Join us for a conversation with Suzanne Spencer about a local community’s approach to advancing the National Dialogue on a Public Health Crisis and the Opioid Epidemic. From Nimby (Not In My Backyard) attitudes to the reality of Treatment, Recovery and Prevention of Substance Use Disorder in our communities, in our homes, in the workplace, and our schools.
Suzanne Spencer brings a wealth of experience and expertise in non-profit leadership and for-profit organizations to her career in community organizing and has been recognized for innovations in the field of mental health and addiction. Suzanne has pioneered innovative practices within the health and wellness terrain by mobilizing organizations, community partners, and diverse stakeholders to inform and transform the workplace, workforce, and community. During her five year leadership tenure of the Delray Beach Drug Task Force, Suzanne was the visionary behind community initiatives such as Project Trailblazer, What Happens After Narcan, Good Sam Good Call and SUDTALKS, thus advancing the national dialogue on our public health crisis and opioid epidemic. She is the CEO of Living Skills in the Schools, a substance abuse prevention program that will reach 50,000 students in Palm Beach County in the 2019-2020 school year with free programming. Her most recent initiative as co-founder of Heads Up Florida addresses vicarious trauma in school systems as a result of teacher’s chronic exposure to students with adverse childhood experiences. More broadly, her focus suggests the need to develop “trauma-informed” organizations in all contexts to support thriving workforces, workplaces, and individuals. Suzanne is an inspirational speaker, a conference headliner, addressing audiences such as Florida Atlantic University’s’ Phyllis and Harvey Sandler School of Social Work and Women Empowering Women Forums, among others. She currently holds an undergraduate degree in Organizational Management, a Graduate degree in leadership, and will complete her Doctorate in Education in 2020.
