Sheandinita Dyson

Shean is an experienced compliance leader with a demonstrated history of leadership in the behavioral healthcare industry. She has been with McClendon Center since February 2008, beginning her tenure as a Community Support Specialist, before quickly assuming a supervisory role as Team Leader. Her portfolio has included overseeing compliance for the Center since 2014.

Shean served as the Center’s interim President, showcasing tremendous leadership of the organization during a six-month period of transition beginning in January 2021.

In the Chief of Staff role, Shean is responsible for strengthening existing services, leading key strategic initiatives, and supporting the Center’s President and CEO in the development and day-to-day management of organizational operations.

Her day-to-day role also include ensuring that staff follow internal and external policies and procedures, which includes investigating any reports of violations (e.g., unethical, illegal, or improper conduct) by staff. She also runs orientation and training for staff both upon hire and on an ongoing basis.

Dyson received her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Howard University. She is currently pursuing a Master of Social (MSW) from the University of Maryland, Baltimore.

Dr. Samuel Allen

Dr. Allen is a proven clinician who brings significant experience advocating for vulnerable and at-risk populations in Washington, DC, Egypt, and his native England.

He joined McClendon Center after completing his psychiatry residency at Georgetown University Hospital, where he served as Chief Resident. He attended the University of Sussex for his undergraduate studies and received his medical degree from St. George’s, University of London.

As Medical Director, Dr. Allen is responsible for the psychiatric health and wellness of McClendon Center’s clients, the Center’s assessment and prescribing processes, and is the ultimate clinical decision maker for the agency. He also provides direct services for the Center’s clients, supervises all psychiatry staff members, and is the agency’s administrative representative for psychiatry.

Dr. Allen is dedicated to providing high-quality mental health treatment to the communities he serves, with an understanding of the role trauma often plays in people’s experiences. He understands that recovery starts with the whole person and is best achieved when done in partnership, meeting the individual’s goals.

Sally He

Sally He is currently a practicing adult psychiatrist at Kaiser Permanente. She is passionate about addressing health disparities and improving mental health access. She has background in addictions psychiatry, as well as working with special populations such as minorities and LGBTQ+ community.

She completed her medical school at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in NY, and Master of Public Health from Yale School of Public Health. During her psychiatry residency training program at George Washington hospital, she had the opportunity to provide services and work with the wonderful team and patients at McClendon Center, and is thrilled she can continue to contribute to the organization.

Sophie Stern

Adam Coile

Adam has over 12 years of experience in affordable housing, commercial real estate, and international development. He serves as Senior Portfolio Manager at NeighborWorks Capital, a national community development financial institution (CDFI) which makes loans to community-based organizations who create or preserve affordable housing and community projects. Adam was formerly a Program Manager at TechnoServe, Inc., managing economic development and renewable energy projects in eSwatini. He previously worked at SOME, Inc. (So Others Might Eat) in Washington, DC, as Finance Specialist on their Housing Development team. He also worked for four years as Director of Asset Management for Himmelfarb Commercial, Inc., a commercial real estate investment firm. Adam has an MBA from the University of Maryland and a BA in Business Administration from American University.

Kim Y. Jones

Ms. Kim Y. Jones is a non-profit Executive who has worked extensively in the area of policy, particularly, delinquency, special education, health access, and children’s mental health. Ms. Jones interests are in ensuring the continuity of care for, youth, and families. She has provided legal representation and technical assistance to community based programs nationally and in the District of Columbia.

Ms. Jones served for 10 years as a member of the Moriah Fund board working with fellow members and the staff on the technical issues related to education, charter school expansion, and their impact on low-income communities of color. In this capacity, she was engaged in the Fund’s efforts to engage and support communities of color in the reproductive health advocacy, sustainable program development, income inequality, and human rights.

Ms. Jones is a sought after trainer in the area of special education, delinquency, juvenile justice and civil rights, as it relates to disability and education. Her most recent training and presentations include, National Council on Disability, Fall 2016, “Impact of Charter School System on Low-Income Children and Communities of Color; The Campaign for High School Equity, “The Impact of School Reform on Communities of Color”; National Conference for the Alliance of Parent Centers, “Juvenile Justice and School Discipline: Why Parent Centers Need to Care”.

Ms. Jones has been recognized for her work as an Advocate and Effective Non-Profit Executive having received the 2010 Meyer Foundation Award for Excellence in Non-Profit Management and the 2006 Advocate for Justice Award from the David A. Clark School of Law.

Specialties: Education, Health, Delinquency, Probate, and Family law; Community organizing/ engagement; Policy Development and Implementation; Non-Profit Management.

Amanda Walker

Amanda has been with The McClendon Center for over 6 years starting out as a Community Support Specialist. Within the first 8 months working with McClendon she was promoted to the new pilot program as a Patient Discharge Coordinator. An innovative program designed to assist and develop plans with DCs MCO’s and there members who are admitted to a psychiatric inpatient unit, to experience a comprehensive approach with transiting back into the community. In 2018, she took on the role as Team Leader with PDC; assisting with managing and organizing the teams daily schedule and needs. As of April 2021 she was promoted to Director of Hospital Transition and Reintegration Services; where she is now managing 2 teams within the company. Her growth and development within McClendon Center has been supported from day one from the managers and directors. Amanda has a Bachelor in Rehabilitative Studies from Winston-Salem State University, and a Masters in Science from Howard University.

Mohini Venkatesh

A passionate champion for systems-level change, Ms. Venkatesh serves as the Vice President, Business & Strategy at the National Council for Behavioral Health, a leading non-profit policy and practice improvement organization focused on public sector outpatient behavioral health services. During her 13-year tenure at the National Council, Ms. Venkatesh has led some of the industry’s strongest practice improvement and workforce development programs designed to transform clinical practice aligned with policy change. Ms. Venkatesh establishes collaborative and trusting relationships with clinical organizations providing behavioral health services, technology companies, and philanthropies to promote the spread of clinical and operational innovations. Centering her work on patient experience, Ms. Venkatesh has been the catalyst behind initiatives addressing community level health disparities, integrating physical and behavioral health services, and reshaping the behavioral health workforce pipeline. Prior to joining the National Council, Ms. Venkatesh worked in the field in a hospital-based psychiatric unit and a state association advocating for community behavioral services. Ms. Venkatesh serves on the board for a community behavioral health organization in Washington, D.C. and received a Master’s in Public Health from Yale University and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.

Elizabeth Sternberg

Elizabeth was born and raised in the District and is grateful that she can help McClendon with its mission to serve District residents. She worked as a city planner developing affordable housing for over 25 years with a break to live her dream to go to cooking school and cook professionally. She now works with Defend Yourself and Safe Bars Inc., two programs that empower people with skills to prevent and stand up to harassment and race and gender-based violence.

Amanda Holloway

Amanda Holloway graduated from Drew University in 2007 with a degree in Neurosciences and German and then attended Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia. She completed her residency in psychiatry at George Washington University in 2015. During her residency, she was fortunate to complete rotations at McClendon Center both at the CSA and the Day Program from 2013-2015. She has been working as a psychiatrist at the Washington DC VA Medical Center since 2015 providing patient care in an integrated primary care clinic. In addition to clinical work, she teaches students and residents and has faculty appointments at several local universities. She is honored to serve on the board of such a wonderful agency with such dedicated staff.

Sarah Barclay Hoffman

Sarah Barclay Hoffman is a Program Manager with the Community Mental Health CORE team at Children’s National Hospital, where she leads mental health policy and community engagement efforts. Ms. Hoffman also serves as Director of Policy for the Early Childhood Innovation Network. She has expertise in policy and system approaches in perinatal and infant and early childhood mental health, integration of mental health in pediatric primary care, and community-based mental health care. In her role, she also works with citywide, cross-sector partners to advance child- and family-serving policies and systems. Ms. Hoffman has nearly 20 years of experience in policy and advocacy focused on children’s issues, including as an advisor on education policy and strategy to national philanthropic organizations, nonprofits, and state education agencies at EducationCounsel LLC, and as a government relations specialist at the Children’s Defense Fund. Perhaps most importantly, she has lived experience as a caregiver of a loved one who has a severe mental illness diagnosis. Ms. Hoffman graduated from Colby College, and holds a Master of Public Policy from Duke University. She resides in Washington, DC with her husband and two sons, and is an active member of The New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. In her free time, she enjoys walking, dancing, exploring the local train landscape with her railfan children, and relaxing with a cup of tea.

David A. Harris

David A. Harris is working with his wife Megan Draheim to realize their dream of establishing a craft distillery in the D.C. area focused on locally-farmed heritage grains and local flavors. In the world of non-profit management, David previously served as the President & CEO of the National Jewish Democratic Council; the Executive Director of the Israel on Campus Coalition; and the Director of Governmental and Public Affairs for the American Jewish Congress, among other positions spanning 20 years in the non-profit sector. In Democratic politics, David was a congressional fellow for the late Senator Paul Simon (D-IL), serving on his Senate Foreign Relations Committee staff, and a congressional campaign manager as well. David is a native of West Lafayette, Indiana, and lives in Washington, DC with his wife and daughter.

Divya Moolchandani

Divya Moolchandani works in KPMG’s Federal Healthcare Advisory practice and has experience working with providers, payers, and federal healthcare innovation programs. Currently, Divya is also an adjunct lecturer at the George Washington University, teaching Consulting in Healthcare at the graduate level. She has experience leading projects that innovate methods for addressing post-reform healthcare trends, with specialized focus in healthcare corporate compliance, quality-focused provider reimbursement, and revenue cycle. She brings her passion and experience to helping the McClendon Center and District residents that she has lived beside for over 10 years improve their quality of lives.

Caitlin Gritt

Caitlin Gritt is a founding partner of Bisceglie & Gritt, PLLC, where her legal practice focuses

on nonprofit organizations, corporate governance, and business and entertainment law. A proud

graduate of Cornell University (go Big Red!) and The George Washington University Law

School, she’s a New Englander at heart (from Connecticut), who has spent the past decade

calling D.C. home. Caitlin joined the McClendon Center’s Board of Directors in 2016, and

currently serves as Vice Chair, as well as Chair of the Governance Committee. When she isn’t

practicing law or volunteering to support McClendon Center, she loves fishing and crabbing with

her family on the Chesapeake Bay, hiking and exploring National Parks, playing with her rescue

pup (Riggins), rooting for New England sports teams, and reading, cooking, and baking.

Anthony Boswell

Anthony “Tony” Boswell is a proven and compassionate leader and advocate for the marginalized with a three-decade track record of successfully working with, through, and for the benefit of underserved communities in the healthcare, human services, education, legal, government and nonprofit sectors.

Drawing upon a successful national track record and deep local expertise, Tony is well positioned to advance the Center’s vision of growing into the region’s preeminent provider of behavioral and mental health services.

Tony is McClendon Center’s first CEO and the first person of color to lead the organization since its founding in 1980. He brings extensive experience advocating for vulnerable populations, including youth living in poverty and marginalized people with behavioral health needs.

Tony joins the Center after serving the past five-plus years at a national mental and behavioral healthcare provider, where he successfully led turnarounds as the Executive Director for three distinct behavioral and mental health providers — in Springfield/Worcester, Massachusetts, New Orleans, Louisiana and Washington, DC.

In addition to these leadership posts, Tony has served as the Chair of the DC Behavioral Health Association’s Board of Directors since 2019. He has been a member of the DCBHA Board for each of the past four years, previously serving as Board Treasurer from 2018-2019.

Tony began his career as a healthcare attorney prior to serving in various leadership roles spanning corporate ethics and compliance, government service, and the international and not-for-profit business sectors.

Throughout his career, whether in a legal, corporate compliance or business leadership role, Tony’s unique ability to build and sustain critical partnerships with a diverse set of stakeholders has proven to be a difference maker. At each juncture, he has had the good fortune of leading people, building enterprises, shaping policy, and sparking change.

Tony earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law and holds a Master of Education degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as his bachelor’s degree from Stony Brook University. Tony and his wife, Kay-Ann, are the parents of two children.

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McClendon Center Annual Report 2013

McClendon Center Annual Report 2014

McClendon Center Annual Report 2015

McClendon Center Annual Report 2016

McClendon Center FY18 Annual Report

Claudelia Davis

Claudelia Davis is a Clinical Manager at McClendon Center with 15 years of experience working with the DC Medicaid population. Claudelia has dedicated her career to address health disparities and help individuals improve their health, body, mind and spirit. While pursuing a Master’s in Social Work from Howard University, she concentrated her studies in healthcare because her desire has always been to improve the health outcomes for communities that are impacted by health inequities. Claudelia specializes in behavioral health case management, psychiatric discharge coordination, and program development. Claudelia is inspired daily by her husband and their three daughters. In her spare time, Claudelia enjoys long walks in the park and spending quality time with family and friends.

Shawn Johnson

Shawn joined McClendon Center in November 2020 as the Human Resources Director. Previously, she held the position as the Human Resources Director at a correctional facility. Her experience includes working in various industries throughout her career as a Human Resource Director/Manager. Shawn holds a master’s degree in Human Resource Development from Bowie State University. She enjoys gaining new knowledge and experiences.

Sara Teichholtz

Sara Teichholtz completed her premedical studies at Wellesley College, graduating cum laude with a degree in Neuroscience. She then completed her medical training at the Medical School for International Health at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Be’er Sheva, Israel, to gain exposure to cross-cultural medicine and global health. She was drawn to complete her psychiatric training at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. because of unique opportunities available to work with diverse and underserved populations including refugees, immigrants, and survivors of political torture. During residency she completed the GW Resident Fellowship in Health Policy, and remains passionate about social justice in medicine, advocacy, health policy, and healthcare reform, interests were which further strengthened by spending her final year of residency at the housing-first CSA Pathways to Housing. She is board certified in psychiatry and plans to complete further training in hospice and palliative medicine.

Steve Luteran serves as a Clinical Manager for McClendon Center in Washington DC, a private non-profit agency serving adults with serious mental illness. For the past 20 years Steve has held various senior leadership positions in managing non-profit and government agencies. Prior past experience included serving as the Deputy Director of Program Services with the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services with the District of Columbia. He also served as the Executive Director for Catholic Charities in Virginia. Steve received his Master of Social Work Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in both Virginia and Washington Dc. Steve is a member of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and has served on a variety of non-profit Boards in varying capacity including President. Steve has worked with many different population in his career that included at-risk adolescents, families and adults living in poverty, homelessness or suffering from debilitating physical and mental health issues.

Dr. Pamela Jones is the Director of Nursing and Health Services at McClendon Center. Prior to joining McClendon Center, she was a Global Health Service/Peace Corps volunteer. While in Tanzania, she taught nursing to undergraduate and graduate students. She received her BSN from the University of Northern Colorado, a MPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a PhD in nursing from the University of California, San Francisco. Her nursing experience has focused on health disparities, providing care through all phases of the cancer continuum, and community-based nursing. In her spare time, she enjoys live music, traveling, and spending time with her nieces and nephews.

Steve Luteran

Steve Luteran serves as a Clinical Manager for McClendon Center in Washington DC, a private non-profit agency serving adults with serious mental illness. For the past 20 years Steve has held various senior leadership positions in managing non-profit and government agencies. Prior past experience included serving as the Deputy Director of Program Services with the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services with the District of Columbia. He also served as the Executive Director for Catholic Charities in Virginia. Steve received his Master of Social Work Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in both Virginia and Washington Dc. Steve is a member of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and has served on a variety of non-profit Boards in varying capacity including President. Steve has worked with many different population in his career that included at-risk adolescents, families and adults living in poverty, homelessness or suffering from debilitating physical and mental health issues.

Hiwot Dinku

Hiwot joined the McClendon Center in 2011. Previously, she worked for a construction company and an oil company. Hiwot is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) licensed by the Common Wealth of Virginia and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Management.

Aisha Shabazz

After graduating from Morgan State University, Aisha Shabazz started her career in Baltimore City working with mentally ill teen parents in the foster care system. Upon relocating to the Washington DC area she worked at The Green Door Clubhouse as a job coach. Aisha later was hired by S.O.M.E. as the program manager for the Isaiah House Day Program. Aisha has worked at the McClendon Center in 3 roles: Mental Health Specialist, Office Engagement Coordinator and currently as Day Program Manager. Aisha is committed to being an advocate and improving the lives of adults living with mental illness in Washington DC.

Caitlin Apo

Caitlin Apo is the Director of Clinical Services at McClendon Center, a five star Washington DC community mental health agency. She manages community outreach teams to serve adults diagnosed with complicated mental health needs by utilizing innovative approaches to care. In addition, she has promoted various community partnerships to coordinate services for complex medical, psychiatric, and substance abuse recovery programming. Lastly, her belief that every person deserves unique and individualized comprehensive care has led to improved healthcare access in low income communities.

Michael Burt

Michael Burt was hired at McClendon Center in 2009 during the agency’s major expansion as a Team Leader and became the QI Director in 2014. Michael uses his expertise in quality improvement, crisis intervention, social services, community outreach, and counseling to empower and help our clients reach their ultimate goal of independence. His prior experience includes social services work within the hospital setting along with work at another core services agency. He earned a Master’s degree in Counseling from Bowie State University and earned his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Frostburg State University. Michael leads the Consumer Advisory Board (CAB) which is made up of 20 Center clients who help advocate for change for all consumers who receive services at the Center. In 2017, Michael led the Center through its on-site Joint Commission Survey and monitors performance indicators for the Center to maintain its accreditation and is preparing to do so again in 2020-2021.

Board of Directors

Steve Lucas

Caitlin Gritt

Adam Coile

Divya Moolchandani

Members at Large

Wunmi Bamiduro

David Harris

Amanda Holloway

Kim Y. Jones

Sophie Stern

Elizabeth Sternberg

Mohini Venkatesh

Sally He

Core Services

Day Program

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