Denise Abdoo, PhD, CPNP works clinically as a pediatric nurse practitioner with the Child Protection Team at Children’s Hospital Colorado.  She sees both inpatient and outpatient clinical consults for concerns of all forms of child maltreatment.  Dr. Abdoo also coordinates the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner program for Children’s Hospital Colorado. 

Steven Berkowitz, MD is a Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the University of Colorado, School of Medicine where he is the founder and director of The Stress, Trauma & Adversity Treatment and Research Center (START).  START is a lifespan program and provides mental health services for Kempe Center patients. He came to CU after 20 years at Yale University and 9 years at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a recognized expert in Child trauma and adversity.

Antonia Chiesa, MD is Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. She is an attending on the Kempe Child Protection Team at Children's Hospital Colorado and Director of Integrated Healthcare Operations and Services at the Kempe Center for the Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect.

Miranda Encina, Violence Free Colorado Culturally Responsive Technical Assistance Specialist, has created and implemented trauma informed practices and policies that (re)centers resilient communities who have multiple intersecting identities and experiences.  They have experience in domestic violence shelter settings, child protective services and community outreach.

Lou Felipe, PhD is an Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. As the Deputy Director of the START (Stress, Trauma and Adversity Research and Treatment) Clinic and as a Clinical Psychologist at the Kempe Center, Lou’s work focuses on offering comprehensive clinical care of trauma- and stress-related disorders, with a unique focus on the culturally sensitive treatment of abused and neglected children. In addition, Lou serves as the co-chair for two divisions within the Asian American Psychological Association: The Division on Women and Division on Filipinx Americans.

C. Rashaan Ford, MD is a board certified General and Child Abuse Pediatrician at Children’s Hospital Colorado with the Child Protection Team. He is passionate about medical education and teaching, and he currently serves as the course director for the Child Abuse Pediatrics Elective at the School of Medicine. Prior to his current role, he served as the Clinical Director for the foster care sub-clinic within Castle Rock Pediatrics in Castle Rock, Colorado, and he used his experience to promote the health and well-being of foster youth and those at-risk of child welfare involvement.

Robert Franklin, II has been a lead of diversity, equity and inclusion programs and initiatives for Children’s Hospital Colorado since the summer of 2018. In addition to maintaining consulting relationships throughout the US with organizations and individuals in service and community facing roles, Robert’s work at Children’s builds on his former leadership of the Diversity Catalyst Team at Colorado State University, and as a lead trainer within the City and County of Denver - engaging the entire Children’s Colorado system to consider difference and its impact on work and care in the community. Guided by the coordinated strategy he installed, Robert’s programs and initiatives direct caregivers and staff as they learn and talk about, celebrate and take action in response to the differences individuals bring. The community facing work of both his passion and position led him to also volunteer as the Colorado Public Health Association’s Health Equity Officer, where he’s able to bring both hospital resources and an openness to accountability for forwarding the work toward health equity.

Sandra Fritsch, M.D., MSEd, DFAACAP  is a graduate of Michigan State University College of Human Medicine in 1985.  She trained in pediatrics, psychiatry, and child psychiatry (Triple Board Residency) at Brown University and completed her residency in 1991. Dr. Fritsch currently maintains board certification in general psychiatry and child and adolescent psychiatry. Dr. Fritsch’s current professional role is as the medical director of the Pediatric Mental Health Institute, Children's Hospital Colorado and professor in the Department of Psychiatry at University of Colorado School of Medicine. Her career has encompassed working at the interface of pediatrics and child psychiatry; both for inpatients in pediatric hospitals and in outpatient child psychiatry. Dr. Fritsch has worked in Massachusetts and was fortunate to be involved in the Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Program (MCPAP), developed a similar program in Maine, and is the project director/medical director of CoPPCAP, the Colorado Pediatric Psychiatry Consultation & Access Program), a HRSA PMHCA funded initiative. Dr. Fritsch’s professional interests include advocacy, innovations in medical education, collaborative care models between primary care and mental health providers, and the interplay of physical health concerns and mental health needs. She has been in her current role for almost 5 years, having previously practiced in Maine.

Sarah Hunt is the Systems Outreach Coordinator at the Kempe Center. She has worked at the Kempe Center for the last 5 years, supporting efforts such as the Child Welfare Training System. She currently supports the CARE Network and ECHO efforts within the Kempe Center.

Eunice Kwon (she/her) is the Care Coordinator for the Stress, Trauma, Adversity, Research and Treatment (START) Center at CU Medicine. Eunice is a Licensed Social Worker, trauma therapist, and sex educator, passionate about responding to and preventing sexual violence through education and advocacy. She brings a unique perspective as a queer clinician of color with 10 years of experience in the world of sexual violence prevention.

Brittany Lively, PA-C is an Instructor of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. She is also a clinical physician assistant with the Kempe Child Protection Team at Children’s Hospital Colorado - Colorado Springs. 

Kendall Marlowe, MA, JD grew up in a family that welcomed six foster youth and as an adult has been a foster and adoptive parent. He currently trains new caseworkers as part of Colorado’s statewide Child Welfare Training System and serves on the faculty at the Kempe Center. Kendall served as Executive Director of the National Association of Counsel for Children and as Bureau Chief of the State of Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. He holds an M.S.W. from the University of Chicago and a J.D. and Certificate in Child and Family Law from Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

Amber McDonald, Ph.D., LCSW is the Deputy Director of and Assistant Professor for the Stress, Trauma, Research, Trauma & Adversity (START) Clinic at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry. She is responsible for strategic planning, grant writing, research and treatment in the clinical outpatient trauma-treatment center, with a specialty in complex trauma. She has taught numerous times in the areas of interviewing children, complex trauma, and building and sustaining outpatient treatment programming for emergency responder professionals, children and families. She provides counseling services to individuals aged 3+, specializing in trauma, complex trauma, brain-based treatment strategies, anxiety, depression, and co-occurring disorders and clinical manages a Colorado police-mental health co-responder team. She provides consultation services to public and private-sector agencies and businesses. Dr. McDonald has created, developed, and sustained successful multidisciplinary teams and she provides investigative case consultation, training, and support for law enforcement, district attorneys, and other investigative parties regarding criminal cases involving major crimes.

Ron Mitchell, MSW had worked in public child welfare for 27 years prior to joining the Kempe Center.  He has also worked in the mental health and  juvenile justices fields, and was a director of two residential treatment centers for children. 

Jessie Panks, MD is a 3rd year Child Abuse Pediatrics fellow. Her research interest is in abusive head trauma outcomes. Outside of work she enjoys getting outside with her dog.

Andrew Sirotnak, MD, FAAP is  Professor and Vice Chair for Faculty Affairs, Department of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. He is a child abuse pediatrician with the Kempe Child Protection Team, Children’s Hospital Colorado. He is also the Director of the Child Abuse and Neglect Fellowship Program at Kempe Center. He lectures extensively about child abuse and neglect to a wide range of audiences. His current clinical work, education and outreach efforts focus on child maltreatment. He participates in Child Fatality Review Team at the state level in Colorado. He is active in fundraising and advocacy efforts with agencies that serve abused children in Colorado and other his community service and supports have included non-profit organizations providing children access to the visual and performing arts. 

Coral Steffey, MD is a general pediatrician who serves as the medical director at the Denver SAFE Center, Denver Health’s child abuse clinic that is collocated with community partners from the Denver Police Department, Denver Human Services, Denver District Attorney’s Office, and the Denver Children’s Advocacy Center.  She has been practicing child abuse medicine for 12 years.

Ashley D. Sward, PsyD is an Assistant Professor and core faculty with the Harris Program in Child Development and Infant Mental Health in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Dr. Sward is a licensed clinical psychologist and the program director for the Warm Connections Program, which serves to integrate maternal, infant and young child mental health services into Colorado WIC Clinics. Dr. Sward is endorsed as an Infant Mental Health-specialist and master foundations trainer through the Colorado Association of Infant Mental Health. Dr. Sward also provides trauma-specific, evidence-based therapeutic and consultative services as a provider with the Stress Trauma Research and Treatment (START) clinic. START is a premier program leading efforts in training, prevention and treatment of stress, trauma and adversity.

Dara Lynne Tabugadir, LPC, NCC is a Licensed Professional Counselor and works with the START clinic at the CU School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry. She enjoys working with children and families and helping them find their small moments of joy in the healing process.

Nichole Wallace, MD is a board certified in General Pediatrics and Child Abuse Pediatrics, and assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. In 2000, she received her MD degree from Brown University School of Medicine in Providence, Rhode Island. She then completed pediatrics residency training in 2003 at The University of Alabama - Birmingham. In 2005, Nichole completed a fellowship in Child Abuse Pediatrics at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine and then continued her work with OU until 2014 when she moved to Colorado Springs. She is currently the medical director of the Child Protection Team at Children’s Hospital Colorado in Colorado Springs. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and is a member of the AAP Section on Child Abuse and Neglect.

Kathryn Wells, MD, FAAP is the Executive Director of the Kempe Center for the Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect and an Associate Professor and the Section Head for Child Abuse and Neglect in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. She is a Board Certified Pediatrician and is Sub Boarded in Child Abuse Pediatrics. Dr. Wells has participated in research and advocacy in the area of children impacted by substance use including co-chairing the Substance-Exposed Newborns Steering Committee of the Colorado Substance Abuse Trend and Response Task Force. Dr. Wells earned her BA at Carroll College in Helena, MT, her MD from Creighton University in Omaha, NE, completed a pediatric residency at Creighton/University of Nebraska, and a Child Abuse Fellowship at University of Colorado. 

Erin Wertheimer is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Registered Play Therapist- Supervisor and an Approved Clinical Supervisor who has experience working with families for over 16 years. In addition to working with the START Program at CU, Erin also provides consultation for clinicians worldwide practicing the Functional Family Therapy model.