Greg Atwood: Emergency Medicine
Greg Atwood is a Firefighter /Paramedic in Coral Gables Florida and works for the Coral Gables Fire Rescue. He is an American Heart Association certified instructor in BLS ( Basic Life Support ), ACLS ( Advanced Cardiopulmonary Life Support ), and PALS ( Pediatric Advanced Life Support ). He teaches these disciplines for the Fire Department as well as Baptist Health Systems in South Florida.
Greg also founded and runs South Florida Safety Consultants which teaches CPR and First Aid to Schools, teachers, daycares, and new parents. He currently lives in Miami Florida with his beautiful wife Alexa and their 2 sons, Connor and Jake and can be reached at gregatwood13@gmail.com or on Twitter at @GregAtwood
Michele Borba, Ed.D: Character Development & Bullying Prevention
Michele Borba, Ed.D., is an educational psychologist, former teacher, and mom. She received a Doctorate in Educational Psychology and Counseling from the University of San Francisco, an M.A. in Learning Disabilities and B.A. from the University of Santa Clara, and a Life Teaching Credential from San Jose State University. She is recognized for offering research-driven advice culled from a career of working with over one million parents, educators, and children.
Dr. Borba is also recognized globally for her work in bullying prevention and character education. Her strategies to mobilize student bystanders to reduce peer cruelty were featured on Dateline and NBC’s Nightly News. Her proposal: “Ending School Violence and Bullying” (SB1667) was signed into California law in 2002. Her thirty-year career has been devoted to developing a framework to strengthen children’s character and build moral school climates.
Dr. Borba has appeared over 125 times on the TODAY show, where she comments on late-breaking news and offers realistic solutions. Her work has been featured on Dr. Phil, Dateline, The View, The Doctors, Dr. Drew, Katie Couric, Fox News, The Early Show and CNN and well as numerous publications. She is also the author of 22 books including her latest release, UnSelfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in Our All-About-Me World. Visit her blog at www.micheleborba.com, or follow her on twitter @micheleborba
Tracy Bush: Food Allergies
Tracy Bush is the founder and President of Nutrimom, Inc., a consulting business that provides guidance and support for anyone that has been diagnosed with food allergies. Having a son diagnosed with multiple life-threatening food allergies gave Tracy a unique insight into the challenges parents face when first confronted with the need for food allergy awareness. As Nutrimom, Tracy helps parents and other caregivers bridge the gap between the initial phases of a food allergy diagnosis and the first steps taken in the new world of allergy-friendly foods.
Tracy consults with a variety of clients of all ages as well as several physicians. Her efforts to raise food-allergy awareness include spearheading the first FARE Walk for Food Allergies in Winston-Salem, North Carolina in September 2014 as well as participation (by invitation) in the first US Anaphylaxis Summit hosted by (AANMA) Allergy Asthma Network Mothers of Asthmatics and sponsored by Mylan Specialty in Washington, D.C.
In November 2014, Tracy will have completed a certification in BioIndividual Nutrition to help expand her ability to create highly customized diets that address each client’s individual needs. She can be found at www.AllergyPhoods.com as well as at www.Facebook.com/NutrimomFAL or on Twitter @TracyBNutrimom
Suzanne Hantke: Kids and Canines
Suzanne Hantke is a former NY and Atlanta EMT with a soft spot for both children and dogs. In between time spent in the “Rainbow Response unit” at Egleston’s Children’s Hospital in Atlanta as well as the NICU and PICU, she helped to create a child safety seat for ambulances as a way of making sure children who were already compromised health-wise, would not be put in any more danger.
When she realized she could no longer be an EMT due to medical reasons, she found an alternate outlet for her desire to nurture and protect. She became a dog trainer…something that was always a second love and passion for her. In addition to her regular training sessions, Suzanne “boot-camps” challenging cases, to make sure no family member (human or canine) is ever at risk. Additionally, whenever possible she is learning new techniques to share with her clients (and their humans), participating in the International Association of Canine Professional (IACP) events as an ambassador and writes a regular Facebook column. She believes when it comes to kids and dogs, there is always more to learn, and never too much love and care to go around… Her goal in writing for Pediatric Safety is to make the world a safer place for both. She lives with her fiance Peter, her lovable mutt Reilley, and her 2 cats, Vixen and Roarke, in Long Island, NY. She can be found at www.homeinsteadofalone.com/ as well as at Home Instead of Alone’s Facebook page.
Lynne Kenney, Psy.D: Child Psychology, Learning & Behavior
Lynne Kenney, Psy.D., is a mother of two, a practicing pediatric psychologist, author and international educator in Scottsdale, AZ. She has advanced fellowship training in forensic psychology and developmental pediatric psychology from Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School and Harbor-UCLA/UCLA Medical School. She holds a Master’s Degree in Physical Education from the University of Southern California and a Doctorate from Pepperdine.
Since 1985, Dr. Kenney has worked as an educator in community service from the inner cities of Los Angeles to national organizations such as The Neurological Health Foundation, Understood.org, HandsOn Phoenix, and Points of Light (Generation On). With a keen interest in changing the trajectory of children’s learning through cognitive-exercise, Dr. Kenney is known for developing classroom activities which integrate neuroscience and physical education to improve executive function and self-regulation.
Dr Kenney’s work includes the Social-Emotional Literacy program Bloom Your Room™; Musical Thinking; Bloom: 50 things to say, think and do with anxious, angry and over-the-top-kids and her most recent release: 70 Play Activities For Better Thinking, Self-Regulation, Learning and Behavior. Learn more at www.lynnekenney.com.
Rosie Reeves: Special Needs Parenting
Rosie Reeves holds a Bachelor of Arts from Sarah Lawrence College. She did musical theatre, children’s theatre and taught arts classes to kids on the East Coast before moving out west where she wrote, directed, produced and performed for radio and created online content for radio stations across the country.
Rosie was very involved with her daughter’s early intervention therapies and medical care and continues to work closely with her teachers and therapists. She is currently a freelance writer and the Los Angeles Special Needs Kids Examiner on Examiner.com. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, three kids and one very spoiled cat.
Dr Joseph Skoloff, MD: Pediatrics
Dr. Joseph Skoloff received his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his medical degree from The Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia. After a year internship and two years of Pediatric Residency in Wilmington, Delaware he joined the U.S. Air Force for two years. Dr. Skoloff served as Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics, USAF Hospital, Robbins AFB, Warner Robbins, Georgia, achieving the rank of Major. On completion of his Air Force obligation Dr. Skoloff participated in a Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. After one year of the program he relocated to the Northern Virginia area and joined an existing Pediatric practice until 2006 when problems with his back forced retirement. With his back resolved he returned to pediatrics in 2009 where he continued to care for children until his retirement in 2016.
Dr. Skoloff is a past Vice Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics, a past Chairman of the Infection Control Committee at the Loudoun Hospital Center and a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. In his 41 years as a practicing pediatrician he has kept hundreds of kids and families healthy and safe and plans to continue to do so for years to come.
Dr. Skoloff believes strongly in the combined power of parent and physician working together for the health of their children, and a mutual involvement deciding on course of treatment in a method acceptable to all parties, delivered in the most efficient and cost effective manner. He is an advocate for children everywhere and adheres strongly to the principles of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Dr Bill Williams, DMD: Family Dentistry
With over 29 years of experience in all phases of dentistry, Dr. Bill Williams leads a dental team with unique qualifications to care for the whole family. Dr. Williams is accomplished in advanced reconstruction and sedation dentistry, neuromuscular dentistry, laser dentistry, orthodontics, TMJ therapy, dental implants, oral and periodontal surgery, endodontics and complex reconstruction cases. He is an international lecturer, author and clinician of highest regard in cosmetic dentistry, orthodontics, and reconstruction.
Dr. Williams’ practice, Suwanee Dental Care, was named Best of Gwinnett each year from 2003 thru 2009 by Gwinnett Magazine and is the team dentist for the Gwinnett Gladiators. He is Dental Director of Kenya Medical Outreach and past president of the Georgia Academy of General Dentistry. In July 2006 he was awarded Mastership in the Academy of General Dentistry. His passion is teaching, dental missions to Kenya and Honduras, and Auburn football!
Joe Yeager: Cybersafety
Joe Yeager is the founder of Safety Net of PA, LLC and has been a cybersafety advocate for several years. He is an adjunct professor at Thomas Jefferson University, where has been teaching classes that involve using technology to improve the quality of their schoolwork.
As the founder of Safety Net, Joe provides a variety of presentations on improving online experiences, both in better educational performance and in cybersafety. It was after his own daughter came across inappropriate content online that he became involved in helping others in the area. He is certified by the US Centers for Disease Control in Bullying Prevention, has completed the “Stewards of Children” training by Darkness to Light and is the cyberbullying advisor to Fifty Shades of Purple against Bullying.
Joe’s work on cybersafety has been published by the Family Online Safety Institute, the Social Media Club, Calkins Media and more. He is also the author of #DigitalParenting- A Parent’s Guide to Social Media, Cyberbullying &Online Activity, which was chosen as an Editor’s Pick in April 2016. He is currently working on a follow-up book.
