Our Facilitators

Beth Anderson, MAPC, LISAC, CTP, CPPS

Beth Anderson has a Master of Arts in Professional Counseling, a certificate in Professional Addiction Counseling, and a certificate of advanced graduate studies in the Treatment of Trauma Abuse and Deprivation. Beth’s career started working as a clinician in residential treatment programs assisting people with substance use and mental health concerns on the Gila River Indian Reservation and in Phoenix. In 2015, Beth started working as a clinician for RI International providing Outpatient Counseling services. After years of working in a recovery environment, Beth heard a calling to lean toward peer support and provide a different level of education than she already had been doing. She became a State Credentialed Peer Support Specialist in Arizona. Beth recently accepted an invitation to work as a Recovery Educator and joined the Crisis Now Academy team. 

Ellen Dayan

Ellen Dayan is a Peer Support Specialist with experience in teaching, professional writing, recovery program development, and leadership since 2001. Her special interests are quantitative research, peer workforce development, innovative and inclusive postsecondary education, and the uses of creativity in recovery. 

Ellen had the opportunity to develop many of her skills at RII between 2001-2014, an experience that has shaped and inspired almost everything she does, professionally. She currently lives in Youngstown, OH, and works at Community Alternatives, Inc. in New Castle, PA where she is the Director of Peer Support and Recovery Services. She is also a member of the Pennsylvania Peer Support Coalition Board of Directors.

Ellen's Bachelor's degree is in Creative Writing and Arabic, and her Master's degree is in Psychology Research and Evaluation. She has completed all but her dissertation (ABD) for her Doctoral degree in Research Psychology.

Ellen feels honored and fortunate to serve as a Facilitator of learning about recovery, resilience, and peer support. It's truly her life's most satisfying and meaningful work. She always looks forward to learning alongside the talented and skilled Peer Supporters of the future!

Jonah Sharkey M.Ed. CPSS

Instructional Designer

Jonah Sharkey has been in recovery from substance use and mental health challenges for most of his life. Jonah became a Peer Support Specialist in 2016 to use that experience to be of service to peers who are overcoming crisis and who are entering and sustaining their recovery. In facilitating thousands of hours of classes, he has gained a unique perspective on what best serves peers in different phases of recovery. In 2021 after completing a master's degree in Instructional Design, Jonah has begun creating curricula along with facilitating those courses. Facilitating is a passion for him and is an important part of his recovery and growth every day. 

Kristen Ellis, MS, LMFT

Kristen Ellis, MS, LMFT is a skilled behavioral health therapist licensed in California and Utah. She possesses an MS in Marital and Family Therapy from Loma Linda University. She has been a leader and therapist in a variety of populations and settings, including crisis walk-in centers, peer-run centers, inpatient and outpatient substance use treatment, and with the criminal justice population. Most recently, she was the director of crisis services for RI in Riverside County, using the Crisis Now model and the SAMHSA National Guidelines.

Mary Schulte, Team Lead ll

Mary’s first introduction to Recovery Innovations (at that time META Services) was in September, 2003 when she was hired to teach community college courses at META. Mary’s passion is the role of education in recovery, she believes that Education, once it is learned can never be taken away and leads to personal empowerment. In this endeavor she has facilitated support groups, developed workshops, written curricula, taught and mentored ASU students and REC Certificate program students and facilitated the Substance Addiction Recovery Training (SART) for the Arizona Department of Behavioral Health. Mary’s Masters Degrees are in Medical Anthropology and Religious Studies. Mary stated: “The wonderful thing about what I do as a Recovery Educator is to see that something that I love to do can help people in their recovery journey and being part of their journey is an honor that I do not take lightly.

Master Facilitator

Michael Runningwolf B.Ed.

Michael Runningwolf graduated from Boise State University with a B.A in Secondary Education with endorsements in History, Biology and Kinesiology. Michael taught United States History at a local high school, coached football as well as coached post collegiate adult distance runners.

Michael moved to Arizona to and begin his work in the mental health recovery field. Michael is a Master Facilitator at RI International facilitating such classes as Peer Support Training, Peer Support Supervisor Training, Advanced Peer, Facilitating Learning and more. In this position Michael gets to pursue his two passions; teaching and recovery.

Michael lives in Central Pennsylvania with his amazing family. Michael enjoys writing, running and spending time with those he loves. Michael is presently pursuing his Master’s Degree in performance/ sports psychology.

Shelley R. Lesley, ITE

Ms. Lesley earned an Associate’s Degree in 1992 in Paralegal Studies and a Licensed Vocational Nursing Certificate in 2010 along with several other recovery related certificates. Ms. Lesley began her career with RI International in 2015, working in a supportive housing environment as a peer support specialist. In 2016, after several advancements with the company, Ms. Lesley became a Recovery Educator for RI International. Since then, she he has been facilitating trainings, both in-person and virtually, ever since. During her adult life, Shelley has worked in many capacities, each role preparing her for what was next. Some of these roles have been a Team Lead, Peer Support Specialist, Licensed Vocational Nurse, Executive Assistant, and Office Manager. A California native, Ms. Lesley relocated to Phoenix, AZ in 2018 accepting her current role with the Training and Consulting Team at RI International.

Ms. Lesley’s training delivery specialty is Peer Employment Training where she is able to offer her passion and living and professional expertise to train others to work as part of the peer workforce. Ms. Lesley states “Of all the roles that I have had in my life, Recovery Educator is my favorite because it allows me to be who I am and to serve others where they are.” Ms. Lesley remains active in the recovery community outside of her work with RI International and credits this for her continued wellness. Ms. Lesley has been a featured speaker at Celebrate Recovery meetings, a Mental Health Conference and a Women’s Conference. One of Ms. Lesley’s passion is suicide prevention and she enjoys letting others know that there is a way out of the darkness.

Shirley Miles BS, ITE

Shirley is a Recovery Educator at RI International, where She facilitates Peer Employment Training courses throughout Riverside County CA, including bringing peers together within the community to share lived experience and inspire hope, and certifying peers for gainful employment as a peer support specialist.

Shirley has worked in the Mental Health field since 2019 and has been able to share her lived experience of being a single teenage mother to her children as well as her siblings. By also sharing her understanding of having a child diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, Shirley has been an inspiration to others by way of showing resiliency, leadership, determination, and cycle breaking. Her ambitions for the mental health field include redefining the idea that recovery is an exception rather than an expectation.  Shirley loves reading, cross stitching, family game or movie night with her kids, and learning whatever she can about computers.

Terrence J-R Smithers, BA, CPRP, CRPS

Terrence Smithers serves as the Manager of Training Development for RI International. With degrees and certifications from Gettysburg College, Brown, Colby & Rutgers Universities, Mr. Smithers has trained & specializes in Peer Support Workforces. He was instrumental in training and developing a Peer Support workforce in England & Canada & has trained throughout the United States for over 15 years. Terrence has authored and co-authored numerous trainings, workshops and publishing’s. Healing from his own history Terrence has a personal passion for the healing and growth of people who have historically been discarded and underserved.