Cole Caruso
Founder of Community Resource Network of Florida
Cole Caruso founded Community Resource Network of Florida (CRN) in 2009 when a similar organization had to close its doors. CRN provides services and coordinates supports to Adults and Children with intellectual and developmental disabilities throughout Southwest Florida. Rather than see those people go unserved, Cole quickly developed CRN and poured his heart and soul into making it work for those who need it.Under Cole’s leadership, the company has contuined to grow each year and provides support for more than 500 people with disabilities from Marco Island to Tampa Bay area. Cole built the organization on the belief that every person should have access to individualized services to enhance their quality of life so that they may thrive at home and in the community.
Cole wants everyone behind the organization to remain true to their commitment to individualized, compassionate care, which is at the heart of who they are.
Cole is a passionate member of his community, and strives to make his community a place where all people can live together so each person can live their best life in harmony together.
Cole Serves on the Board of Directors for Planned Prenthood of Southwest and Central Florida, Lee county School board Advisory Committee on Equity and Diversity, Steering committee for Southwest Florida Community Foundations LGBT Fund, and Board Emeriti to StarAbility Foundation, Advisory Committee to the Mayor of Fort Myers on Equity and Diversity . Cole enjoys travel, theater, and spending time on the water.
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Michael J. Hammond, MSM
Vice President, Product Strategy & Partnership Development of Optum Health
Mike began his professional career in 1987, serving the 41st Governor of Kansas, Mike Hayden, in several staff capacities, including social service policy and speechwriting. After Governor Hayden left office in 1991, Mike remained in public service working for the Kansas Department of Corrections focused on special needs offender programming and community supervision. During Governor Bill Graves’ term in office, he appointed Mike to various appointed capacities within the Executive Branch – Director of Research and Planning for Healthcare Policy at SRS, Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of SRS for Healthcare Policy (overseeing Medicaid, mental health, developmental disability, substance abuse), and Chief of Staff to the Secretary of Aging.
In 2001, Mike joined the Association of Community Mental Health Centers of Kansas, Inc., as the Director of Policy and Planning and one year later was named the Executive Director. He served in that capacity until late 2013. During his tenure at the Association, he oversaw two subsidiary organizations and also was the founder and Interim Chief Executive Officer of a provider-sponsored Medicaid managed care plan for behavioral health services.
In late 2013, Mike joined Centene as a Regional Vice President, Business Development, Growth and Expansion for Behavioral Health. In 2015, he joined the Health Systems Group within Centene, as Vice President of Business Integration, supporting strategic growth by leveraging all products and services across the enterprise for partnerships with providers, ACOs, and large healthcare systems.
In June 2016, Mike joined Optum’s Population Health Solutions team serving in various capacities, including Vice President of Program and Partnership Development for Medicaid, federal and other payers; as well as Vice President for Public Sector Solutioning, focusing on providers and complex populations. While at PHS, Mike served on the core I/DD team focused on developing a comprehensive I/DD solution to bring to market. In April of 2018, Mike joined Optum’s Behavioral Health team as Vice President of Product Strategy and Partnership Development, leading efforts to bring Optum’s I/DD solution to market in partnership with UHC Community & State, as well as direct to State. Mike also focuses on Medicaid complex populations, including BH, foster care and justice involved.
From 1999 to 2015, Mike also served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, providing subject matter expertise to States, providers, and federal contractors for behavioral health services.
Mike has been an active member of the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare (State Association Director), the National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Directors (State Association Director), served on multiple boards of non-profit organizations in his community. He has also served on the Kansas Governor’s Mental Health Services Planning Council, local United Way’s Allocation Committee, USD 501 Strategic Planning Task Force, and the Koch Crime Commission Economics of Crime Task Force.
Mike holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Washburn University and a Master of Science Degree from Baker University.
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Delcie D. Bean IV
Chief Executive Officer of Paragus Strategic IT, Inc.
Delcie Bean started the company that became Paragus when he was 13 years old. As Paragus has become one of the most successful, fastest-growing IT firms in the region, Delcie has increased his commitment to humanitarian causesand dedication to the community. In 2014, he created Tech Foundry, an educational nonprofit designed to address the need for a skilled IT workforce in the region by providing in-depth training for underrepresented communities. He also believes in giving backto his employees. Paragus has a unique Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) structure that puts ownership of 40% of the company in the hands of its 50-plus employees.
Delcie’s presentation will blend a macro look at technology in general and where it is headed, especially when it comes to business, with a pragmatic micro lens that would offer specific suggestions and tipsfor executives and employees in the audience. He will discuss some of the coming innovations that are likely going to impact members’ businesses, but also look at tech that impacts the individuals they serve.
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Carl Clark, II
President & Chief Executive Officer of Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health
Carl E. Clark II is the President and CEO of Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health, and only the seventh president in the organization’s history, since our founder Helena T. Devereux resigned from the position in 1957.
Prior to joining Devereux as senior vice president and chief operating officer in 2015, Clark developed a national reputation as one of the top operational and leadership experts in the nonprofit arena.
For more than 20 years, he served in a variety of leadership roles at NHS Human Services, including regional executive director, senior vice president of program operations and, ultimately, executive vice president.
Before his work at NHS, he served as special assistant to the executive deputy secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare. Clark’s early professional years were spent in direct care of children with special needs and those with juvenile justice involvement.
Clark holds a Bachelor of Science in Administration of Justice from Penn State University and a master’s degree in Public Administration from Shippensburg University.
He serves on the boards of the Rehabilitation and Community Providers Association (RCPA), the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership® and the Youth Services Alliance of Pennsylvania.
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Mike Lyons
General Counsel of Mosaic
Mike joined Mosaic in 2013. He brings more than 15 years’ experience in the regulatory and legal field. Prior to joining Mosaic, he served for 10 years as corporate counsel for a major health insurance company specializing in privacy and security issues, complex business arrangements and health care reform. In his role at Mosaic, Mike oversees the legal, compliance and government relations teams. Mike holds a bachelor of arts from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana and a juris doctor from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska
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Rachel Boynton, MBA, CM&AA
Managing Director of Vertess
As Co-Founder of LifeShare, a multi-state human services and healthcare organization, I have a unique background of over 20 years of successful operational and executive experience, in addition to an MBA in Healthcare Management. I began my professional life as a home care provider, an experience that created the foundation for the innovative quality and success of LifeShare, while also changing my life. At LifeShare, I managed our Operations (Adult Day/Residential; Child Therapeutic Foster Care; HCBS; Child Therapeutic Day/Diversion Services, and Educational Programming), Finance, HR and Quality Assurance (facilitating COA accreditation and policy/procedure implementation). After selling LifeShare to Centene, I remained during the transition of management and helped to provide outcome measurements and COA compliance reporting. At VERTESS I am a Managing Director providing M+A advisor and consultant services, specifically in the I/DD, behavioral health and related healthcare markets, where systems are rapidly evolving, and providers are striving to adapt strategically to diverse challenges.
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Nick Filarelli
Program Director of Core Services of Northeast, TN
Nick Filarelli, Program Director at Core Services of Northeast Tennessee. Nick has worked for 13 years with individuals with IDD, beginning his career as a Direct Support Professional. In his current role Nick serves as an enablingtechnology “champion” for Core Services, working to transform the agency into a technology first organization and promoting the use of tech to help people achieve true independence and a desired life. Over the past two years, Core Services’ enabling technologyProgram has grown from zero to now 25 percent of the people they support benefiting from technology-based supports.
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Ray Wolfe
Senior Associate of OPEN MINDS
Raymond “Ray” Wolfe, J.D. brings over 40 years of experience in the health and human services sector to the OPEN MINDS team. Mr. Wolfe currently serves as a Senior Associate, a position in which he utilizes his expertise to successfully lead varying projects for OPEN MINDS. His areas of expertise include financial analysis and management, mergers and acquisitions, performance improvement, and strategic planning.
Before joining OPEN MINDS, Mr. Wolfe served in a 22 year tenure with Pittsburgh Mercy Health System in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Most recently, Mr. Wolfe served as the organization’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) where he was responsible for oversight of all system operations, strategic planning, and performance management. Under his direction Pittsburgh Mercy achieved over $850K in value-based reimbursement contract quality bonus awards, integrated three organizations through merger/acquisition, and adopted a new performance management program for managers.
Before acting as Pittsburgh Mercy’s COO, Mr. Wolfe served as the organization’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and was responsible for the development of internal costing methodologies, contract rate negotiations, and financial forecasting activities. In addition, he coordinated an integrated care program with local partner hospitals to develop a series of diversion and respite programs, as well as, specialized primary care, integrated care management and high utilizer teams, while maintaining 15 straight years profitability.
Mr. Wolfe was promoted to CFO after serving as the Director of Fiscal and Information Security/Compliance for the health system. In this role, he was responsible for managing the transition of service contracts from fee-for-service (FFS), leading all compliance activities, and implementing a next generation electronic health record (EHR) system.
Prior to his time at Pittsburgh Mercy Health System, Mr. Wolfe served as Chief Fiscal Officer with the Summit Center for Human Development in Clarksburg, West Virginia, where he was responsible for reporting and budgeting functions and preparing Summit Center’s programs for FFS billing.
Previously, Mr. Wolfe served in billing and collections for two Pennsylvania-based hospitals. First, as an Accounts Receivables Manager for Brownsville General Hospital in Brownsville, PA, where he managed the accounting and billing system transition systems. Later as a Patient Account Manager for St. Francis Medical Center in Pittsburgh, PA, where he improved collections to hit 95% rate through the implementation of new billing software and department reorganization.
Prior to working in the health and human services market, Mr. Wolfe spent five years practicing as a Lawyer with at Law Offices of Arch A. Moore in Moundsville, WV. In this role he provided general legal practice, created and established bylaws for multiple corporation, and handled West Virginia licensing of first vision insurance plan.
Mr. Wolfe earned his Juris Doctor from the West Virginia University School of Law in Morgantown, WV and his Bachelor’s degree with a focus in Political Science and Sociology from West Liberty University, in Wheeling, WV, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude.
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Stacy DiStefano
Chief Operating Officer of Chimes International, Ltd.
With over 25 years of leadership experience in the health and human services industry, Stacy DiStefano has been recognized for her clinical acumen, with a deep understandingof SPMI and IDD populations, market intelligence, and systemic effects of the opioid crisis. Stacy is currently the Chief Operating Officer for Chimes International.
Ms. DiStefano was the Chief Operating Officer at OPEN MINDS, overseeing Strategic Consulting Services, Business Development and Marketing teams. After leaving this role, she served on the OPEN MINDS Advisory Board, where she contributed to projects involving national provider organizations, managed care organizations, and pharma and technology vendors, which allows her to bring a timely national perspective to the Chimes Family of Services.
Prior to OPEN MINDS, Stacy spent 12 years with Resources for Human Development (RHD) in Philadelphia, PA, where she began as NJ Supportive Housing Program Director, overseeing the inception of the program bringing individuals out of state psychiatric hospitals into home and community-based services. She was integral in expanding the program to six counties, after which she was then promoted to Director of National Business Development & Social Innovation,and eventually to Vice President of Innovation.
From 2007-2009 Ms. Distefano served as the Ocean County Campaign Coordinator for NJ of Obama. She is the founding Principal of Consulting for Human Services, which she has operated since 2015. Ms. DiStefano earned her Master’s of Counseling from the University of Phoenix Campus and her Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Arizona State University. She serves on several non-profit Boards and is a member of the HealthCare Business women’s Association.
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Matt Pettinelli
Founder/CEO of CapGrow Partners
Matt Pettinelli is the Founder and President/CEO of CapGrow Partners. Matt comes from a family with deep roots in providing exceptional services and resources to consumers with behavioral health needs, and is very proud to carry on a decades-long family tradition. Prior to founding CapGrow, Matt worked on national and international advertising and marketing campaigns for both Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) and Leo Burnett Company, two of the world’s largest and most successful advertising agencies. Matt earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication Studies from the College of Wooster and both a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in finance and a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communication from Loyola University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business. Matt is a member of the Economic Club of Chicago and Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) Windy City Chapter in Chicago. Matt enjoys spending time with his wife and two children.
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