David L. Finke, Ph.D.
Chair
David L. Finke, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist. he is the Vice President of Residential Services at Bellewood and Brooklawn (formerly Uspiritus) and is a forensic evaluator for Juvenile Court where he has conducted over 1,000 juvenile court evaluations. He also serves as the Co-Lead of the Bounce Coalition, a diverse coalition from both the private and public sector which conducts Trauma-informed Trainings for Systems of care that work with youth across the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Throughout his career of almost 30 years he has worked with youth and families that have experienced trauma. He and his wife, Dr. Helene Finke (also a licensed psychologist) have been married for 28 years and have 3 adult sons.
Kristy Flippins-Bartlett
Vice-Chair
Kristy Flippins Bartlett is a dedicated advocate for youth development, community empowerment, and transformational leadership. As the Founder and CEO of Option to Success Inc., a nonprofit organization established in 2012, she has been instrumental in providing mental health support, housing stability, and educational opportunities for at-risk girls and their families. Her innovative approach includes alternatives to detention and residential programs that empower young women to break cycles of adversity and build brighter futures.
Kristy is a proud graduate of Simmons College of Kentucky, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in Entrepreneurship with a concentration in Organizational Leadership. Her academic background strengthens her ability to create sustainable solutions for systemic issues affecting underserved communities.
In addition to her role as CEO, Kristy serves as a national surveyor with CARF International, where she ensures excellence in service delivery for organizations across the country.
A proud wife and mother to two boys. Kristy finds her greatest inspiration in her children, who remind her daily of the importance of creating lasting change for future generations.
Laura Karem
Laura is an award winning criminal defense attorney and current Supervisor for the Juvenile Post Disposition Branch of the DPA. She earned a J.D. at the Brendeis School of Law, U of L and BSEE From the University of Kentucky. Since 2006, she has represented youth in courts across Kentucky - from Middlesboro to Mayfield. Laure Believes we create a better society when we invest in all children, especially "problem" children. Laura draws on many experiences: from volunteering with abused preschoolers, to foster parenting, to advocating for youthful offenders in prison. Laura is a married mother of twin boys, reader, mindfulness explorer, and UK fan.
Christina Weeter
(KDE Representative)
For over 20 years I have worked with youth at-risk of contact with juvenile justice systems, from providing direct services to Kentucky youth to working on policy, programming, and finance at a national level. As the director of KDE's Division of Student Success, I supervise several state initiatives to support opportunities for youth on a path to academic and personal success. I earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Kentucky, a master's degree in social work with a focus on policy, program planning, and evaluation, and a master's degree in education administration, both from Boston University. My personal and professional experiences have made me passionate about efforts to support "opportunity youth".
Greg Jones
I value and I am committed to doing what is right, what is the right thing to do, the right thing does not require an explanation. Providing justice for all of our citizens is the right thing to do. I am married to Amy Jones, and father of Callie Jones. I enjoy gardening and fitness. Presently I am a captain with the Covington Police Department and serve as the Administrative Bureau Commander, Internal Affairs Commander, and Accreditation Manager. In my career I have worked as a patrol officer and Government assisted housing officer, interacting with the community and youthful offenders. I have seen the systems from the law enforcement side and how it operates. Currently I am a member of Northern Kentucky Project Safe, Northern Kentucky Crisis Intervention Team Steering Committee, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Parent Partner Program, and National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Northern Kentucky. I hold a Bachelor's Degree from Xavier University Cincinnati, and in 2013, I was named the NorthKey Region Crisis Intervention Team Officer of the Year.
Ashley Clark
Executive Director, Department of Family and Juvenile Services
Administrative Office of the Courts
Ashley began her career with the Administrative Office of the Courts in 2008 as a court designated worker, serving families and youth in the seventh Judicial District. In 2014, Ashley was promoted to the model court program coordinator providing statewide support to the Kentucky Court Improvement Program. During this tenure, Ashley became a lead trainer for the department. In 2016, Ashley became a regional supervisor for the Court Designated Worker Program, providing oversight to frontline Court Designated Workers in Western Kentucky. Ashley then served as the statewide operations supervisor for the Department of Family and Juvenile Services. In this position, Ashley overseen the implementation of statewide initiatives, including training, assessment, and utilizing best practice standards while ensuring efforts of continuous quality improvement are intact. In addition, Ashley had direct oversight of the Responsive Education to Support Treatment in Opioid Recovery Efforts (RESTORE), Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), Court Improvement Program (CIP), Title IV-E tracking and reporting, as well as Racial, Ethnic, and Equity Disparity work within the department. In June 2022, Ashley served as Manager for the Department of Pretrial Services where she overseen the implementation of legislation, professional development, and continuous quality improvement efforts. Most recently, Ashley was named executive officer for the Department of Family and Juvenile Services where she administers programs that provide technical assistance, training and support services to judges, court personnel, attorneys, social workers and community partners regarding family law and juvenile justice initiatives. This includes overseeing the statewide Court Designated Worker Program and Citizen Foster Care Review Boards. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Western Kentucky University.
Tiffany Mullis
I currently have the honor of serving the Commonwealth as an Assistant Director within Kentucky’s state government child and adult public welfare system, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Department for Community Based Services. I oversee and collaborate in programmatic areas involving KY's statewide abuse and neglect reporting system, safety and facilities for the regional service regions across the state, and process and efficiency improvements surrounding field quality and continuous quality improvement efforts (CQI). I am our department lead in KY’s collaboration with Aetna Supporting Kentucky Youth (SKY), KY's ingle managed care organization serving youth in out of home care, juvenile justice involved, transition age youth, and post adopt youth and their families. I am a career social worker with experience in direct frontline field work and supervision, resource home recruitment and certification, special needs adoptions, and regional and statewide management and program administration. I hold a Bachelor of Social Work, a Masters in Public Administration, and a Master of Science in Social Work. I am currently a doctoral student seeking my Doctorate of Social Work through the University of Louisville. I began my State Government experience at DCBS 21 years ago when I completed my Public Child Welfare Certification practicum on a Protection and Permanency team learning investigative and ongoing casework! I also teach at my local university and alma mater, Northern Kentucky University. I have a deep regard and love of the continual learning process and welcome opportunities to garner a deeper understanding to improve. I am a hybrid of having passion for both direct service to families through collaborative processes and teaming, such as the Family Team Meeting model (FTMs) where everyone has a seat at the table, and policy and practice administration. Extra blessings include momming 3 children immersed in all the sports, being a lifetime Girl Scout, and volunteering via school and church. I am proud to be a part of Team Kentucky, and now the Juvenile Justice Advisory team!
Dr. Cicely J. Cottrell
Dr. Cicely J. Cottrell is Associate Professor and Chair of the School of Criminal Justice Studies at Spalding University. As an educator, researcher, and restorative justice trainer, she is passionate about challenging students to reimagine justice as a process focused on repairing harm and making things right. Her restorative lens emphasizes addressing root causes of crime, such as systemic racism, trauma, and unmet needs for offenders, victims, and the community to transform conflict into opportunities for healing, accountability, and reconciliation.
She has extensive experience in the criminal justice system, having worked with the Kentucky Department of Corrections, the Administrative Office of Kentucky Courts, and the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary. Dr. Cottrell is the creator and director of Sister's Keeper Achieving Resilience and Success, a community program seeking to divert Black adolescent girls residing in Jefferson County from the juvenile justice system. Her research focuses on restorative justice and juvenile justice, particularly reducing system contact for Black youth through trauma-informed care, cultural competence, and restorative practices.
Dr. Cottrell earned a Ph.D. in Sociology and Criminology from Howard University (with a certificate in Women's Studies), an M.S. in Administration of Justice from the University of Louisville, and a B.A. in Political Science from Western Kentucky University. In her personal life, Dr. Cottrell enjoys raising her college-aged niece, an aspiring forensic pathologist studying biology.