Our Staff
Meet our Team
Eric Dunkerly
CEO / Managing Director
Eric Dunkerly
Eric’s professional background has encompassed direct care and management experience in residential and acute care programs, primarily in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Eric is most noted for his drive to continuously improve customer care, employee development and program systems operations. Eric has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and administration of justice and a Master of Business Administration.
Stephanie Knowles
COO
Stephanie Knowles
COO
Over the past twenty-five years, Stephanie’s professional experience has spanned inpatient, residential and community-based mental health setting in direct care, clinical and administrative roles. Throughout each of these roles, her focus has been assuring high quality, effective services that empower and include youth and their families in their treatment processes. Stephanie has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, a Master’s degree in Social Work and a Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Administration.
Kim Silver
CFO
Kim Silver
CFO
Kim’s healthcare career started in 1999 as a Licensed Practical Nurse. Her passion for quality patient experience led her to continue her education. She received a Bachelor’s Degree in Accountancy from The University of North Carolina and a Master of Business Administration from Montreal College. Originally, from the surrounding area of North Carolina, Kim comes to Mountain Youth from West Oak Hospital in Texas where she has been a part of the UHS CFO family.
Tori Swain
COO in Training
Tori Swain
COO in Training
Tori Swain earned her master’s degree in criminal justice from Marshall University. She began her career as a correctional counselor working with both juvenile and adult populations before transitioning into the substance abuse treatment field five years ago. Since then, she has served as a clinical supervisor for two years and clinic director for the past three years at an opioid treatment center serving over 1,500 patients.
Janie Short, LCSW
Director of Clinical Services
Janie Short, LCSW
Director of Clinical Services
A native of Southwest Virginia, Janie A. Short, LCSW, initially studied music with a concentration in vocal music performance and musicology (earning a B.A.) before returning to school for a master’s in social work. Employed full-time as a psychotherapist at Mountain Youth Academy (MYA) since 2008, Janie was promoted to the Assistant Director of Clinical Services after approximately three years and ascended to Director of Clinical Services following the retirement of the former director in December 2025.
In addition to her work with MYA, Janie maintains a forensic practice where she has now been in a nearly two-decade collaboration that combines the expertise of psychology, family studies and social work to offer insight to the judges in Tennessee to enable well-informed adjudication of high-conflict parenting litigation.
When not working, Janie enjoys spending time with her family in Virginia, knitting, reading, documentaries and music about which she is said to have an encyclopedic range of knowledge.
Nancy Lundy
Director of Nursing
Nancy Lundy
Director of Nursing
As the Director of Nursing at Mountain Youth Academy, Nancy emphasizes and oversees the delivery of nursing care, ensuring medical practices are governed by current education and modalities that respect regulatory compliance and policies. She is passionate about teaching and fostering the growth of her team, as well as providing quality, evidence-based care for the students.
Nancy graduated from Northeast State Technical Community College earning an associate’s degree in science and her Bachelors of Nursing degree from King College. Her experience in early childhood education influenced her career in pediatric nursing. Her experience includes: ER nurse, corrections nurse and a neuro-trauma/stroke ICU nurse. Nancy has been with Mountain Youth Academy since November 2008.
Frank Rosato
Director of Residential Services
Frank Rosato
Director of Residential Services
Frank Rosato comes to Mountain Youth Academy with over 30 years of experience in Mental Health and Education. Mr. Rosato grew up in Rome, NY. Mr. Rosato loves, sports, especially baseball where he has coached all levels, along with a stint as a college softball coach for a NC college for 4 years. Mr. Rosato has a great sense of humor and a passion for working with children.
Betty Villarreal
Director of Admissions
Betty Villarreal
Director of Admissions
Betty attended NESTCC majoring in business administration and computer science. Betty has been in behavioral healthcare since March 2003. She began her career as a mental health associate and continued to serve Mountain Youth Academy in many capacities including administrative assistant, accounts payable, payroll clerk, admissions/utilization review supervisor and utilization review coordinator. Betty maintains good working relationships with numerous state organizations to ensure a timely admission for all referral sources.
Felix Hutchinson
Director of Plant Operations
Felix Hutchinson
Director of Plant Operations
Felix Hutchinson brings more than 30 years of experience in healthcare facility maintenance and holds a degree in Occupational Safety and Health. He began his healthcare career in 1997, serving as a Facility Technician and Life Safety Officer. Throughout his career, he has collaborated with The Joint Commission, OSHA and State Fire Marshals to help ensure healthcare facilities maintain compliance with safety and regulatory standards.
As Director of Plant Operations at Mountain Youth Academy, Mr. Hutchinson is focused on implementing effective preventive maintenance programs, minimizing equipment downtime and promoting operational efficiency. He is committed to maintaining a safe, compliant and highly efficient environment for patients, staff and visitors.
Jessica Blevins
Director, Risk Management, Staff Development
Jessica Blevins
Director of Staff Development
Jessica received her degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. Jessica started her career at Mountain Youth Academy in 2011 as a Mental Health Associate and continued to advance in her career by filling the role as Executive Assistant then promoted into her current position as the Executive Project Manager/Staff Development. Jessica is a Certified Therapeutic Crisis Intervention Instructor, BLS/CPR Instructor, Service Excellence Instructor; Accelerated Resolution Therapy (A.R.T.) certified and has her certification in Residential Youth Care Professionals.
Amanda Ohlson
Director of Performance Improvement
Amanda Ohlson
Director of Performance Improvement
Amanda received her associate degree in Turf Grass Management/Landscape Design from Virginia Tech in 2002 and bachelor’s in healthcare administration with and minor in Management from East Tennessee State University in 2009. Amanda began her career at Mountain Youth Academy in 2009 as a Mental Health Associate. In 2010, she moved to the Utilization Review Coordinator position until moving into the Director of Performance Improvement role in 2022.
Michelle Green
Business Office Manager
Michelle Green
Business Office Manager
Michelle is a healthcare professional with over 16 years of experience in the industry. Providing career progression from direct care roles to administrative leadership. She began her journey in healthcare as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), that later led her to the role as a Business Office Manager. Michelle graduated in 1999 from Johnson County High School and later attended Tennessee Technology Center to pursue Business Administration. Michelle joined Mountain Youth Academy in 2023 as Director of Utilization Management.
Eric Helm
Nurse Practitioner
Eric Helm
Nurse Practitioner
Eric is a psychiatric nurse practitioner who graduated with a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Tennessee in 2018 and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing at East Tennessee State University in 2014. Eric has worked with various psychiatric disorders and populations. Eric’s favorite population to work with is pediatrics, and that is the reason he decided to work at Mountain Youth. While Eric feels like medications are an important aspect to treatment, his main goal is to use the least number of medications possible to effectively treat the symptoms that may present with trauma.
Kelly Stout
Director of Recreation / Activity Therapy
Kelly Stout
Kelly pursued her academic qualifications at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Education, specializing in Therapeutic Recreation. She furthered her education at Liberty University, earning a Master of Arts in Teaching – Special Education.
Kelly possesses a decade of experience in the field of working with children and adolescents who have multiple disabilities.
Kelly is deeply committed to assisting youth in discovering their leisure interests, while also coordinating and implementing a diverse range of recreational programs, which include incentives and community reintegration outings.
Madeleine Copenhaver
Human Resource Coordinator
Madeleine Copenhaver
Human Resource Coordinator
Madeleine earned a bachelor’s degree from Emory & Henry College in 2020. She brings over five years of experience in customer service, workforce management systems, onboarding, supervision, training, scheduling and complaint resolution to her role as Human Resouces Coordinator at Mountain Youth Academy.
Leah Dommel
Director of Education
Leah Dommel
Director of Education
Leah Dommel has worked at Mountain Youth Academy since 2019. She has 10 years of experience working for TN public schools as a special education and social intervention teacher. Leah has a Bachelor of Science degree in special education and an art education add-on from ETSU. She also has a Master of Education in administration from Union University. Her licensure endorsements include English 7-12, Special Education Modified K-12, Special Education Comprehensive K-12 and pre k-12 Administrator.
Sheila Simpson
Human Resources Director
Sheila Simpson
Human Resources Director
Sheila Simpson is a seasoned Human Resources Director with more than a decade of progressive leadership experience in behavioral health and healthcare environments, including multiple leadership roles within UHS. She has a distinguished track record of overseeing HR operations for high-acuity psychiatric and residential facilities, leading employee relations, talent acquisition, policy development, safety initiatives, staff training, and organizational development. Over the course of her career, she has achieved repeated zero-deficiency audits across CARF, Joint Commission, OSHA, and state regulatory surveys.
Her strategic approach has contributed to improved employee engagement, stronger workforce stability, and more consistent alignment between HR processes and clinical operations. She has played a key role in opening new hospitals, building high-performing HR teams, and creating structured onboarding, training, and performance evaluation systems that elevate both staff experience and service quality. Known for her commitment to fostering safe and supportive work environments, she is dedicated to advancing UHS’s mission by ensuring employees feel valued, equipped, and empowered to deliver exceptional care.
Make The Call Today
Mountain Youth Academy provides individualized, trauma-focused treatment to boys and girls ages 5–17. We strive to provide mental health and educational services that enhance the quality of life for at-risk youth and their families. See what Mountain Youth Academy can do for you and your family, call us today at 888-828-7393 for a confidential level-of-care assessment. You may also reach us by email at [email protected].
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Finding the right treatment for your child or adolescent can be challenging, but you don’t have to do it alone.