SVN Board of Directors

Howard Yaffe is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker with more than 30 years of experience in various settings.  Most of his clinical work has focused on supporting children and families and has been the director of Meeting Place, one of the first supervised visitation programs in Massachusetts, now for approximately 20 years. He is currently the program director of Domestic Violence Services for Riverside Community Care, a large social service agency in the Boston area.  This position includes full oversight of Meeting Place as well as two other domestic violence related program. In his private practice he focuses on supporting children and families through the divorce process and has recently taught a High-Conflict Co-parenting class through William James College of Psychology.  He is returning to the SVN Board of Directors after a one year hiatus and has presented and/or facilitated a number of webinars, workshops and trainings over his years with SVN and has had a role in writing and editing modules of the SVN Training Manual.  He is happy to lend his support to SVN during this challenging time.

Kelly Agee 
She/Her/Hers 
South Bend, IN

 Kelly Agee has been a member of SVN since 2010, through Families First Center, where she currently serves as the Executive Director. Kelly graduated from the University of Indiana with a degree in Mathematics and has experience advocating for children and families as former teacher, CASA, child welfare caseworker and visitation specialist. Kelly served as a visitation specialist for Families First Center, St. Joseph county’s local supervised visitation center, from 2010-2012 before transitioning to the role of Director of Administration and Business Manager and then Executive Director in 2019. Kelly obtained her Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification in 2014. Kelly served on her local SHRM Board of Directors from 2019 to 2020. Kelly has a passion for the community she serves and is dedicated to the mission of helping children reach their full potential.

Shawn Byrne 
He/His/His 
Billings, MT

 Shawn Byrne has a Master’s degree in Social Work with more than 35 years of industry experience.   He is currently the Executive Director for Family Support Network in Billings, Montana.  Shawn has administrative and fiscal oversight over programs which promote the development of healthy parent-child interactions to interrupt the multi-generational cycle of abuse, neglect, hopelessness, poverty and drug abuse.  He is passionate about building awareness surrounding the sociological, cultural, and economic challenges facing rural and urban children and families.   He is currently working with a strategic partner in the establishment of mental health programing at Family Support Network.  He was raised on the MT Hi-Line border between Canada-United States and feels fortunate to have raised a family in Big Sky Country (wife of thirty-one years and two daughters). In his spare time, Shawn takes advantage of being either on or near a golf course!

Christina Fisher 
She/Her/Hers 
Canton, GA

 Christina has always had a passion to serve others.  Her mother grew up in the foster care system; lived in several foster, group homes, and residential facility.  Through her mother’s experiences, Christina knew she wanted to work with families.  Christina has worked in child welfare and the nonprofit industry for over 22+ years.  In 2015 Christina obtained a Masters in Human Services and continued her career working with adults with developmental disabilities and autism.  In 2017 Christina and her family moved to Georgia and found a place at The Children’s Haven.  She is currently the Director for the Visitation Program where she ensures visitation service for families involved with the Department of Family and Child Services. Christina serves on a committee with the Cherokee County Service League that provides an array services to families in our county.  In her free time, Christina enjoys spending time with her teen son and husband, watching Marvel and DC movies, hiking, and traveling.

Danna Lopez
She/Her/Hers 
Tucson, AZ

Danna is from Tucson AZ. Danna family is originally from Sonora, Mexico but has lived in Tucson, Arizona since Danna was about 9 years old. Danna is a proud mother of two very bright and handsome young boys Pascual is 17 years old (senior, class of 2022) and Roman is 11 years old (middle schooler). Danna just recently celebrated her 10 years wedding anniversary with her husband, Jose. Danna also has 8 dogs they are a mix between sharpie, boxer, husky, and golden retriever- Max, Sassy, Bubulubu, Furby, Pirate, Pinky, Johnny, and Maria. Danna has extensive experience (of over 14 years) in the field of family support and education. Danna holds a Bachelor of Science (Human Services) from University of Phoenix and Danna also holds a Master’s in Science (Forensic Psychology) from Grand Canyon University. Danna role in management and supervision of social service program, has given Danna experience working closely with families in a support centered environment, providing services with the goal that family interactions happen in a safe and positive atmosphere. Danna possess experience in the areas of family support programs and programs focusing on supervised visitation services for children and families involved in the child welfare system (Arizona Department of Child Safety) as well as the family law/court division (with Arizona Supreme Court). Danna worked as a visit supervisor at AVIVA children services in Tucson, AZ and as an exchange/visit monitor with Casa de los Niños Judicial Supervision services in Tucson, AZ. Danna then internally transferred within Casa de los Niños Parent Aide/Case Aide Program as a Parent Aide and then as, Parent Aide Team Lead. Danna is now Supervised Services Program as program Supervisor (for the last 4 years- but with the agency for 10 years). Danna has the honor to be part of the SVN and the board of directors. Danna is also very pleased to be co-chair of the Governance and Nominations new Diversity and Inclusion sub-Committee as well as be part of all the innovations happening within SVN.

 Hera McLeod
She/Her/Hers
Washington, DC 

Hera McLeod is a Washington, DC - based writer, speaker, tech leader and civil rights activist. She is known for speaking out against the silence, particularly on topics of civil rights for women and children, domestic violence, and Family Court reform. After the tragic murder of her son Prince, she became a proud Single Mother by Choice to two little girls - Estela and Isabel. She was a 2017 Jack Straw Writing Fellow and has published OpEd pieces in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Seattle Times, and The Huffington Post. Hera has also made several television appearances, advocating about social issues, to include The Today Show, Crime Watch Daily, Citizen PI (Discovery +), and several local news affiliates for ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox. She has testified before the United States Congress and Maryland State Legislation which has led to reformative legislation in the areas of Family Court and Child Protection. She is a co-founder of Mocha SMC, an online community for Black Single Mothers by Choice and co-hosts the podcast "Seeking Different" with her precocious nine year old daughter Estela.

Judy Newman, MSW, RSW
She/Her/Hers
Toronto, Ontario

Judy Newman MSW, RSW from Toronto, Ontario Canada is the former Manager of the Supervised Access Program, Ministry of the Attorney General. Judy oversaw the funding contracts with the non-profit organizations hosting the supervised access services funded by the Ministry and worked with them to develop practice standards, policies and procedures and training. Judy was actively involved in the development of supervised access services before taking on her position in the government program. Judy is a registered professional social worker who previously worked at the Office of the Children’s Lawyer working with children and families involved in high conflict custody and access disputes conducting investigations and assisting children’s counsel to represent the interests of children before the court. She has been a field instructor and adjunct lecturer for the Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto and a field instructor for Ryerson University social work program and York University. Judy is Past President of the Alumni Association for the Factor Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, organizing outreach and fundraising activities. She is the proud recipient of an Arbor Award in 2018 for her activities as Alumni Association president. .Judy was a volunteer presenter at the Family Court Mandatory information Sessions (MIP) until the pandemic closed in person sessions. As a consultant she continues to conduct research and be an active member of local and international non-profit organizations including the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC), AFCC-Ontario, and the Supervised Visitation Network (SVN). She is also a frequent workshop presenter at professional conferences. Judy is currently a member of the Board of the Supervised Visitation Network and actively involved in several working committees of the organization including DEI (Diversity, Equity,Inclusion), Governance and Training.

Sheila Morris
She/Her/Hers 
Grand Forks, ND 

Sheila Morris is the Director of Visitation and Exchange at the Community Violence Intervention Center (CVIC) in Grand Forks, North Dakota.  Sheila has worked for the past nineteen years in the supervised visitation and exchange field.  Sheila also spent one year working as a group facilitator for batterer’s intervention educational classes.  Sheila’s prior experience working with families includes working in the fields of child protection and law enforcement.  Sheila has provided technical assistance to many other visitation and exchange centers throughout her career.  She currently serves on the statewide Supervised Parenting Time Network, the Kids First Advisory Committee, the Grand Forks Domestic Violence Task Force, and the Children of Incarcerated Parents Initiative.  Sheila lives in Grand Forks, North Dakota with her partner of thirteen years and her son.  Sheila is committed to having a deep and lasting involvement on the local, state and national level, advocating for families using supervised visitation and exchange and for the programs serving these families.  

Michon Trent
She/Her/Hers 
Mobile, AL

In March 2020, Michon Trent began her role at the Gulf Coast Family Center as Executive Director with a fast start as it was the height of the Covid-19 Pandemic and through her leadership the Gulf Coast Family Center continued to serve families face-to-face through the supervised visitation program and quickly shifted all parenting classes to ZOOM® for the safety of her staff and parent participants. Michon has been focused on ensuring children and families receive the services and support they need while evaluating, streamlining, and leading the organization through a branding update.

Prior to her work with the Gulf Coast Family Center, Michon worked with City of Mobile on Mayors Stimpson’s Executive team starting in June 2016 as the Senior Director of Civic Engagement. Her overall responsibilities were leading large-scale Mayoral initiatives, focused on greater civic engagement, in areas such as mentoring, eradication of homelessness, volunteerism, and development and implementation of arts and culture programs.

Michon has served in many community leadership roles including service on the statewide boards of Alabama Humanities Foundation as Chairman, Secretary of Voices for Alabama’s Children’s, and on the local boards of BankOn South Alabama, Distinguished Young Women, United Way Women’s Initiative, and Mobile Community Action, Inc., Homeless Coalition Alabama Gulf Coast Continuum of Care and has served on the boards of Boys and Girls Clubs of South Alabama, Providence Hospital Foundation, Family Promise and Historic Mobile Preservation Society.

Her education supports her career path as Michon graduated with a bachelor degree in Social Work from Azusa Pacific University and a master degree in Social Welfare from the University of California at Los Angeles. She attended Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Fundraising School, and is certified as a School Social Work Professional.

 

Dr. Robert Straus
He/Him/His 
Cambridge, MA

A psychologist and lawyer, Dr. Straus was Senior Psychologist of the Family Service Clinic from 1982 to 1988, conducting custody and visitation evaluations for the Middlesex County Family Court. From 1988, he served frequently as Guardian ad Litem in high-conflict custody and access disputes. In 1991, Dr. Straus started Meeting Place: Supervised Child Access Service, a program of Riverside Community Care in Cambridge, MA, providing a safe setting in which children in high-risk situations can visit parents with whom they are not living.

He is a founder of the Supervised Visitation Network. He was President of the Network in 1993-94, helped draft the Network's Standards and Guidelines for practice, and has served several terms on the Board of Directors. From 1995 through 2000 he was Co-Chair of the Massachusetts Coalition for Supervised Visitation, and in that capacity worked with the Governor's Commission on Responsible Fatherhood and the Supervised Visitation Task Force of the Probate and Family Court, helping draft the Guidelines for Court Practice for Supervised Visitation.

Dr. Straus has a private psychotherapy practice, working with couples, and remains the Program Consultant to Meeting Place. He is also a member of the Board of the Longy School of Music of Bard College.

 

Hon. Judge Victor Reyes (Ret.)
He/Him/His
Pueblo, CO 

                                          

Judge Reyes served as a District Judge from 1999-2014 in the 10th Judicial District located in Pueblo, Colo. He has presided over criminal, civil, county court appeals, probate, domestic, protection order, juvenile, along with dependency, and neglect matters. Before becoming a judge, he served as a deputy state public defender for the State of Colorado. Judge Reyes also served as the judicial representative on the Colorado Domestic Violence Offender Management Board. 

Before becoming a judge, he served as a Deputy State Public Defender for the State of Colorado for 15 years where he also provided training. From October of 2021 through January of 2023, Judge Reyes served as the Judge in Residence for the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ). At NCJFCJ, he was involved with the Judicial Wellness Initiative, specifically hosting the Monday Morning Moments Wellness webinars along with leading wellness sessions at conferences. Judge Reyes also participated in nationwide training, developing curriculum, and writing on all aspects of the law that impacts children, their families, and victims of domestic violence. He has written presentations on Compassionate Leadership, Engaged Justice, and Implied Bias. Since 2002, Judge Reyes has facilitated international and nationwide trainings to a variety of groups and organizations on issues related to mindfulness, every aspect related to domestic violence, the effects of vicarious trauma on judicial officers, judicial leadership, and federal firearms legislation. He provided the training on domestic violence for Colorado Judges and has testified before both houses of the Colorado Legislature on DV related legislation.

He currently leads classes in yoga, meditation and ethics for several correctional facilities in Colorado. He facilitates discussions on issues related to self-respect and self-compassion at the Youth Offender System, facilitates a domestic survivors group and yoga at La Vista Correctional Facility-Colorado Department of Corrections. Judge Reyes also leads yoga/mindfulness classes and the Federal Bureau of Prisons-Camp, STAGES Program at United States Penitentiary in Florence and ADMAX(Supermax) as well as several venues in Pueblo. Judge Reyes holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy/History from Emory University and received his Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center.

Joe Nullet, CAE

Executive Director Joe Nullet, a graduate of Harvard University, has led the Supervised Visitation Network since December 2007. Before that he was the Executive Director of the Family Nurturing Center of Florida, a Supervised Visitation and Parent Education program in Jacksonville, Florida. During his tenure at FNC, he led the organization through an exciting growth period, helped reshape the organizational culture and design to better serve the needs of clients, and has served locally and nationally on numerous task forces, advisory boards, and collaborative partnerships as an expert in the field of supervised visitation and has trained providers in Great Britain, Japan, and Singapore. Joe also served on the statewide Committee that developed an innovative Supervised Visitation database and as a member of State of Florida Standards Committee that was formed as a result of legislation to establish statewide standards. Joe has completed Graduate Coursework at the Kennedy School of Government, a Nonprofit Executive Program at the Harvard Business School, as well as completing the Jessie Ball duPont Fund's Community Coaches Program.