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Faculty

Stacee Read

BA, MSW, LSW
Director; National Trainer; Tribal Liaison
National Association for Children of Addiction

Stacee Read, MSW, LSW, is a nationally recognized leader with over 25 years of experience across child welfare, mental health, and prevention, treatment, and recovery systems. Her work focuses on strengthening responses to familial substance use and reducing addiction's impact on children, families, and communities. As Director of the National Association for Children of Addiction (NACoA), she collaborates with Tribes, communities, faith leaders, and cross-cultural partners to build multidisciplinary systems of care through training, program development, and policy guidance that advance evidence-informed, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive practices. She leads NACoA's Faith Leaders Institute on Substance Use in Families, which equips faith leaders, faith-based organizations, and communities to recognize and respond to children and families impacted by addiction.

A sought-after speaker, Stacee has trained thousands of professionals on addiction and recovery, trauma-informed strategies, early intervention, and cross-sector collaboration, with a particular passion for equipping and lifting up the child welfare workforce.

She is also the founder of Bison Strong, LLC, a training and coaching practice rooted in strength, hope, resilience, and cultural wisdom. Stacee holds an MSW from the University of Illinois and a BA in Psychology from the University of Iowa, and is committed to sustainable solutions that uplift children, families, and Tribal nations.

2027 Sessions

Before, During, and After Reentry: Children and Families Impacted by Addiction, Parental Incarceration, and the Faith Communities That Walk the Whole Road

Session Description: More than 2.7 million children in the United States have a parent behind bars, and the majority of justice-involved parents have a substance use disorder. Yet reentry systems typically meet the family only at the moment of release, as if the family's story begins there. In reality, children and families live three distinct chapters: the before, marked by parental addiction, instability, and often trauma, sometimes involving both parents; the during, shaped by separation, stigma, ambiguous loss, and disrupted caregiving; and the after, when a returning parent navigates supervision, housing, work, and sustaining recovery, while reunification asks a child to rebuild trust and the whole family, including the caregiving parent, renegotiates every role and routine. Each chapter carries distinct risks and opportunities that most systems miss. This session maps all three phases, then makes the case for a resource present in nearly every community and uniquely suited to walking alongside families across the full arc: faith communities, whose presence, trust, and longevity outlast any program cycle. The presenters bring lived experience, deep personal faith, and decades of professional expertise spanning child welfare, behavioral health, addiction and recovery, reentry, and faith-and-community partnership. Attendees will leave with a practical, replicable framework for engaging faith communities as continuous family-support infrastructure, including both a partnership framework and practical, ready-to-use resources: an evidence-informed program kit for supporting children, trainings that equip faith leaders, faith-based organizations, and communities to respond, available funding pathways, and ground-level strategies for building the relationships that put these tools to work.

Presenter

Tuesday, March 30 10:30–11:45 AM
1.25 Credits
Advocacy
Advisory Board

Monty Burks

Phd, CPRS
Director
United States Department of Health and Human Services

Dr. Burks serves as Director of the Center for Faith at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), where he leads national efforts to strengthen partnerships between government, faith-based organizations, and community leaders to improve the health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities across America.

Before joining HHS, Dr. Burks served as Deputy Director of the Tennessee Governor's Faith-Based and Community Initiative and previously as Director of Faith-Based Initiatives for the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. Throughout his career, he has been recognized for building innovative collaborations that unite government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and faith communities to address addiction recovery, mental health, reentry, disaster response, foster care, and community resilience.

A nationally recognized speaker, strategist, and advocate for second chances, Dr. Burks brings both professional expertise and lived experience to his work. Having overcome addiction, incarceration, and significant personal adversity, he has dedicated his life to helping others discover purpose, restoration, and hope. His testimony has become a powerful example of redemption in action and informs his leadership at every level.

Dr. Burks holds a Doctor of Theology, a master's degree in Criminal Justice Administration, and a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice Administration with minors in Sociology and Psychology. He has also served as an adjunct professor of criminal justice and remains committed to developing future leaders through mentorship and education.

Outside of public service, Dr. Burks is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, former professional mixed martial arts champion, author, and thought leader on faith, leadership, recovery, and human flourishing. His work continues to demonstrate that lasting transformation occurs when faith, public service, and community partnerships come together to create pathways of hope and opportunity.

Faculty

Stacee Read

BA, MSW, LSW
Director; National Trainer; Tribal Liaison
National Association for Children of Addiction

Stacee Read, MSW, LSW, is a nationally recognized leader with over 25 years of experience across child welfare, mental health, and prevention, treatment, and recovery systems. Her work focuses on strengthening responses to familial substance use and reducing addiction's impact on children, families, and communities. As Director of the National Association for Children of Addiction (NACoA), she collaborates with Tribes, communities, faith leaders, and cross-cultural partners to build multidisciplinary systems of care through training, program development, and policy guidance that advance evidence-informed, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive practices. She leads NACoA's Faith Leaders Institute on Substance Use in Families, which equips faith leaders, faith-based organizations, and communities to recognize and respond to children and families impacted by addiction.

A sought-after speaker, Stacee has trained thousands of professionals on addiction and recovery, trauma-informed strategies, early intervention, and cross-sector collaboration, with a particular passion for equipping and lifting up the child welfare workforce.

She is also the founder of Bison Strong, LLC, a training and coaching practice rooted in strength, hope, resilience, and cultural wisdom. Stacee holds an MSW from the University of Illinois and a BA in Psychology from the University of Iowa, and is committed to sustainable solutions that uplift children, families, and Tribal nations.

Faculty

Dr. Belay Reddick

Executive Director
Everyday Solace Foundation

Rev. Dr. Belay D. Reddick is the Executive Director at the Everyday Solace Foundation, where he spearheads initiatives at the intersection of behavioral health and the justice system. With nearly two decades of lived experience, he is dedicated to transforming care paradigms, reducing recidivism, and improving outcomes for justice-involved individuals.
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