Speakers

Tarsha Wiggins

Tarsha Wiggins is the founder of Speak Wellness Behavioral Health Consulting, LLC., Your Trap Therapist, and the official Hot 105.7 therapist. She has 12 plus years of experience in the field of Behavioral Health. Tarsha is a graduate from the University of Wisconsin Madison where she acquired a Master’s in Social Work in 2009 and completed additional training in 2012 at Aurora University, where she earned a certificate as an Alcohol and Drug Counselor. One of Tarsha’s greatest strengths is being comfortable having uncomfortable conversations and this has helped her immensely. Tarsha began her journey in the field of Social Services as a Child Protective Worker and moved on to work with individuals in clinical settings. Tarsha has worked with children and adults in several levels of care: Inpatient Hospitalization, Partial Hospitalization, Intensive Outpatient Treatment, and Individual Therapy. During her years of providing direct care Tarsha often witnessed the ravaging effects of untreated mental illness and realized the need to abolish the stigma of mental illness, particularly within communities of color. As a result, in April 2020 Tarsha began working to reduce the stigma of mental illness by partnering with community leaders, utilizing social media outlets and providing training regarding mental illness. Tarsha is dedicated to evoking positive change in families and communities.

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Choton Basu

Dr. Choton Basu has been a professor, entrepreneur, and consultant for over 25 years. He is a professor in the department of Information Technology and Supply Chain Management (ITSCM) at University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. He is the currently the Sam Walton Fellow and has served as the Irvin L. Young Chair of Entrepreneurship. Choton is the founder of Slipstream LLC and Aikonik LLC.

Choton’s specialization includes Strategic application of technology, Business Model Development and Validation, Process Reengineering, and Social Entrepreneurship. Dr. Basu has worked on numerous global projects, played key roles in multiple startups, and served as a team member in several IT-driven projects. He has published his research in reputable academic journals and presented his work across national and international conferences.

Choton’s passion is to work on disruptive and innovative solutions that strike the balance people, planet, and profit, creating a self-sustaining ecosystems.

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Melissa Bleiler, MS, LMFT, LPC

Melissa is a therapist in private practice in Madison and Janesville. She works primarily with adults and couples to address trauma, sexuality, and relationship concerns. She has co-presented experiential workshops for clinician survivors of suicide along with Dr. Aruna Jha and previously worked at UW-Whitewater's Counseling Services, where she helped facilitate suicide prevention trainings across campus. Melissa is a former board member  for the Wisconsin Association for Marriage and Family Therapy and previously worked in administration at the Oregon School District and for a statewide nonprofit for gifted and talented students. She has a deep appreciation of education and systems change.

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Nicholas Bur

Nic Bur is entering his 34th year in the West Allis West Milwaukee School District. He has been a special education teacher, dean of students and school counselor. He is currently the lead school counselor, homeless coordinator and Hope Squad Advisor. Nic is passionate about suicide prevention and finding ways to make all kids feel connected, and like they have someone that cares about them.

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Katherine Drechsler DSW, LCSW-SA 

Katherine Drechsler, DSW, LCSW-SA is an Assistant Professor, Field Coordinator, and the School Social Work Coordinator for the Social Work Program at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.  Katherine received her Doctorate of Social Work from Aurora University and her MSW from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Katherine is a licensed clinical social work with a specialty authorization in substance use disorders, and a licensed school social worker. Katherine’s research interests include field education, evidence-based practice in social work education, and teaching pedagogy of diversity in social work education. 

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Jessica Frain, MSW

Jessica is a School Mental Health Consultant for the Department of Public Instruction. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of WI-La Crosse and a Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of WI-Madison. Prior to joining DPI, Jess worked as a School Social Worker in WI public schools where her roles included homeless services, AODA intervention, trauma sensitive schools implementation, alternative project-based education, and restorative justice. She is currently a Coordinator for the Wisconsin School-based Mental Health Services Grant and the Coordinator for the Wisconsin School Climate Transformation Grant. As a member of the Student Services/Prevention and Wellness Team at DPI, she also provides technical assistance and training in the areas of Bullying Prevention, Social and Emotional Learning, and Comprehensive School Mental Health.

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Rachel Hayden, Certified Personal Medicine Coach Trainer, Certified Peer Specialist, Milkweed Connections

As a founding member of peer-run Milkweed Connections, Rachel has been providing peer-based services since 2017 for multiple programs, often working with queer and trans youth. She has mentored and collaborated with cognitive science and psychology professors to advance models of both peer support and gender. In 2021 she became one of Wisconsin's first Personal Medicine coaches and trainers. 

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Sarah Hessenauer PhD, LCSW 

Sarah Hessenauer, PhD, LCSW is a Professor and MSW Program Coordinator for the Social Work program at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Sarah received her PhD in Social Work from Loyola University of Chicago and her MSW from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Sarah is a licensed clinical social worker. Sarah’s research interests include undergraduate social work education and evidence-based practice in social work. 

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Aruna Jha

Dr. Aruna Jha received her MSW and PhD in Social Work, with a minor in Public Health, from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in 2001. Before that she completed an MS.Ed. in Counselor Education from Northern Illinois University. She also has her masters in Child Development and Family Relationships from India. She came to UW-Whitewater in 2017.

Before coming to UWW, Dr. Jha worked as a clinical social worker at the Veteran's Administration for 6 years, first as a suicide prevention coordinator with the Zablocki VAMC in Milwaukee and later as a program manager in Spinal Cord Injury at the Hines VAMC in Chicago. During this time, she held an adjunct faculty appointment at UIC in Criminology, Law and Justice. Aruna has previously taught courses in violence and trauma, Military Social Work, suicide prevention, child development and family relationships.

Dr. Jha has 25 years of experience in designing suicide prevention programs for diverse audiences.  Her research interests are related to mental health outcomes in immigrant and military populations. In both groups, students and military veterans, she is specifically interested in the role of cultural beliefs and values in suicidal behavior, and designing and evaluating suicide prevention programs that address these beliefs.

Dr. Jha's dissertation focused on risk factors for depression and suicide in college students.  She teaches Introduction to Social Welfare and Social Work Practice 1 and is looking forward to teaching military social work and advanced practice in our new MSW program.

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Hope Kissinger, Certified Peer Specialist and Recovery Coach, Personal Medicine Coach Trainer, Yoga Teacher, Milkweed Connections

Hope provides services in all the programs Milkweed offers, CCS,PSP, & Choices. She is also a member of Milkweed's coordinating team.  Hope's background consists of substance use disorder with multiple years of recovery.  Hope found yoga during her healing and has become a yoga teacher providing those teachings alongside her certification in peer support and personal medicine. 

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Liz Krubsack, MS, LPC

Liz Krubsack is a School Mental Health Consultant for the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.  She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Sociology and a Master's degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is a Licensed Professional Counselor and School Counselor. Prior to joining DPI, Liz worked in roles focused on bridging school and community mental health systems, providing direct treatment services in schools and overseeing a school-community mental health literacy grant.  Liz currently coordinates the state School Based Mental Health Services Grant, and provides technical assistance on building and improving Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems.  Additional areas of focus include mental health literacy and stigma reduction, advancing educator compassion resilience, and social and emotional learning.

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Kate Laird, Certified Peer Specialist and Recovery Coach, Intentional Peer Support Organizational Trainer, Milkweed Connections

Kate is a founding member of Milkweed Connections and has been working in peer support since 2012. She is passionate about providing truly person-centered services, as well as creating and supporting meaningful work for people with lived experience. Her educational background is in social sciences and psychology, and she is a WI Certified Peer Specialist as well as a Recovery Coach. 

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Larry Leinberger

Larry is the lead School Social Worker in the West Allis-West Milwaukee School District. Larry received his MSW from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He has been a HOPE Squad advisor since 2019.

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Kristen Prock PhD, LCSW

Kristen Prock, PhD, LCSW is an Assistant Professor of social work at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Kristen received her PhD in Social Work from Michigan State University and MSW from Indiana University-South Bend, with an emphasis mental health and substance use disorders. Kristen’s research focuses on LGBTQ-related discrimination in higher education, victimization of marginalized individuals, and evidence-based practice in social work education.

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Ryan Sawyer, Certified Peer Specialist, Milkweed Connections

Ryan has been a member of Milkweed Connections since 2018. He works with teens and young adults. He is a Certified Peer Specialist in the state of Wisconsin with a bachelor's degree in History and Political Science. In his free time he enjoys gaming, golfing, and listening to music.