Angela Pittman - Vanderweide
CEO/Consultant/Trainer
Dr. Angela Pittman – Vanderweide is the Chief Executive Officer of A4O and has over 30 years of experience in progressively responsible executive leadership roles, including private, non-profit, state, and local government. Through that lived experience, Angela has developed the ability to partner with others to enhance performance and meet organizational, fiscal, and client outcomes. Angela has subject matter expertise and national expertise in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging; psychological safety; leadership (neuroleadership model); workforce engagement and trust; organizational development, consultation, change agility & implementation, resource capacity building, fiscal and performance oversight, organizational culture and climate effectiveness, and workforce retention.
In addition, Angela has over 20 years of university teaching and training experience, including in the classroom, synchronous, and asynchronous methodologies. Angela currently teaches in MSW & DSW programs, across two Universities. Angela provides subject matter expertise and presents nationally on leadership, building a resilient workforce across HHS, cultivating a healthy, resilient organizational climate, and establishing continuous quality improvement to improve child welfare performance measures. Angela is committed to social justice and has demonstrated commitment to cultural humility, diversity, inclusion, equity, and belonging in communication, workforce, and service delivery. Angela holds a Doctorate of Social Work (DSW) degree from the University of St. Thomas, in Minnesota. Angela recently published an article entitled Leadership Rebooted: Cultivating Trust with the Brain in Mind” which forwards a model of leadership that is aligned with human service organizations’ mission, values, and ethics.
Renee Gossett
Consultant & CQI Subject Matter Expert
Renee brings a vast amount of experience and knowledge with 30 years of Social Work experience. This has been in several counties DSS agencies and as a past abuse and neglect consultant with the DHHS of NC. Renee has depth of experience in policy, continuous quality improvement, leadership, and streamlining work processes to achieve safety, permanency, and well-being for children and families. Renee has been in many roles, including as a direct line social worker with a strong base in investigative assessments as a forensic investigator and interviewer. After 13 years as a Social Work Supervisor of investigations, In-home and other areas in child welfare, Renee worked as a Social Work Supervisor III Quality Assurance Program across BCHHS Social Work Services. Renee has also served as Program Manager Child Welfare with Buncombe County Health and Human Services with oversight of all child protective services investigation/assessments and On-call (CPS/APS/Intake).
Anita Bradshaw
Consultant, Trainer, & Supervisory Subject Matter Expert
Anita brings 30 years of experience in child welfare in North Carolina, in multiple roles. Anita was the on-call Supervisor in Wake County for six years and has extensive experience in intake screening, assessments, and all other service areas. Anita applies policy and practice to work with social workers, Supervisors, Program Managers, and Directors to address the safety, permanency, and well-being of children who enter the child welfare system. She has subject matter expertise in on-call, intake, structured decision-making tools, and helping social workers manage their caseloads efficiently. Additionally, Anita has experience in public school counseling, teaching, crisis intervention, and recovery training, among other experiences. Anita has a Masters of Arts in Counseling and is a licensed school counselor.
Other consultants and trainers will support this work, depending on organizational needs, with approval by Dr. Frazer. We will ensure alignment with the subject matter we need with the experience of the consultant.
Amber Conley
Consultant, Trainer & Supervisory Subject Matter Expert
Amber has over 18 years of experience working with at-risk populations and families. She has worked with multiple counties and state agencies in North Carolina. For the past 10 years, Amber specialized in CPS intake and investigations, which included forensic investigations. While being employed as a program consultant with NC DHHS Office of Staff Development, she expanded her knowledge base in all aspects of child welfare. Amber has experience in childcare facility investigations, consulting with mental health partners, crisis intervention, and substance abuse training, among other experiences. Amber has subject matter expertise in training & coaching child welfare workers and supervisors, field observation and feedback, and is a policy expert in all child welfare program areas. She holds a Master of Arts Degree in School Counseling and is a licensed school counselor.
Amber enjoys teaching and has worked as an adjunct instructor which enhanced her skills working with adult learners. She has a passion for educating, advocating, and strengthening best practices to ensure safety is maintained for all families. Her desire for all children to succeed is evidenced through her career and years of experience.
Alexis Danciu
Consultant & CQI Subject Matter Expert
Alexis has over 17 years of experience in the field of child welfare. She has worked with agencies in multiple states including North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, and Arkansas. For the first 12 years, Alexis specialized in CPS intake and investigations, which included a forensic specialization both in direct practice and supervision. For the past 6 years, she has been a member of the Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) team for social work services within her organization. In this role, Alexis has expanded her knowledge base in all aspects of child welfare from intake through adoption services. She has proficiencies in local, State, and Federal case reviews and fiscal auditing; including four years of conducting federal Child and Family Services Reviews. She has been committed to upholding quality practice within her organization and using this broad scope to promote agency-wide innovation.
Alexis is also extremely passionate about promoting and supporting the well-being of social workers. Concurrently with her role in CQI, she has worked to bring Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) services to her organization as well as other county agencies across North Carolina. Through this work, she has been able to promote safety, stability, and resiliency within North Carolina’s child welfare and adult services workforce. Alexis holds a Master’s degree in International Relations