Employees
Management and Office Staff
Brian Shepherd. President
Brian has been with Right Direction since it was formed nearly six years ago. His main function has always been as an Interventionist because it is as an Interventionist that he gets to work directly with clients. Brian was diagnosed with Crohn's disease when he was ten years old. Brian's condition made for a difficult adolescence as everyday activities such as school presented great challenges for him. As with many Crohn's sufferers, Brian had to overcome the tendency to live his life in fear of his disease. Instead he decided to take control of his life and navigate a different direction for himself. Dealing with these challenges helped to shape Brian's positive attitude toward life and his ability to deal with any challenge that comes his way. His personal experience helps him to empathize with adolescents and young adults facing their own challenges. In his time with Right Direction, he has personally worked with over eight hundred families. Brian started with Right Direction as a college student eager to pay for his education and went on to graduate from the University of Utah with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Information Systems. After graduating from college, Brian initiated Right Direction's website and began to work on designing an online database to help Right Direction better serve families. Since then, Brian has naturally evolved into a leader for Right Direction and has helped to shape our therapeutic philosophy. Currently he spends most of his time juggling his office duties, counseling parents, doing interventions and spending time with his beautiful wife and baby daughter, Aelyn. Brian also loves to cook and travel and has worked in sponsor hospitality venues during the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, the 2000 Olympic Summer Games in Sydney, Australia and he managed sponsor hospitality suites for the IOC and Sports Illustrated during the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City as well as in Athens, Greece during the 2004 Olympics and most recently in Turin, Italy for the 2006 Olympics. Brian is CPR certified and has first-aid training and is a member of the California Trustline Registry (#151173386).
Jeana H. Executive Director
Jeana is the Executive Director for Right Direction with an extensive background in all areas of Business Administration. She oversees the economic and financial health of the company while implementing strategic plans and developing future goals for RDCI. With her impeccable leadership, she brings growth and direction to her position and possesses the knowledge and skills to keep Right Direction running smoothly. She has 19 years of prior customer service experience and believes very much in the philosophies and goals of RDCI. Jeana has always had a passion for helping kids and brings the experience and understanding of raising her four children, Audra (18), Eve (16), Maverick (4) and Myles (2) to the table. In her free time she enjoys spending time with the family, local concerts, biking, hiking, gardening, road trips, family guitar hero nights, Yoga and Zumba classes, composing on the piano, knitting and sketching .
Audrey P. Client Services Manager
***Special Announcement***
Audrey was recognized this year by NATSAP at the national conference and awarded their Outstanding Service Award. There are usually only two or three of these awards given out to its members that have gone above and beyond in their efforts to assist the organization through working on committees or working within their regions. We are very proud of this recognition and of Audrey's accomplishments.
Audrey has always had a heart for young people, and at an early age, knew she wanted to pursue a career in Social Work. Audrey obtained a B.A. from the University of Maine's School of Social Work, and her career path took a new turn and landed her in Hospitality Marketing and Management for 15 years, where she held various managerial positions and participated in many regional and local business associations. Audrey joined New Horizons for Young Women at its conception in the Fall of 2000, and her position as Admissions and Marketing Director provided her the opportunity to combine her educational and professional experiences. Audrey has been actively involved in NATSAP (National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs) committees and has also co-chaired the Northeast Regional NATSAP conference for the past two years. She was given a volunteer award in 2006 at the National NATSAP conference. Audrey is currently finishing a two-year term on the NATSAP Board. She has strong convictions around ethics in our industry as well as public policy and hopes to work hard to represent her colleagues in those efforts. Audrey joined Right Direction's team in 2008 as their Sales Manager. Audrey has lived in Maine her whole life and can often be found sailing Penobscot Bay with her family and friends. She resides in a small community near Bangor, Maine with her fiancée, her two teenage daughters, Lauren and Erica, and Charlie, the family’s Labrador retriever, and Daisy, their Boston Terrier.
Tammy J. Client Services Supervisor
Tammy was born and raised in Idaho on a large cattle ranch with one sister. She likes to stay close to her roots and loves going back to the ranch to help with the family rodeo business. She has three children, two girls and one boy. Her husband Eric works in law enforcement and also is an Interventionist for Right Direction. Tammy met her husband at Idaho State University where she was studying to be a Dental Hygienist. She put her career on hold to travel with her husband who played professional football for five years before retiring to spend more time with his family. Tammy and her husband lived two years in Toronto, Canada, one year in Winnipeg, Canada, New Orleans and Long Beach, California before making their home in Boise, Idaho. One of her greatest strengths is being so diversified and being able to relate to adolescents from all over the country. During the past 10 years, Tammy has worked with at-risk adolescents including two years at a therapeutic wilderness program in Idaho and as an Interventionist for Right Direction. She states that there is nothing more rewarding than helping a young person going through a difficult time in their life and knowing that you can make a difference. Being a mom helps Tammy relate to the tough decisions that parents have to make involving their children and also knowing that a child is the most precious gift of all. Tammy loves to spend time with her family riding horses, camping, hiking, water-skiing, snow sledding, skiiing, snowboarding, cooking and once in a while, just relaxing.
Jason B. Operations Manager
Jason has been a resident of Ohio for the majority of his life. He grew up in the southern part of the state, but now lives in Lancaster with his wife of six years and two daughters, ages four and two. Jason has held various positions in Law Enforcement throughout the state, including serving time with the Army Military Police. He is actively involved in the Boy Scouts of America, serving as a Scoutmaster for a local troop for the past 11 years. As a Scoutmaster, he has been trained in many skills and experiences involving the youth in his community. Jason is also certified in CPR. He enjoys most outdoor activities and is a huge NASCAR fan. Almost every Sunday you can find him and his oldest daughter, Ciara, watching NASCAR and cheering on their favorite drivers.
James A. Interventionist Supervisor
Jim has been happily married for 14 years and has three children. Together, they love camping and riding four-wheelers in the beautiful Utah mountains. When Jim has free time, he is usually coaching one of his three children's teams as he has a great love for sports and working with kids. He also loves hunting and fishing and playing sports when time permits. Jim has been doing interventions for adolescents and adults for over ten years and is registered with the California Trustlne. Jim has also worked in Law Enforcement for 14 years and has held positions as SWAT officer, narcotics officer, and is currently employed by the State of Utah supervising adults on probation and parole. Jim graduated from Utah Valley State University (UVSU) in 1995, and has recently returned to school to work on a Criminal Law Degree. Jim is certified in Utah as an Emergency Medical Technician and was certified by FEMA in Disaster Relief in 2002 to assist with plans for the 2002 Winter Games. He enjoys attending training and school to learn more about his profession to better help him in serving his community.
Heidi L. Client Services Representative
Heidi Leguineche was born and raised in Idaho for most of her life. As the oldest of seven kids, being a positive role model is very familiar and important to her. Heidi takes this responsibility on with joy as she enjoys making a difference in young people’s lives. Heidi has interned at Garfield elementary school in Boise, Idaho for two years. While interning at Garfield, she had the opportunity to help students that had reading and other learning disabilities. Heidi also worked at the Walker Center, a substance abuse recovery facility in Gooding, Idaho. Her experience working there gave her the ability to understand that every child is different and has different needs. For Heidi it was a life-altering lesson and makes her a great asset to the Right Direction Crisis Intervention team. Heidi and her two-year-old daughter, Mallory, currently reside in Boise, Idaho. Heidi enjoys spending time with her family and also enjoys camping, fishing, scrapbooking and photography.
Whitnee S. Client Services Representative
Whitnee was born in Idaho, but then grew up in Phoenix, Arizona only to be followed by a return to Idaho as an adult. Whitnee worked for the SUWS Youth Program in Gooding, Idaho for five years before joining the Right Direction team. At SUWS, Whitnee filled various positions such as Field Instructor, Program Supervisor, and Admissions Representative. Whitnee is married and is the proud mother of a new baby girl. One of Whitnee's most favorite things to do is to travel. Whitnee has traveled all up and down the Western coast and has spent four months in New Zealand and six months in India. In her other spare moments, which currently seem to be few with a small baby, she enjoys art, yoga, and taking dance classes with her husband. Date night is her current luxury.
Michael S. Client Services Representative
Michael was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA. He now lives in Boise, Idaho with his wife, two baby girls and his old dog Chocho. Michael is excited each day by the new experiences his family brings him. He thrives on the joy and challenges each day may bring. Michael is an avid reader and collector of books and print. His pleasures include hiking and camping, cooking and scouting for books. Michael graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in Anthropology in 1994. He has demonstrated a commitment to youth and families.
Michael spent ten years living and working on the Flathead Reservation in Montana. During that time, he develop and taught K-6 computer technology coursework with the Montana Tech Corps/AmeriCorps program, enabling rural schools to gain access to safe and relevant technologies. Michael's professional experience includes facilitating programs sponsored by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention/Department of Justice, educating youth on topics including drug and alcohol, tobacco, relationships and positive peer mentoring. Michael has worked as a direct care provider for at-risk youth and families in need in youth homes in rural Montana. From this experience Michael was invited to mentor with the Montana Youth ChalleNGe Academy is part of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program. He has held the position of Program Supervisor for a local chapter of a national non-profit organization, mentoring after school programs and identifying needs for community development.
Michael spent over two years in the field as a Wilderness Therapy Field Instructor. Following his trail time he was the Program Supervisor for a wilderness program in south-central Idaho. As the Program Supervisor, he recruited, trained and developed field staff for wilderness treatment teams. Michael is registered as a Wilderness First Responder and has maintained Non-Violent Crisis Intervention certification since 2004.
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Natalie A. Client Services Representative
Natalie was born and raised in Kaysville, Utah where she graduated High school, and went on to attend Utah Valley University College. There she met James, her husband of now 14 years. She is the proud mother of three beautiful children, Lauren(11), Chloe(8) and Jake(6). Before coming to RDCI, she worked as a medical receptionist for six years, which she enjoyed very much. Being able to help people and make a difference in a positive manner continues to be very rewarding for her. She has worked for RDCI for the past two years, doing interventions, supporting the administrative side of things and also currently works in our intake department. Natalie enjoys spending time with her family, going to Bear Lake, four-wheeling in the mountains, or those laid back days just spending time at the ballparks watching her kids play sports. Being a mom has definitely given her a better understanding of the hard decisions parents sometimes have to make when it comes to the safety and well-being of their children.
Stephanie C. Billing Specialist
Stephanie is the Billing Specialist for Right Direction and has been working in the field of Office Administration for the last 13 years.
She has been happily married for 10 years and has two children, Noah & Justine, ages 5 and 9. Stephanie was born and raised in Sacramento, California.
Before making her home in Phoenix, Arizona, she spent her time attending a Community College in Albany, Oregon.
Throughout her years of experience in Office Administration, Stephanie has also enjoyed taking on the role of being a stay-at-home mom. She appreciates the importance of early development in children and enjoys impacting their lives in a way that encourages them to be themselves.
In her free time, Stephanie enjoys volunteering in her children’s classrooms, reading, scrap-booking, hiking, spending time with friends and family, gardening, cooking, watching sports with her husband, yoga, and family road trips..