Board of Directors

Rhodus Riggins, Jr. is Quality Enhancement Coordinator at the Education Quality Improvement and Professional Development Project at the University of North Carolina- Greensboro and Adjunct Faculty member at Alamance Community College. He is co-founder of Bailey, Pullis, & Riggins LLC, a racial equity consulting organization. Rhodus has over 29 years of extensive experience in research, technical assistance, professional development, evaluation, and higher education. His research and professional interests include: quality supports for early care and education professionals, family engagement, social-emotional wellness, cultural competency, racial equity, and implicit bias. Rhodus is a grassroots advocate from the Low Country region of South Carolina. He holds an M.Ed. in Educational Leadership, Public Policy, & Advocacy in Early Childhood.

Amy Petersen has worked in the nursing field for more than 30 years in various clinical and public health settings, including pediatrics, mother/baby care, and child care health consultation. Amy recently served as the State Child Care Nurse Consultant at the NC Division of Child and Family Well-Being. In her role at the Division, she collaborated with early childhood stakeholders and advocated for the health, wellness, and safety of young children and early educators in child care settings. In April 2024, Amy’s passion for working with new mothers and their babies came full circle when she joined the Nurse Family Partnership program with Wake County Health and Human Services. She is currently working as a Nurse Home Visitor and enjoys the opportunity to work with first time mothers and their babies to promote healthy pregnancies, healthy babies, and supporting thriving early relationships.

She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Amy is a mom of three children and is thrilled about her growing family with the addition of two daughter-in-loves. She and her husband Chris live in Cary, NC.

Caroline Chandler, MPH, Ph.D., is a public health researcher and doctoral student at the UNC Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health and predoctoral fellow at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute. Her research focuses on child maltreatment prevention and social-emotional development following early childhood trauma. Racial equity and community engaged research principles drive Caroline’s research. Caroline previously worked as a Public Health Analyst at RTI International and currently volunteers as a Guardian ad Litem.

Caroline received her Masters of Public Health from UNC Chapel Hill and her Bachelor of Arts in Healthcare Studies and Cognitive Science from University of Richmond. She first joined the North Carolina Infant Mental Health Association as an intern and is excited to continue serving the organization as a student board member.

Ennis Baker, LCSW is the Project Director for Duke’s Center for Child & Family Policy’s Building Capacity for Infant/Toddler Trauma-Informed Care (ITTI Care): A Professional Development Framework project. In this role, Ennis provides leadership for this statewide collaborative project that leverages existing resources to craft a professional development framework focused on trauma-informed practice in early care & education settings that offer infant/toddler care. The framework is designed to be practical, evidence-based, sustainable and maximally effective for children under 3 in licensed child care in North Carolina and for the child care professionals who care for them. Ennis co-leads (with fellow Board member, Rhodus Riggins, Jr.) the Cultivating NC Early Childhood Equity Champions learning experience as part of the ITTI Care Project. Ennis also provides home-based parent-child therapy for mothers and their children in residential care for substance use disorder treatment at UNC Horizons.

Ennis is a licensed clinical social worker, specializing in early childhood mental health and has served in a variety of roles serving children birth to 5 and their families. She began her career as a toddler teacher in San Francisco’s Bayview/Hunter’s Point neighborhood in 1988 and since 1990 has lived and worked in various counties in North Carolina focusing on children under 5 as a child care provider, home visitor, program director and on a multidisciplinary evaluation team. From 1999-2018, Ennis served as a manager and mental health specialist for Orange County Head Start/Early Head Start in Chapel Hill, NC. In this role, she provided leadership and early childhood mental health consultation to program staff and families around issues of toxic stress, child abuse & neglect, best practice in infant/toddler child care, parenting, preventing and managing children’s challenging behavior, adult & child mental health and strengthening families by promoting protective factors.

Ennis is trained as a facilitator/parent educator in Triple P Level 3, Incredible Years Parenting Program, Circle of Security Parenting and Darkness to Light/Stewards of Children. She co-chaired the Orange/Chatham Early Childhood Mental Health Task Force from 2012 – 2018 and co-led the Orange RESILIENCE Initiative since 2017.

Jes Fyall Cardenas, Ph.D., IECMH-E® has spent her career supporting and advocating for the social-emotional health of young children and their families, especially in the context of early childhood education. Cardenas has worked as a preschool teacher, education director, state-wide professional development trainer for the Texas Association for Infant Mental Health (First3Years), and now as an assistant professor of Early Childhood at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Cardenas earned her Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from Texas Tech University, a M.S. in Family and Child Development from Texas State University, and a B.S. in Biology from Texas A&M University. Cardenas’ research agenda focuses on social support and the relationships between parents and early childhood educators. Recent work has centered on family transitions to formal school and childcare environments, focusing on maternal reports of well-being as influenced by first experiences with their child’s teacher.

Cardenas lives in Wilmington, NC with her husband, Matt, and their two young daughters. NCIMHA was the first organization she reached out to participate with when she moved to NC in 2020, and the NCIMHA team and membership have been a source of powerful education, advocacy, and hope especially in our world today.

Consuellis Hawkins-Crudup, MS, is currently the Director of Early Learning for East Coast Migrant Head Start Project (ECMHSP). ECMHSP is a non-profit corporation that provides high-quality and comprehensive Head Start services to children and families. In this role she leads the design, development and evaluation of child development and education services for the organization. She has extensive experience in the early childhood field working within early care and education.

Consuellis is a member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), past Board President for NCAEYC and currently serves on the NC Institute for Child Development Professionals Board of Directors. She participates in multiple collaborations addressing issues of early childhood systems, equity for children and families, early childhood mental health and evidenced based practices that support child outcomes.

She holds a B.S. in Child Development and Family Relations from East Carolina University and a M.S. in Human Sciences from North Carolina Central University. Over the past 20 years, Consuellis has been working to ensure children and families receive high quality services.

Angie Stephenson is an attorney who practices in the areas of agency social services (child welfare, adult services, child support, and appeals) and adoptions. She was one of the first ten Board Certified Child Welfare Specialists certified by the North Carolina State Bar. She previously served as a child welfare attorney for 10 years in the North Carolina Attorney General’s office and has also served as a parent attorney and volunteer Guardian ad Litem.

Before practicing law, Angie first began her work with children as a foster care social worker in Mecklenburg County and Wailuku, Hawaii. Her experience working closely with children and families from many backgrounds, along with experience in mediation and adult mental health, allows her to bring an individualized approach to a legal practice that touches families of every kind. Angie earned a bachelor’s degree in social work from Eastern Mennonite University, and her law degree and MSW from UNC-Chapel Hill. She holds licenses in North Carolina and Hawaii. Angie is a past president of the American Association of Health and Human Services Attorneys.

She has presented on child welfare topics across North Carolina and at national conferences. She is also an active member of the legislative working group for the North Carolina Court Improvement Program, is active with her local bar, and is currently serving on the committee that developed the child welfare specialty for the North Carolina State Bar. Angie lives in Chapel Hill with her husband, her son, her Sheepadoodle, and her Goldendoodle. She enjoys gardening, amateur photography, and spending time with her family and friends.

Macy Jones is employed by the NC Department of Public Instruction in the Office of Early Learning. She’s currently the Director of the NC State Head Start Collaboration Office. She has worked with Head Start and early childhood education in some capacity for 36 years. She is a teacher, mentor, coach, and said she tries to do her best to inspire others to be their best. When Morgan, Macy’s daughter, was two, Macy enrolled in evening college classes and began working on her bachelor’s degree. She received her B.S. in Human Services from Gardner Webb in 1995. She attended weekend classes for three years to earn her Masters. In 2001 she received the degree in Child Development and Family Studies from North Carolina Central University. Then, in 2006 she enrolled in the Master of Divinity program at Shaw University in Raleigh. In May of 2010 she was awarded a Master of Divinity Degree from Shaw. Macy lived in Raleigh for 13 years. She returned to Taylorsville in 2012 and spends her time between Raleigh and Taylorsville. She enjoys her work as the Director of the NC Head Start Collaboration Office, teaching an on-line class for Southern University A&M and the NC Community Action Agency in Raleigh, and operating her LLC, Intentional Joy, where the mission is spreading JOY at every opportunity.

Angie Phipps is the Director of the Shelby Children’s Developmental Services Agency (CDSA), one of the 16 Part C Early Intervention (EI) offices of the North Carolina Infant-Toddler Program (NC ITP). She supports a multi-disciplinary team of staff and contract providers across 5 counties in the southwest part of the state, that provide services for families and their children, birth to three who have special needs. Angie has always been passionate about working with caregivers and providing them support, so that they in turn can provide support to the children in their care. Angie has worked in EI for 18 years and also has experience teaching in university childcare centers and working as a Parent Educator for several non-profit agencies.

Roxanne Rosenberg, LCMHC, PMH-C is cofounder and clinical director of Anchor Perinatal Wellness, the Southeast’s only perinatal-specific intensive outpatient program. Roxanne is a member of the new federal Task Force on Maternal Mental Health and is also past chair of Postpartum Support International – North Carolina. She earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology with honors from Yale University and her master’s degree in psychology from Duke University. Roxanne has been supporting pregnant and postpartum people for over 15 years through individual psychotherapy, support groups, birth doula work, and advocacy work. Roxanne has provided trainings across the country in perinatal mental health and women’s trauma. Roxanne is a bilingual Latina mom of two and is herself a survivor of perinatal loss and trauma.

Alexandra Morris, MSW is the Early Childhood Behavioral Health Programs Specialist supporting the NC Division of Child and Family Wellbeing through the UNC-CH School of Social Work Behavioral Health Springboard. She has led and supported initiatives to strengthen birth-five social emotional health and family support in North Carolina for 18 years. As an early childhood systems leader, she brings expertise in early childhood mental health policy, research and programming, early relational health, early intervention, parenting supports, and health equity. She is also the parent of an exuberant 9-year-old.

Dr. Cynthia K. Askew serves as the Mental Health / Disability Services Manager with CADA Head Start / Early Head Start Program. Dr. Askew has over 34 years experience working with children and families. She has been employed with CADA since 2003. Dr. Askew was one of the first of five people within the CADA organization to be accredited at Level 3 Primary in Triple P. She has served on the Community Leadership Team for Halifax, Northampton, Bertie, and Hertford counties for several years. CADA Head Start / Early Head Start, the same as other preschool programs were experiencing children with challenging behaviors. Our Program was in need of an evidenced-based parenting curriculum. Our program decided to use Triple P as a resource for our parents and also to assist with minimizing social-emotional challenges within our classrooms. Triple P requires data to support the outcomes and the effectiveness of the program. She presented the idea to her supervisor and it was agreed upon to use the family case managers and other staff trained in Triple P to submit data quarterly to support Triple P. In turn, Triple P designated leadership agencies continues to train and provide peer support to our staff in Triple P. While serving on the Community Leadership Team, the idea for her dissertation became clear. Contributing to research as a doctoral learner, one must add to the body of knowledge. Triple P was in the process of becoming fully implemented within the 100 counties in North Carolina and recognized within literature as an evidence-based parenting program. Dr. Askew completed her Ed. D in 2021 with a published dissertation presented as the following: “A Qualitative Descriptive Study on the Long-term Program Outcomes of an Evidenced-Based Parenting Program”. Dr. Askew interviewed Triple P Coordinators across the state in the midst of COVID and gathered their perceptions related to the outcomes of Triple P. The perceptions of those who supervise the Triple P program primarily within health departments, would definitely impact the sustainability of Triple P. She is all about making an impact in the community in which she serves.

Smokie Brawley is the Statewide Project Manager for North Carolina’s Promoting Healthy Social Behaviors in Child Care Centers (HSB) initiative, funded by the Division of Child Development and Early Education. HSB staff provide professional development and technical assistance opportunities to early childhood professionals across the state on a variety of topics supporting the social-emotional development of young children. Ms. Brawley has been working with young children and their providers for over 40 years. She has served as a preschool teacher and administrator, an Early Childhood Specialist providing technical assistance and training for quality improvement in child care facilities, and as a Behavior Specialist and Education Specialist within the HSB project. Certified as a Master Trainer, Ms. Brawley received her degree in Psychology with an emphasis in Child Development from UNC-Charlotte in 1978. She has been employed with Child Care Resources, Inc. in Charlotte, NC since 2004 and began managing the Healthy Social Behaviors Project in 2012.

Brian Deese is the Interim Co-Assistant Director and Part C Coordinator of the North Carolina Infant-Toddler Program with over 20 years within the program. This is his second tenure as the Interim Part C Coordinator having held the role from April 2019-January 2020. Prior to being named the Interim Program Lead in May 2023 and since June 2018, Brian was and still is the Children’s Developmental Services Agency (CDSA) Unit Manager and is responsible for managing the overall operations of the sixteen (16) CDSAs, including supervising the CDSA Directors. Other work within the Early Intervention Section Office included serving as both a Technical Assistance Coordinator and as well as a Data Consultant. During this time, he was the Monitoring Team Lead as well as the Assistive Technology lead. During his years in these different roles, he also served as the Interim Part C Data Manager. Prior to working with the Early Intervention Section Office, Brian held many roles within local programs throughout his tenure with the Infant-Toddler Program. He began his career in the program as an Early Intervention Service Coordinator (EISC) at the Southeastern Regional Mental Health Center in Lumberton, NC. Brian was also in that role at both the Raleigh and Durham CDSA. In addition, to being an EISC at the Durham CDSA, he was also an EISC Supervisor. Brian Deese is a native North Carolinian who grew up in the small town of Pembroke, NC and is a proud member of the Lumbee Indian Tribe. Brian earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is passionate about and has dedicated his career to supporting families so that their children can develop the skills they need to live happy, healthy, and successful lives.

Debbi Kennerson is a licensed, Masters Level Psychologist who has been providing services to children and families in North Carolina since 1992. Debbi’s experience includes providing intervention and supports to families in Community Mental Health, Therapeutic Foster Care, and integrated into a pediatric, primary care medical clinic. Debbi is currently the director of the Greensboro CDSA and a Pyramid Model Implementation Coach for the North Carolina Infant Toddler Program. Debbi is the mother of two adult sons who both reside in NC!

Theresa Roedersheimer is the Executive Director for the NC Early Childhood Foundation (NCECF). She is a native of North Carolina’s crystal coast, but for the past few years her family has called Raleigh home.

Theresa brings her over 20 years of experience in North Carolina’s early childhood system to grow the impact and reach of NCECF’s mission to support thriving young children and families. She has worked in the military child care community, provided technical assistance and professional development to the child care workforce and spent her most recent years in state government advising on early care and education. Her depth of knowledge of early childhood policy will be an incredible asset to the organization. She holds multiple degrees in education and recently completed an Education Specialists (Ed.S.) degree from Walden University. While not at work ensuring kids are on track to lifelong success, she enjoys hiking, listening to music, and baking.