Partners


Dave Ellis Consulting, LLC

Working Partners


"The Best in the Business"

Barbara Simpson Epps

bsimpepps@yahoo.com | 952-288-3540


Barbara (Bob-e) Simpson Epps has spent a lifetime working to enhance the operations and effectiveness of organizations in both the public and private sectors. Deeply committed to strong, healthy and resilient communities, she has used her expertise to build and sustain diverse environments. Believing in the richness each voice brings to any conversation, situation or need she creates space for each individual to show up while engaging all in conversations leading to the extraction of knowledge, wisdom and reflection of self and others. With more than 25 years in public health she has focused on issues of trauma, historical, multi-generational and intergenerational trauma of African Americans, HIV/AIDS, equity/inclusion, policy and early care and education. Bob-e is Master trainer of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES), journalist and speech-patholigist/audiologist. She is an Art of Hosting steward.

INternet Marketing social media concepts

dwradon@gmail.com | 612-986-0010

Jerry nagel

jerry@meadowlark.com | 218-280-1105 ​


Jerry believes strongly that participatory leadership and dialogue processes create communities and organizations where people are treated with respect and where there is an opportunity for all voices to be present and to be heard. These processes bring forth the knowledge, wisdom and leadership capacity that is within each of our organizations, our communities, and us. Jerry is deeply committed to hosting meaningful conversations around many of our most difficult issues, including race, gender, age, sexual orientation and political and economic power. 


Jerry is President of the Meadowlark Institute, an organization committed to developing our individual and collective capacity to engage in meaningful conversations with those who hold different traditions, values and goals. He is a Steward in the Art of Hosting Community of Practice and a Flow Game practitioner. As a fourth generation North Dakotan, Jerry has a deep respect for our connections to the land and places we each come from. He has attended the Senior Executives in State and Local Government program at Harvard University as a Fannie Mae Foundation Fellow and is also a Donella Meadows Leadership Fellow.

"Partnerships are good engines for narrative."


-  Tommy Lee Jones 

Kathy Jourdain

Shapeshift Strategies, Inc

www.shapeshiftstrategies.com


Kathy is a steward and practitioner of the Art of Hosting.  She holds an MBA from Saint Mary’s University and an undergraduate degree in sociology and psychology from Mount Saint Vincent University.  She is a graduate of the Banff Centre for Management’s Executive Leadership Program and has been certified in strategic management and strategic change management through the international Centre for Strategic Management.  She is a member of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers (CAPS). Prior to Chrysalis, Kathy was the Executive Director of the Atlantic Division of a major health charity for almost 10 years, where she streamlined their internal systems.  During her not-for-profit career, she was a member of the Canadian Society of Association Executives (C.S.A.E.), and was on both the local and national boards.  She completed the Association Management Program and earned the designation of Certified Association Executive (C.A.E.). Her outstanding leadership in the not-for-profit sector was recognized with local and national awards including the 2000 Citadel Award presented by the Nova Scotia Chapter of C.S.A.E., dubbed “a third of a lifetime achievement award” by the presenters.

Karina A. Forrest‐Perkins

bsimpepps@yahoo.com | 952-288-3540


Karina A. Forrest‐Perkins is a statewide, regional and national presenter regarding the health and wellness of children and families. Ms. Forrest-Perkins currently serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer for Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota/MN Communities Caring for Children and is a Training Faculty Member for the Heartland National Tuberculosis Center.


Ms. Forrest‐Perkins provides therapy, training and consultation in the following areas: addiction and trauma therapy/education for children, adolescents and families; trauma informed care consultation for organizations and systems; and, training for community members and professionals in the area of child maltreatment, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, cultural competency, and the impact of trauma on early childhood brain development.


Ms. Forrest-Perkins currently serves as an instructor for the American Institute for the Advancement of Forensic Studies, an Advisory Council Member for the Interfaith Child Advocacy network, a Board Member for the Midwest Alliance on Shaken Baby Syndrome and an adjunct Professor for Concordia University in St. Paul.  Ms. Forrest-Perkins is a member of the Cherokee Nation and lives with her husband in White Bear Lake MN.