Team

Heidi Herinckx joined Options for Southern Oregon in July 2013 and serves as the Director for Research and Evaluation as well as the Director of Centers of Excellence (OCEACT & OSECE). Heidi has over 20 years of experience helping mental health programs implement and evaluate evidence-based practices.

Prior to joining Options, Heidi was a mental health services researcher at the Regional Research Institute at Portland State University for 18 years. Heidi has worked with a number of mental health and social service agencies in Oregon and Washington with the primary goal of advancing and improving mental health care and community-based services. Heidi’s areas of expertise include Assertive Community Treatment, Strengths case management, supported employment, the Matrix model for methamphetamine addiction, mental health court and therapeutic jurisprudence, peer providers, and person-centered service design.

Over the past 20 years, Heidi has implemented and evaluated ACT programs in Oregon and Washington. Heidi was the project manager for this randomized clinical trial that compared the effectiveness of consumer providers of ACT, non-consumer providers of ACT, and “ mental health services as usual.” From 2004 through 2008, Heidi helped implement and evaluate the COMET program in Clark County Washington, and the MERIT program in Josephine County Oregon.  The COMET Program was an ACT team that combined the MATRIX model to treat individuals with serious mental illness and co-occurring methamphetamine addiction.

EMAIL | Phone: 541-507-7125

Allyson Morrison joined Options for Southern Oregon in September 2016 as a Statewide Trainer with the Oregon IPS Supported Employment team. Allyson received her Bachelor of Science in International Business from Elizabethtown College in 2010. She has been working in the mental health field since 2009 and with the IPS Supported Employment model as an Employment Specialist and an IPS Supervisor since 2010. Allyson has a longstanding interest in social services and rural communities.
EMAIL |  Phone: 503-396-6002

Joan Keenen joined Options for Southern Oregon in October 2016. She served as the Clinical Supervisor for the Support Employment and Education Services (SEES) program during the last 8 years of her 25-year career with the county of Fresno, Department of Behavioral Health in California. Joan has a Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation and Leisure Studies and is a certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist as well as certified Advanced Level Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) facilitator. Joan has been a champion for recovery services and peer inclusion. She was the lead staff for the Workforce Integration Support and Education (WISE) project at Fresno County sponsored by Mental Health America in Sacramento California which received the first OLWIE award.  She has traveled and trained with the Copeland Center for Wellness and Recovery conducting peer support and wellness sustainability workshops around the county. She currently serves as an OSECE statewide trainer and is involved with the OSECE Peer collaborative and other statewide peer initiatives.
EMAIL | Phone: 541-291-2034

Jennifer Cassidy, M.A., joined the OSECE team in April, 2019.  She spent more than 8 years as a supervisor in Supported Employment and Education services using the IPS model in northern Michigan, after working with vocational rehabilitation and student/youth advisory positions.  She has been a Certified Employment Trainer since 2011. She was a special educator for 17 years and facilitated assessment and if applicable, Individual Education Plans for students, as well as creating individualized curriculums and skill-based programs.

Jennifer has over 30 years of experience working with youth and adults with disabilities and mental illnesses, to overcome barriers in education and employment and is excited to be part of the OSECE team!
EMAIL | Phone: 541-816-0212

Andrew Benson, B.S., came to the OSECE team in October 2022 as Statewide IPS Trainer and Reviewer.  He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Bible Minor in 2012 from Corban University in Salem.  His professional career was spent as a CNA for 10 years along with other recovery focused work as part of his background.

His passion is seeing his clients thrive!  He started working at Tillamook Family Counseling Center Summer of 2020 as a Mental Health Peer Specialist.  He then transitioned into Supported Employment soon afterward.  Helping people learn to thrive at work is his passion, seeing them not just start a new job, but carve out a whole new life journey!

Andrew looks forward to coming along side other IPS Teams to help them become the best they can be through his role on the OSECE Team.

EMAIL |  Phone: 541-450-8359

Katie Miranda, B.A., QMHA, joined Options for Southern Oregon in February 2023. Katie graduated from Notre Dame de Namur University with a Bachelors of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Business Administration focused on Human Resources. She began her career in Supported Employment in 2012 by volunteering at a local nonprofit in the Bay Area, where she supported adult students in identifying career paths and developing the tools and skills to obtain employment. Subsequently, Katie spent 10 years supporting people in achieving career goals and building confidence through employment in a variety of roles, including Supported Employment Specialist with Lifeworks NW, and as a Career Coach and Job Developer in other organizations.

Katie has a passion for supporting people in identifying career goals and finding a way to achieve those goals. She also champions participant choice in mental health treatment and employment services. Katie currently works as a Statewide Trainer with the OSECE team, where she is privileged to offer training and guidance to IPS programs throughout the state of Oregon.

EMAIL |  Phone: 541-291-7054