photo: Jacob Flora
Wrightsville Beach, NC
Melissa Wilkinson DeHaven Conference Scholarship
With this award, the Institute for Best Practices will use scholarship funds to support travel and registration to attend a local or national conference. Those traveling to a North Carolina conference will receive up to $600 in scholarship funds, and those traveling to a national conference will receive up to $1200 in scholarship funds to support their attendance. Registration will be paid directly, and we will pay as much of the travel costs in advance to minimize hardships for the awardees. Those accepting awards must agree to allow us to publicly post their name, award, conference attendance, and picture on our website and social media account.
Eligible candidates are those working within North Carolina (NC) Individual Placement and Support (IPS) teams, Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) teams, Community Support Teams (CSTs) with priority to non-leadership staff, particularly those in the employment specialist and/or peer specialist roles.
Melissa DeHaven, MSW, LCSW
IPS Consultant and Trainer Program Manager with the Institute for Best Practices. Melissa has more than eight years’ experience in NC community mental health services, providing services to adults diagnosed with serious mental illness and co-occurring disorders. She has experience in providing technical assistance and training to IPS providers as an Evidence-Based Practice Specialist with the Division of Mental Health. Currently she is an IPS trainer for the Institute for Best Practices. She passionately believes in the possibilities and hope for people experiencing life challenges and that all working age people should have the opportunity for employment. She remains a dedicated advocate for the importance of creating a recovery-oriented system, emphasizing the inclusion of employment for people’s recovery efforts.
