President:
Lisa Avery, MSW
Lisa currently works as a medical social worker at The Center for Pain and Spine at DHMC. She earned her BS in physical therapy from UVM in 1991 and her MSW from UNH in 2022. Lisa's placement for her second internship was with NASW, which afforded her the opportunity to get involved in policy at the state and national level and see the key role that NASW plays in social justice issues. She is hoping to add a macro perspective to the VT -NASW board and increase focus on social determinants of health that are affecting all Vermonters. “These non-medical factors that influence health outcomes stem from systemic oppression. Empathy and an appreciation for the role that oppression plays in our society guides the work that I do, and being part of NASW allows me to opportunity to continue this journey on a larger scale. We cannot escape the strain that housing insecurity, substance use disorder and mental health are having on our communities, and as social workers, we need to be able to address these issues at the grass roots level. When we can provide the support that individuals need, we will have a stronger and healthier community.”
Lisa and her husband live in Fairlee VT. You will find her spending a lot of time “playing in the dirt” or up in the woods. Her newest passion is weaving; a hobby she took up to relax. For those who weave, you know that is rarely the case.
Vice-President
Kelli O’Neill, LICSW
Kelli O’Neill (nee Gile) received her Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Maine, Orono in 2012 and her Masters of Social Work from the University of Vermont in 2015. Kelli currently works as a private practice therapist located in Montpelier with a specialty focus on child sexual abuse. Kelli’s involvement with the NASW board includes a member at large position from 2015-2019 and as President from 2019-2020. Kelli’s other accomplishments include a member at large position on the Policy Council for Head Start Vermont, the mental health liaison for the multidisciplinary team of Washington County run by Our House – the child advocacy center in Central Vermont, and a member of the Vermont Children’s Justice Act task force.
In her off time, Kelli enjoys the outdoors such as hiking, biking, kayaking, and snowshoeing. Kelli is also an avid reader of Stephen King books and enjoys dancing to music by Prince.
Secretary:
Annemarie Conlon, Ph.D., MBA, MSW, LICSW
Annemarie Conlon, Ph.D., MBA, MSW, LICSW, joined NASW in 2000 as a student in the MSW program at the University of Houston. She interned at Legacy Community Health, working with people diagnosed HIV+. Upon graduation, she became a social work counselor in the MD Anderson Cancer Center inpatient thoracic unit, working with people diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. After four years, she was selected for the American Cancer Society Clinical Oncology Social Work Grant and the Hartford Pre-dissertation Award to study lung cancer, stigma, and aging as a University of Texas at Austin doctoral student. Annemarie teaches social work foundation courses at the BSW level at Champlain College. She was honored with the 2023 Francine Page Excellence in Teaching Award this past May. Annemarie's interests include health care, autism, and aging.
Board Members At Large
Judi Daly, LICSW
She/her/hers
With a BSW from the State University of New York/Brockport, I moved to VT and graduated with an MSW in 1982 from Adelphi University when that was the only MSW program in Vermont and Northern NYS. I have worked in Vermont ever since, starting out with DCF ( then SRS), earned my LICSW and became a therapist with Community Health Plan, then was with Casey Family Services working with kids and families until 2012. I returned to being a therapist with a part time private practice until early 2020, and was the social worker at a UVMMC dialysis unit from 2013 until I retired in June 2024.
I have joined the NASW Board of Directors in order to give back to the profession and to be part of the work we need to do to keep social work and this chapter vibrant and relevant for Vermont social workers.
Kelly Melekis
Dr. Kelly Melekis, Associate Professor and MSW Program Coordinator at the University of Vermont (UVM), received her BSW from UVM, MSW from the University of California at Berkeley, and PhD in Sociology and Social Work from Boston University. She holds a Certificate in Gerontology and is certified as an End-of-Life Doula.Dr. Melekis teaches courses on social work practice, research methods, and death, dying and bereavement. A gerontological social worker, her research and scholarship focuses on improving the life conditions or experiences of vulnerable older adults, such as those experiencing homelessness, abuse and/or neglect. She conducts primarily community-based research, with an emphasis on collaborative, participatory methods. Kelly has practiced as a clinical social worker in geriatric mental health and substance use, and taught social work practice, policy and research at Boston University, University of Hawaii, Skidmore College, and University of Vermont.A U.S. Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Melekis was recently a Visiting Lecturer in Social Work at Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas, Lithuania.
In addition to precious time singing, dancing and laughing with her two daughters, and cooking yummy vegetarian food with her husband Mark (also a social worker!), Kelly loves traveling, reading memoirs, live music, the original Star Trek series, and maple lattes.
Audrey Monroe
Audrey Monroe graduated with a BA in political science from Rutgers university in 2001 and with a MSW in 2005 from Rutgers school of social work. She started her social work career providing individual and group therapy in intensive outpatient and partial hospital mental health programs while also building a private practice and obtaining her clinical license. She moved to Vermont in 2011 and started working as a community health team social worker at the UVM health network in primary care while also maintaining a small private practice until 2021. She became passionate about working in healthcare while on the community health team and currently is a UVM health network manager for the population health services organization care management department focused on primary care.
She is passionate about the field of social work and joined the board to help advocate for and strengthen our profession in Vermont. You can usually find her skiing, mountain biking, and trying to keep up with her two mini Australian shepherds in her free time.
Emily Young, LICSW
Emily Young has extensive experience working with palliative and hospice patients, multi-stressed families, and the older adult and geriatric populations. She has special interests in the sandwich generation, caregiver support, memory disorders, and aging in place. She currently works at Gifford Medical Center in Randolph, VT in primary and specialty care as the memory clinic social worker. Prior to this, Emily was a hospice social worker for 6 years in rural Western Colorado. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Connecticut in 2012 and received her MSW from Simmons College in 2014. Emily pursued a degree in social work as helping others has always been of utmost importance to her. She is very interested in healthcare reform, supporting Vermont's aging population (especially those with memory disorders) and title protection for social workers. Becoming a member of the NASW board felt like another way for her to engage, advocate and help others, as well as a way to educate others on what social workers can do. When not doing social work, Emily enjoys hiking, walking her dogs in the woods, cooking, trying new foods, traveling, and reading.
Laurel Gray Robbins, MSW, LICSW (she/they)
Laurel Gray Robbins, LICSW her MSW from the University of Vermont in 2015 and has been a LICSW since May 2018. She wears several supervisory & administrative hats in outpatient psychotherapy practices including Otter Creek Associates & Matrix Health Systems, Vermont Center for Resiliency and Vermont Center for Anxiety Care. She is passionate about systems work and strives to zoom in-and-out & “gear shift” from direct practice touch points to mezzo & macro practices and social work advocacy.
Prior to her trauma-focused psychotherapy work, they practiced as a school social worker, in residential crisis stabilization and co-occurring disorder support and medical social work settings. Laurel Gray has a deep personal commitment to honoring diversity and values-led work which includes amplifying Lived Experience.
Laurel Gray loves to be outdoors in nature exploring Vermont with their wife, “pack of pups” and their two children. She loves maple syrup, tattoos and gathering rocks and treasures from the woods.
Michael Reeves, Ph.D., LICSW (He/Him/His)
Michael Reeves, Ph.D., LICSW has been the program and field director of the BSW program at Castleton University, now Vermont State University at Castleton, for the past eight years. Prior to Castleton, Dr. Reeves was a school social worker for 28 years, a program director and therapist for a residential treatment center, and a clinical social worker in small group and private practices.
Dr. Reeves has trained the VTSU faculty on holistic advising and incorporating DEI into the classroom. He is the interim executive director of the Castleton Center for Social Justice and Trauma Responsive Care. He has presented at the NASW VT conference on addressing provider trauma and the role of social workers in the political process. He has served NASW VT as the Vice President and the chair of the PACE committee.
Poa Mutino
Poa Mutino, MSW is a community organizer living and working in Barre, VT. He admires and honors the social workers of Chicago and other cities, who lived and worked with the people they served. Poa earned his MSW from Barry University School of Social Work in Miami, Florida with an advanced clinical degree in trauma-informed care. Since graduating in May of 2022, Poa was a mental health camp counselor for a LGBTQIA2S+ summer camp called Camp Outright, started a Private Practice named Fire & Ash, and then dedicated most of his time to working for the City of Montpelier managing their senior meals program until leaving that position at the end summer 2024. After a brief three months of youth work with Elevate Youth Services, Poa is now doing community organizing full-time and preparing to see clients again in his private practice where he specializes in youth and older adults. Poa is the co-chair of the Social Justice committee and also is a chair member of the Police Advisory Committee for the City of Barre.
Past-President
Angela Paoli, LICSW
she, her, hers
I graduated from Columbia University in NYC with a Social Work degree and concentration in mental health. Since that time I have worked as a mental health provider at Housing Works, Riker’s Island Prison, and UVM’s Colchester Family Practice and am currently in private practice at the Stone House Associates. I am also a provider at Adoption Advocates serving private adoptions and work regularly providing evaluations for Vermont Surrogacy Network and Northeastern Reproductive Medicine.
I joined the NASW board to enjoy the benefits of collaborating with other amazing social workers and to help grow the organization through learning opportunities and membership drives.
Outside of the office I am part of the Pet Peace of Mind hospice program that allows dying people to remain with their pets. I am a huge dog lover and in addition to my 2 dogs have been a foster home for 55 dogs while working with local rescues.I am also an adoptions coordinator at NYC Second Chance Rescue.
MSW Student Representative
Elizabeth McDermott - University of Vermont
BSW Student Representatives
Emily Macias - Vermont State University - Castleton
Allie Cohen - University of Vermont