Children and Family Services Specialist, Probation as a Specialized Juvenile Officer, and at KVC Behavioral Health as an Intensive In-Home Therapist. In 2017, Lucy became the Supervisor over the Intensive In-Home Family Services team.

Shannon Bolter serves as Substance Abuse Coordinator with KVC Nebraska’s Substance Use Evaluation program. In this role, she assesses individuals ages 12 and older for possible substance misuse and connects them to life-changing treatment and support.

Starting at KVC as a Skill Builder/Intensive In-Home Specialist and then as an Intensive In-Home Supervisor, Shannon has worked with hundreds of families to keep them safely together and prevent out-of-home foster care. Throughout her KVC career, she has gained valuable experience in probational work, in-home family services and foster parent training class teaching. Shannon has extensive knowledge in substance use and is certified in trauma-informed care. For two years, Shannon was a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), working in partnership with attorneys, service providers and state workers to ensure children who have experienced abuse and/or neglect have a voice.

Shannon is a licensed alcohol and drug counselor (LADC) and is certified in ASI, CASI and SASSI, assessments to gauge substance use severity. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a minor in adolescent psychology from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Shannon is an Omaha native and a proud biological, foster and adoptive mother.

Michaela Breault is Administrative Supervisor of Developmental Disability Services where she oversees a variety of different elements that make our Shared Living program successful.

Michaela began her career with KVC four years ago as a Shared Living Specialist where she worked closely with individuals with disabilities, their families, and other team members before transitioning to her current role in 2019. She came to KVC with over six years of extensive experience in the developmental and intellectual disabilities field. After working in a group home for individuals with disabilities, she realized her passion for community-based services. Michaela received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education K-8 and special education K-12 from Hastings College.

“I am extremely grateful to work with a dedicated team of Specialists who go above and beyond to advocate for those KVC supports.” – Michaela Breault

Becca graduated in 2006 from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a Bachelor of Science in Education and Human Sciences. Becca began working for KVC in July of 2010 as a Kinship Specialist and transitioned to a Foster Care Specialist before becoming a Supervisor in November 2014. Becca has been working in child welfare since 2006 to include In-Home Services. Outside of work, Becca enjoys spending time with her husband Evan and son Ledger and, spending time in the outdoors.

Nicole Deere-Andersen serves as KVC Nebraska’s Human Resources Manager and has over 15 years of valuable human services experience. Beginning her career with KVC in 2010, Nicole gained experience as an Admissions Liaison, Foster Care Specialist, and Foster Care Supervisor before transitioning to her current role. As an Admissions Liaison, Nicole placed over 1,600 youth in need of a safe and loving home with KVC-licensed foster parents over a six-year period.

Nicole earned a master’s degree in human resource management from Doane University in 2019 and received two bachelor’s degrees in psychology and history from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2008.

Larissa Dowe is the Supervising Practitioner of KVC Nebraska’s Outpatient Therapy Program. In this role, she provides clinical oversight to licensed clinicians, conducts Initial Diagnostic Interviews, and supports children and their caregivers to promote mental wellness, social and emotional well-being, and positive caregiver-child relationships.

Larissa is licensed in Nebraska as an Independent Mental Health Practitioner and Clinical Social Worker. She holds her master’s degree in Clinical Social Work from the University of Saint Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She specializes in early childhood intervention and prevention, and is trained in Child Parent Psychotherapy (CPP), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Bounce Back and Cognitive Behavioral Interventions in the Schools (CBITS). She is also a Certified Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Trainer.

Lauren graduated in 2007 from the University of South Dakota with a Bachelor’s in Social Work and Psychology. She then went on to pursue her Masters of Social Work from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. She graduated with her Masters in 2009.  Lauren started with KVC Nebraska in August of 2010 as a Licensing Specialist and through hard work and dedication became a Supervisor in October of 2015.  Lauren has been working in child welfare for over seven years.  In her downtime, she loves to play golf and spoil her puppy Brody.

Jessica serves as a Foster Care Supervisor where she oversees a compassionate team of Foster Care Specialists who provide training to foster families as well as direct support and ongoing services to foster parents licensed through KVC. She enjoys the daily challenges within her position and strongly supports the KVC mission.

Jessica began her career with KVC Nebraska in 2010. With over 17 years of human services experience, she has made a positive impact in group home settings, in-home services and foster care. Jessica earned her master’s degree in management from Doane University and received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Nebraska.