Our Trainers

Carrie Wilkens, PhD, is the Co-Founder and Clinical Director of the Center for Motivation and Change in NYC and in the Berkshires. She co-authored an award-winning book, Beyond Addiction: How Science and Kindness Help People Change with Drs. Foote and Kosanke. Together they also contributed to a user-friendly workbook for parents: The 20 Minute Guide: A Guide for Parents about How to Help their Child Change their Substance Use.

In collaboration with the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, Dr. Wilkens and the CMC team is developing a national parent training program (the Parent Support Network) to provide parent coaches to families in need of support through a free hotline. Prior to these ventures, Dr. Wilkens was the Project Director on a large federally-funded Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grant examining the effectiveness of motivational interventions in addressing the problems associated with binge drinking among college students. She is regularly sought out by the media to discuss issues related to substance use disorders and has been on the CBS Morning Show, Katie Couric Show, and Fox News as well as a variety of radio shows including frequent NPR segments such as the People’s Pharmacy and The Diane Rehm Show. Dr. Wilkens sits on the Advisory Council for the Peter G. Dodge Foundation, a forward-thinking non-profit organization that works with world-class partners to achieve lasting change in the field of alcohol use disorders.

Cordelia Kraus is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor I (CADC I), and certified CRAFT clinician. Although she works with adults on a range of mental health and life concern issues, she specializes in working with those directly struggling with addictive behaviors and also holds special expertise in working with family members who are struggling with their loved one’s drinking or substance use, or who want to support their loved one in recovery.

Cordelia has been a SMART Recovery facilitator since 2014 and has run both standard and Family & Friends SMART Recovery groups for several years. She has facilitated trainings with CMC:Foundation for Change since 2017 and completed her Certification in CRAFT by Dr. Robert Meyers and associates in 2018.

She live with her spouse, two children, two dogs, a cat, and a few dust bunnies.

Heather Fulton, PhD, is a registered clinical psychologist who has been volunteering, researching, and working in the area of mental health, including substance use health, since 2002.  She is experienced in diverse approaches such as Motivational Interviewing, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Seeking Safety, mindfulness, and CRAFT.  Dedicated to life-long learning, Dr. Fulton has sought out additional certifications and trainer status in many of the above approaches; she is also a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers.  She has worked within many different settings: student services, outreach and Assertive Community Treatment teams, specialized bed-based care, and various outpatient mental and substance use health services.

Dr. Fulton is deeply committed to supporting helpers on their learning journeys and fostering resilience in the face of time and resource constraints. She teaches, supervises, and consults with diverse healthcare and housing organizations, empowering people to integrate evidence-based approaches to their practice and tailored to their unique settings. She is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Adjunct Professor within the Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.

Jarell R.O. Myers, PhD is a clinical psychologist, licensed in both New York and Massachusetts, with training in cognitive-behavioral and dialectical behavioral approaches to treatment. He earned his doctorate in clinical psychology from Fairleigh Dickinson University and completed an APA-accredited internship at Mt. Sinai St. Luke’s Hospital on the child and adolescent track. In addition, Dr. Myers completed a two year postdoctoral fellowship in child and adolescent psychology at New York Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Cornell Medical Center in White Plains, New York where the focus was on treatment for anxiety. He used that experience at McLean Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts where he worked with children and adolescents diagnosed with Anxiety and Obsessive Compulsive Disorders in an intensive outpatient clinic. Dr. Myers has expertise in working with adolescents and young adults with comorbid anxiety and substance use disorders and adopts a harm reduction approach when appropriate.

Jeff Foote, PhD, is Co-Founder of the Center for Motivation and Change (CMC) in Manhattan, as well as CMC:Berkshires. Dr. Foote is a nationally recognized clinical research scientist who has received federal grant funding for his work on motivational treatment approaches and substance abuse treatment research, focused on the implementation of evidence-based treatments. Dr. Foote was also Psychologist for the NY Mets for 11 years, and continues in sports psychology as an independent performance consultant to professional athletes. Before co-founding CMC in 2003, Dr. Foote was the Deputy Director of the Division of Alcohol Treatment and Research at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in NYC, as well as Senior Research Associate at The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) in NYC. Dr. Foote also served as Chief of the Smithers Addiction Treatment and Research Center as well as Director of Evaluation and Research between 1994 and 2001.

He is co-author of the award-winning book Beyond Addiction: How Science and Kindness Help People Change, a practical guide for families dealing with addiction and substance problems in a loved one, based on principles of Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT). He is also a contributor to two workbooks combining strategies from CRAFT and Motivational Interviewing: The Parent’s 20 Minute Guide and The Partner’s 20 Minute Guide, which offer specific tools and practice in evidence-based strategies for helping a loved one change.

Joshua King, PsyD is a licensed psychologist with a Doctorate in Clinical and School Psychology from the Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology at Yeshiva University. Dr. King is the host of the Beyond Addiction Show, a weekly podcast dedicated to disseminating information about evidence-based treatments and to interviewing people who have worked to move the conversation about substance use forward. Dr. King oversees CMC’s media presence and website and is a regular contributor to CMC’s blog and is a contributing writer to Thrive Global. He has recently co-authored a chapter in Different Patients, Different Therapies (Cabaniss & Holoshitz, 2019) on using ACT to work with substance use disorders.

Julie Jarvis, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in the treatment of substance use disorders as well as mood and anxiety disorders for over 20 years. Dr. Jarvis obtained her PhD in clinical psychology from Long Island University, Brooklyn Campus, and went on to complete a post-doctoral fellowship in Addictions Psychology from Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. Dr. Jarvis has worked with individuals, groups, couples and families in a variety of treatment settings, including outpatient, intensive outpatient, and long term residential care. Dr. Jarvis serves as a consulting psychologist for CMC:FFC, a non-profit organization providing evidence-based skills training to family members who have a loved one struggling with substance use issues.

Kenneth Carpenter, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist and research scientist with over 20 years of experience developing, implementing, and evaluating evidence-based motivational and cognitive-behavioral strategies for helping individuals make important lifestyle changes. Dr. Carpenter earned his degree from Hofstra University and completed a three-year postdoctoral research fellowship in the Psychiatric Epidemiology Research Training Program at The Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University. He has received federal and private foundation grant money for investigating the psychological, behavioral, and neurobiological factors associated with substance misuse and its treatment.

Dr. Carpenter is the Director of Training for CMC:Foundation for Change, a not-for-profit organization with the mission of improving the dissemination of evidence-based ideas and strategies to professionals and loved ones of persons struggling with substance use through the Invitation to Change approach. CMC:Foundation for Change and Dr. Carpenter have developed a unique approach for families, blending components of CRAFT, MI and ACT together into the Invitation to Change Approach, an accessible set of understandings and practices that empower families to remain engaged and effective in helping their struggling loved one. The approach has been widely used across the country, and is utilized in trainings with laypeople and professionals. Dr. Carpenter also holds an academic appointment in Columbia University’s Department of Psychiatry and is a Research Scientist in the Division on Substance Use Disorders at the New York State Psychiatric Institute. He is a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (M.I.N.T).

He is also co-author of The Beyond Addiction Workbook for Family and Friends: Evidence-Based Skills to Help a Loved-One Make Positive Change.

Meg Murray is the Executive Director for CMC:Foundation for Change. She received her B.S. in Journalism from Boston University. Prior to coming to CMC:Foundation for Change, Meg spent three years at CMC:Berkshires, a residential treatment center. She is excited to be shifting her focus to the millions of families who are affected by addiction. She draws from her experience working alongside clients in treatment, as well as her own experience helping her family navigate a loved one through recovery. Meg brings passion and a drive to effect change by empowering parents and other family members who stand by their loved one’s side. Her work includes: coordination of all administrative functions related to CMC:Foundation for Change, active support for the CEOs and Training Director in the development of trainings, training protocols and logistics, and managing the interface between the Foundation and all funders, donors, governmental agencies, board members and the general public.

Dr. Nicole Kosanke is a licensed clinical psychologist and the Director of Family Services at CMC:NYC, where she specializes in the assessment and treatment of substance use disorders in individuals and families. Dr. Kosanke works in the research and clinical practice of treating substance use disorders and utilizes the principles of CRAFT, MI, and CBT in different therapeutic modalities and resources.

She co-authored the award-winning book, Beyond Addiction: How Science and Kindness Help People Change, and also contributed to The 20 Minute Guide. Dr. Kosanke was also featured in an O, The Oprah Magazine article about her client’s experience in treatment at CMC, which was later published in O’s Big Book of Happiness: The Best of O. She is a member of Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies and American Academy of Addiction Psychiatrists.