Leadership
William ‘Mel’ Taylor
Chief Executive Officer
William M (Mel) Taylor, MSW has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of The Council on Alcohol and Drugs Houston for 20 years. During his tenure with The Council, the organization has become the place for families in the Houston area to start when seeking assistance with substance abuse issues. He has led The Council in becoming one of the most comprehensive non-profit family addiction agencies in the greater Houston area, providing best in class service while turning no one away. Now, as Chief Executive Officer of Austin Recovery, he is charged with developing the Austin non-profit toward that same goal. Mel is adjunct faculty at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work, and a Senior Facilitator with the American Leadership Forum. In addition, he serves on numerous national, state and local behavioral health committees and policy groups, and is speaker on numerous topics regarding leadership and behavioral health.
Joel Ferguson
Chief Operating Officer
Joel Ferguson serves as Chief Operating Officer of Austin Recovery and as CFO of The Council on Alcohol and Drugs Houston. He is a graduate of Rice University and its Jones Graduate School of Management, with degrees in Economics, Management and Accounting. Joel was an adjunct faculty member at Rice University, and is a Senior Fellow and Board member with the American Leadership Forum. A seasoned business leader and former practicing CPA, Joel has a broad background in all aspects of business operations and management. Joel has over 30 years of business experience, having served as Managing Partner of the Houston office of Pannell Kerr Forster, an international CPA and consulting firm; as CEO and CFO of Cordúa Restaurants, an award-winning independent restaurant chain; certified mediator and arbitrator in business, community, and family disputes; experienced trainer and group facilitator in coaching and communications.
Angela Vickrey
Chief Client Operations Officer
Angela Vickrey has ten years of in-depth addiction treatment experience with Austin Recovery and is a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor. Prior to her role as Chief Client Operations Officer she served as director of admissions, coordinator of outreach and referral services and as a counselor in admissions, women's residential treatment and outpatient services. Angela earned her bachelor's degree in liberal arts with a specialty in counseling and is currently working on her master's degree in mental health counseling. Angela is a certified CPI instructor, a mentor for the Institute of Chemical Dependency Studies and a member of the advisory board for Austin Community College’s Human Services degree plan and Faculty at Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine.
Monica Brown-Broussard
Chief Planning & Development Officer
Monica Brown-Broussard, MBA, Chief Planning & Development Officer of Austin Recovery and The Council on Alcohol and Drugs Houston, contributes extensive knowledge in clinical admissions, operations, marketing, and development. Her 20 years of service in the field of behavioral healthcare includes leadership positions at the Menninger Clinic in Houston, University of Texas Health Science Center-Harris County Psychiatric Center, and Disney and Associates Inc./Counseling Services of Southwest Louisiana. Monica brings expertise in the areas of implementation of integrated delivery systems, reimbursement, quality assurance, and assessment services. She earned her MBA in Healthcare from Our Lady of the Lake University, San Antonio, TX, and her BS in Psychology from McNeese State University, Lake Charles, LA.
Deborah Hooks
Nurse Manager
Deborah Hooks is a Registered Nurse who brings to Austin Recovery over 20 years of psychiatric and mental health experience. Before accepting the AR Nurse Manager position Deborah played an integral part in the development and coordination of a 16 bed Crisis Respite center serving the Central Texas area which opened in 2008. Deborah has held both director and managers position in several area psych facilities and currently serves as faculty for Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine.
Clinical Leadership
Sarah Hartford
Director of Admissions
Sarah Hartford is a Licensed Master Social Worker and Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor. Before transitioning to her current role, Sarah worked as the Senior Counselor for Austin Recovery’s detox and as an admissions counselor. Prior to her time with Austin Recovery, Sarah worked to provide in-depth community-based treatment to individuals with chronic mental health disorders and dual diagnosis. Sarah holds a Masters of Social Work degree from the University of Texas and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Saint Anselm College.
Linda Mikesic
Director of Clinical Services
Linda oversees all of Austin Recovery’s clinical services. She earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin and her master’s degree in Social Work from Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos. Between degrees she worked with emotionally and sexually abused girls and after gaining her master’s joined Austin Recovery’s staff in 1996. Linda is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and a licensed chemical dependency counselor (LCDC). She has extensive training working with families impacted by chemical dependency and implemented a Strengthening Healthy Families Program targeting children ages 6-12 and their families. Linda also created the Multifamily Group curricula currently being used by Austin Recovery and works closely with the University of Texas’ Department of Social Work supervising master level students interested in pursuing careers in chemical dependency counseling and social work.
William Miley
Director of Residential Services
Will has been with Austin Recovery for over ten years in various capacities. As a Director of Residential Services, Will is responsible for overseeing overall client safety, enforcement of rules and policies between staff and clients. He supervises Austin Recovery’s residential coordinators and direct care staff covering 7 residential programs across two locations. He has oversight of the treatment milieu, daily client schedule, off-site client activities etc. Will is also responsible for compiling client satisfaction surveys and the resolution and tracking of incidents reports for all programs.
Craig Ross
Director of Outpatient Programs
Craig was recruited to open the start-up Men’s Voyage Program in September 2010. He came to Austin Recovery from the Dallas County Divert Drug Court where he was the Clinical Supervisor for four years. He has been the Director of multiple criminal justice residential treatment centers, including a 700-bed halfway house in Houston, as well as the Phoenix House Lake View Terrace flagship facility in Los Angeles. He has forty years of experience beginning in the therapeutic community movement of the 1970’s ranging to adolescent, women’s specialized treatment and has led every type of program on the continuum from out patient, to long term residential services. He has a Masters Degree in Human Relations and Business. He is a Board Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor, Level III Diplomat Clinical Supervisor, and Internationally Certified Criminal Justice Professional, and Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor.
Maryse Saffle
Experiential Coordinator
Maryse joined the staff of Austin Recovery in 2007, and oversees the Experience-Based treatment. She is a native of Switzerland, and graduated from Cambridge University, England. She was Owner/Director of a Child Development center for 18 years. She is a now a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a Certified Practitioner of Integrative Breathwork and Soul-Based Psychology through the Eupsychia Institute. Maryse is passionate about bringing the soul back into the treatment and helps bring musical journeys, yoga, drum circles, guided imagery, art therapy to help clients reconnect with their True Self. Her personal experience with recovery gives her the compassionate guidance needed to help others turn their lives around.
Administrative Leadership
John Black
Chief Financial Officer
John serves as the Chief Financial Officer at Austin Recovery and has over 30 years of experience in financial management with significant healthcare experience in for-profit and not-for-profit settings. He provides strong financial leadership and performs hands-on accounting functions. John is a CPA in the State of Texas and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Houston.
Ramona Cruz-Peters
Director of Marketing & Communications
Ramona joined Austin Recovery in March of 2011. She graduated from University of California - Los Angeles with a degree in Sociology, and has experience in a variety of industries, including fashion, technology, and broadcast media. For the 5 years prior to her time at Austin Recovery, Ramona worked for Myspace in Beverly Hills, California, where she gained valuable insight into the world of social media. At Myspace, Ramona had her hands in many projects, from managing internal communications and events, representing Myspace at conferences and trade shows, hosting recruiting functions, and helping to establish the company's recruitment brand. Managing Myspace's philanthropic program, Employee Impact, led Ramona to seek a career in the non-profit world where she could have the opportunity to utilize her skills, while also directly benefiting people in her community. At Austin Recovery, Ramona manages the organization's web and social media presence, helping lead the organization to a Statesman Social Media Award for the Austin American-Statesman, as well as public relations, branding, event planning, and both internal and external communications. Ramona speaks and presents workshops on social media marketing, and also sits on the Board of the Heart of Texas EAPA chapter as the Communications Secretary.
Christina Hernandez
Director of Administrative Operations
Christina joined Austin Recovery in June 2011 with more than 15 years of experience in executive administrative and operational support. She has a Bachelor of Liberal Arts in Political Science and a Master's degree in Latin American Studies- Planning and Urban Development from The University of Texas-Austin. With a focus on increasing operational efficiency, she currently oversees a wide range of support services including information technology, administrative services, procurement and vendor relations and food services. Christina works with the Finance Department to assist with financial and business planning activities, including: overseeing business policies, supporting organization budgeting processes and overseeing risk management and legal activities. Christina provides executive support to the COO and coordinates the activities and provides administrative support to the Austin Recovery Board of Directors as its staff Liaison.
Jodie Hooks
Business Office Manager
Jodie brings over ten years of leadership and management experience to Austin Recovery. As the Business Office manager, she oversees insurance contracts, billing and utilization review. She is responsible for ensuring that Austin Recovery is in licensure compliance with various reporting agencies. She provides client tracking, follow-up and outcomes reporting as well as census and medical records monitoring.
Marisa Morales
Director of Human Resources
Marisa brings 12+ years of experience in Office Administration and Human Resource Management with specialties in employee medical leave, benefits administration and payroll management. Prior to joining Austin Recovery Marisa began her career in San Antonio, Texas were she held positions in the legal and banking fields, most recently at Vantage Bank Texas were she was Assistant Vice President/Payroll & Benefits Officer. Marisa is a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the Austin Human Resource Management Association (AHRMA). Marisa attended St. Mary’s University were she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and a Master of Public Administration.
Governing Body
Austin Recovery is governed by a 6-member Executive Committee which also serves on the Executive Committee of The Council on Alcohol and Drugs Houston. The Advisory Committee helps provide strategic support in the continuing development and growth of the agency. The agency strives to have a diverse leadership in terms of gender and race as well as professional backgrounds. Committee members are not compensated for their service.
2013 Executive Committee Members:
Patti Halladay - Chairman of the Board
Hamilton Beazley - Secretary
Wayne Langham - Treasurer
Val Armstrong
Steve Hicks
Rachael Wyatt
2013 Advisory Committee Members:
Betsy Abell
Dawn Crouch
LaVonne Mason
Parker McCollough
Judy Osborn
Jaime Shaw
Terrell Sherman
Mike Wilfley
Mary Yancy