Phil Blaylock is a full time School Resource Officer with Morrilton Police Department and retired FireFighter with the Morrilton Fire Department.  He is the owner of Sentinel Educational Safety and Security Consulting LLC. As a school safety expert, he instructs for the Criminal Justice Institute on topics such as school safety, communications, and active shooter classes.  He has also instructed on a national level in different states.  As a board member of the Arkansas Safe Schools Association, National School Safety Advocacy Council and the International School Resource Officer Association, his commitment to school safety and community policing is top priority.  Social media is a major platform he uses, in building relationships and “highlighting young and old citizens” of the community. Phil Blaylock has been featured on The Ellen Show, NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt and many other numerous national and statewide news stations, in regards to his viral videos and debriefs after mass shootings.  In previous years he has been awarded the Law Enforcement of the Year for Conway County by the 100 Proof Board, the Conway County Law Enforcement of the Year by the Arkansas Attorney General’s Office, and the National School Resource Officer of the Year by the National School Safety Advocacy Council. This past summer, he was the recipient of the National School Safety Award given by the SSAC. As an instructor in responses to an active killer, he presents on the proper response a civilian would take, as well as workforce violence to corporate America.

On November 19, 2022, Tamia and Timothy Woods lost their only child. James Timothy  Woods was an innocent 17-year-old high school student that fell victim to cybercrime and lost his life in the process. In a short period of time since James’ passing, The Woods started a foundation in his name with the focus of informing and teaching anyone who would listen about this relatively new evil that is attacking our youth today. Year to date, they have already engaged in over 140 activities to help spread awareness on sextortion inclusive of, three documentaries with one on HULU, multiple news interviews including CBS  Evening News, Dr. Phil Primetime, and ABC News Nightline, was front page on USA Today, had speaking engagements in different avenues in addition to middle schools, high schools, and other special events. The Do It for James Foundation sought to create a  Sextortion Tip Card to help children and trustworthy adults navigate through tough times if they are ever in the same or similar predicament as James. They have also sponsored track and cross-country students in Ohio and Tennessee and had their first annual walk/run day of fun with the ability to give away over $12,750 in scholarships. Timothy and Tamia of the Do It for James Foundation have received five awards and recognitions since the birth of their foundation in honor of their son James, made up of the Cleveland  Cavaliers Community Diff Maker, an award from the Mac Athletic Conference, The  Destination HBCU Honorary Drum Majors of Education, the Making A Difference Award presented by the town of Stow, Massachusetts, and the Director’s Community Leadership  Award presented by the FBI. Their goal is to have a place that can provide betterment for our youth, and it starts with awareness, education, and the Do It for James Foundation.

Mrs. Wesley LeCounte is a Licensed Certified Social Worker-Clinical (LCSW-C) specializing in leadership, child welfare, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Currently, she serves as the Day Treatment Coordinator at RICA Baltimore, where she provides supervision to school social workers and therapy to students managing mental and behavioral challenges. Mrs. LeCounte is dedicated to upholding the NASW Code of Ethics and COMAR regulations while advocating for and supporting vulnerable children, families, and communities.

As a Baltimore City native, Mrs. LeCounte has a deep understanding of the trauma that many residents of the city experience. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Bowie State University (2013), graduating with honors, and a Master’s in Social Work from Morgan State University (2015). She is also a proud member of The National Society of Leadership and Success and Psi Chi, The International Honor Society in Psychology.

Mrs. LeCounte’s extensive background in child welfare includes experience in Out of Home Placement, Family Preservation, and Child Protective Services. She has provided intensive case management services to children and adults dealing with mental health and substance use disorders. Previously, Mrs. LeCounte served as Clinical Director at Change Health Systems, where she played a pivotal role in implementing the organization’s mission, vision, and values. Additionally, she served as a clinical child protective services supervisor at DHS, leading her team to maintain zero overdue cases for over a year.

Mrs. LeCounte is a passionate leader who focuses on finding solutions, not just identifying problems. She utilizes creative therapeutic interventions to help children, adolescents, and families address and reduce problematic behaviors, emotional challenges, and relational issues. Her approach to therapy is holistic, focusing on the whole person—physically, mentally, and emotionally—while considering the broader social factors that influence their well-being.

Dr. Kristin Barron has been with the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center since 2015, following her graduation from the University of MD with her Doctorate in Physical Therapy. She developed a passion for supporting individuals with critical illnesses and traumatic injuries through her extensive experience working as a physical therapist on the hospital’s critical care units, including the neurotrauma ICU and the multi-trauma ICU. In late 2023, after nearly a decade of bedside care and leadership, Kristin transitioned into her current role as the supervisor for the Shock Trauma Injury Prevention Program. Guided by the three main reasons for admission to Shock Trauma (which are motor vehicle crashes, falls, and violence), Kristin leads and coordinates trauma prevention outreach programs throughout the state, including those aimed at addressing distracted driving, impaired driving, teen risky behavior, falls, head injuries, spinal cord injuries, and bleeding-related mortality. Additionally, Kristin oversees the Trauma Survivors Network Coordinator for Shock Trauma, where she thrives on creating opportunities that connect the worlds of trauma prevention and trauma survivorship. 

Ian Lopez has served as Director of Safety & Security for Cherry Creek School District (CCSD) since 2019, overseeing physical security, emergency preparedness, safety investigations, and staff training across 80 schools and facilities serving over 55,000 students. He leads a team of 10 armed Security Coordinators, 125 unarmed Security Specialists, and 12 dispatchers operating a 24-hour dispatch center. Prior to joining CCSD, Ian completed a 20-year career in municipal law enforcement, retiring as a Commander. He brings extensive expertise in emergency response from both school and public safety perspectives.

Jason Stoddard is the Director of School Safety and Security for the Charles County Public Schools (MD). He is responsible for sustaining a safe learning and work environment for over 27,000 students and nearly 4,000 staff members. Since coming to the public schools in April of 2018, he has created the Office of School Safety and Security, been awarded millions of dollars in grant money, implemented major evolutions such as revolving backgrounds for all employees, options-based active shooter response, the “I love u guys” Foundation Standard Response Protocols, a state of art radio communication system with public safety interoperability, first its kind intelligence unit, drone program and most recently launched a project to install Gun Detect, an artificial intelligence driven solution for surveillance cameras in all the system schools. Originally from a small town in Iowa, Mr. Stoddard came to the Washington, DC area while serving as a Security Police Officer in the United States Air Force. After completing his service obligation, he embarked on a career in civilian law enforcement. He spent over 20 years with the Charles County Sheriff’s Office rising to the rank of Lieutenant. His executive command assignments include tours within the Patrol Division, Special Operations Section (overseeing the SWAT team, K-9, Marine, Traffic, and Civil Disturbance), and Homeland Security and Intelligence Sections.  He has a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership. He is a graduate of the Northwestern University, School of Police Staff and Command, and the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Program. Mr. Stoddard also serves as an adjunct professor at three universities, teaches executive-level leadership for the Maryland Police Training Commission, has authored several articles for magazines on topics ranging from school safety to organizational leadership, serves as a consultant for the Department of Justice and National Institutes of Justice, sits on several advisory boards, and has often traveled the country teaching active assailant response, leadership, data/evidence-based decision making, and crisis communications, and incident management. 

Lauren Holmes is a dedicated education leader with a proven record of advancing teaching and learning across Maryland. As Executive Director in the Division of Student Support and Federal Programs at the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), she oversees a range of initiatives focused on equity, student success, and positive school climates. Her work centers on aligning programs, strengthening implementation, and fostering collaboration to support Maryland’s commitment to high-quality education for all students.

Lauren brings extensive experience as both an educator and project manager. At the Johns Hopkins University Center for Technology in Education, she led national strategic initiatives in professional development, curriculum alignment, and assessment. Her strengths include using data for actionable insights, building systems aligned with school goals, and designing impactful professional learning that supports educators and inspires students.

With a background as a classroom teacher, math content coach, staff development teacher, and gifted and talented liaison in both DC and Montgomery County Public Schools, Lauren understands the challenges educators face and the supports they need. She is a passionate advocate for equity, anti-bias education, and inclusive practices that create opportunity for all students.

Lauren is especially committed to creating joyful, empowering learning environments and helping school leaders build capacity for lasting improvement. She prides herself on connecting research-based strategies to real-world application, supporting educators as they drive meaningful, sustainable change in their schools and communities.

Nancy Schertzing, MS, directs the Restorative Approaches in Education Program at the Center for Dispute Resolution at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law (CDRUM). She has a passion for restorative approaches nurtured over nearly two decades of working in this field. 

Ms. Schertzing brings a wealth of practical experience to C-DRUM, including: 

• Directing restorative discipline projects at schools from K-12 through the university levels 

• Training thousands of educators in restorative approaches  

• Advising the Michigan and Maryland State Departments of Education in integrating restorative approaches into policies and practices. 

In her role at C-DRUM, Schertzing has expanded and built on her experience. Now she:

• Directs, develops, and implements C-DRUM’s initiatives, trainings, and grant-funded projects regarding restorative justice and conflict resolution education in schools and youthserving organizations.   

• Designs and conducts trainings, provides consulting services, develops resources, and works with other programs to support school leaders and educators in building their capacity to integrate restorative approaches into discipline, conflict resolution, peer mediation, and relationship-building in their learning communities.   

• Collaborates with law school faculty to train and assist in supervising law students to use restorative approaches and other conflict resolution models in schools.   

• Coordinates with the Director of the Erin Levitas Initiative to Prevent Sexual Assault to support the delivery of the ERIN Talk Levitas curriculum in middle schools.  

• Advocates for restorative approaches in education on the state and national levels and supports local initiatives when appropriate.  

• Instructs undergraduate students in restorative justice and its applications at the University of Maryland College Park campus. 

Nancy’s passion drives her to help schools and organizations embrace the restorative philosophy and practices. She would love to help your group harness restorative approaches’ healing power for the people you serve. 

A native Houstonian, Michelle Piña spends time volunteering for different passions. She currently is a State Leader and YSC TourdePink fundraiser for the Young Survival Coalition, the only national organization that supports young breast cancer survivors diagnosed under the age of 40. Previously, Michelle sat on the Houston Medical Advisory Adjunct Committee with Susan G. Komen for Greater Houston (2019-2021). As a 19-year, triple negative breast cancer survivor, Michelle enjoys connecting people and organizations to ensure everyone has what they need to reach success - whatever that may look like; both in work and in life.

Max Schachter is a national school safety advocate and founder of Safe Schools for Alex, a nonprofit created in honor of his son Alex, who was tragically killed in the 2018 Parkland school shooting. Since that day, Max has dedicated his life to ensuring no other family experiences the same loss. His organization provides up-to-date school safety best practices and resources to students, parents, educators, and law enforcement.

Max has worked tirelessly with U.S. Presidents, Congress, and federal agencies to enact meaningful change. He played a key role in establishing the Federal School Safety Clearinghouse at SchoolSafety.gov, a vision realized in 2019 and later made permanent under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in 2022.

Appointed to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission, Max helped lead the investigation into the shooting and develop safety recommendations for Florida’s 2.4 million students. He also advises the FBI, U.S. Secret Service, and state officials on threat assessment policies.

Max is a member of the National Sheriffs’ Association School Safety and Security Committee and the International Association of Chiefs of Police Mass Violence Advisory Team. In 2019, he received the U.S. Department of Justice Attorney General Citizen Volunteer Service Award.

A frequent national media voice, Max delivers powerful keynote presentations to school districts, law enforcement, and government agencies, sharing lessons learned from Parkland and his journey from grief to advocacy.