MEET THE STAFF

Executive Director of Adolescent Services

Heather is the Executive Director of the Aspire program.  She is also responsible for providing administrative oversight for all the Turning Point facilities and ensuring that services are consistent with the organization’s mission.

Heather is a licensed psychotherapist and addiction professional with clinical and administrative experience in mental health and substance abuse programs. She has been in the public sector since 2003 and has wide-ranging experience with program development, quality improvement, licensure and grant procurement on the state, county and federal level.

Heather has a comprehensive understanding of psychiatric illness and practices for community behavioral health services, and a strong knowledge of the interplay between mental illness and the criminal justice system. She has extensive experience working with diverse groups of patients with biological and psychological addictions and proficiency in the coordination and planning of complex treatment interventions for co-occurring patients overcoming acute and chronic difficulties.

Heather holds an MBA (2022), a MA in Applied Clinical and Counseling Psychology (2004) and Certificate in Non-Profit Management (2017) from William Paterson University. She earned her BA in Psychology from Cornell University (2000).

Clinical Director

Julissa is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LCADC) with almost two decades working in the mental health and substance use field. She graduated with her Master of Social Work (MSW) from Rutgers University with an area of emphasis in children and families.  Julissa also holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Centenary University with a concentration in management. Julissa has been serving in a leadership capacity for over 10 years with extensive experience in program development, compliance, clinical supervision, and staff training.  She has worked in several levels of care including inpatient, partial hospital/intensive outpatient, and traditional outpatient settings. Prior to joining Turning Point, Julissa was part of the clinical leadership team for an out-of-home residential treatment facility for adolescents where she oversaw the co-occurring program. As a bilingual therapist, she helped create bilingual family programming for Spanish speaking families, provide bilingual therapeutic services, and improve cultural humility practices across the organization. Julissa holds a BA in Psychology from Boston University. She is a self-proclaimed “soccer mom” and on the weekend you will most likely find her on the sidelines cheering on her two sons.

Primary Counselor

Charles Delgado joined the Aspire team in January, 2024 and holds a passion for working with adolescents and adults struggling with substance use and mental health disorders.

Charles holds an undergraduate degree in Psychology and Spanish, a Masters in Alcohol and drug Abuse Counseling and is currently pursuing is LCADC and is attending school to work towards his LPC.

When asked why he chose this field, he replies, “This type of work is very rewarding for me, especially when you are able to see positive progress with clients.”

When not attending classes or working, Charles enjoys spending time with his family and playing with his pets.

Special Education Teacher

Kathleen comes to Aspire with 39 years of experience in Education.  She has recently retired as a Director of Special Education from Sussex County Technical School, receiving her degree from Rutgers University.  She is a certified Special Education Teacher from Felician University, Regular Education Teacher from Glassboro State College, currently known as Rowan University, and a certified Learning Disability Teacher Consultant from William Paterson University.  

She brings a wealth of educational experience to Aspire.  Kathleen received the prestigious “Teacher of the Year Award” in 2000 from Pompton Lakes Public Schools. Her professional mantra is “all students can learn, not all in the same way”.  Kathleen believes that if students are given an educational environment that is supportive, enriching, is tailored to meet individual needs this will allow all students to experience academic success.

Office Administrator

Paola came to Aspire when we were quite busy and short staffed. She is always ready to help in any way. Paola is able to communicate well with not only the families at time of assessment, but her warm personality has been an asset in working with the adolescents as well. I watched Paola calm down an upset student that managed to find her way to Paola’s desk. This student went from feeling angered to laughing and being able to complete the day without struggle. Paola juggles speaking with schools, parents, and handles financial responsibilities daily. She is an asset to our team.

This past school year there were 3 students who graduated high school who would not have been able to without the work of the Aspire team. This gives me great fulfillment to know that we helped.