Chair, Napa County Health and Human Services
Laura Keller, RN, BSN, is the Director of Public Health Nursing at Napa County Health and Human Services. She oversees the Welcome Every Baby; Napa Valley’s Universal Home Visiting Program for all new babies and is a Touchpoints Trainer. Laura is a certified Public Health Nurse, and a certified Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner. Laura completed the Infant Parent Mental Health Fellowship Program in 2004 and became a Fellowship mentor in 2006. She also serves on the board of Parenting Project of the Napa Valley.
Vice Chair, Community Member
Andrea Knowlton is the Director of Early Childhood Services at the Napa Office of Education. Her background is in Early Childhood Special Education and Educational Administration. Andrea is involved in the statewide training of new leaders in the field of early childhood and was recently appointed to the Strategic Assessment of the Child Care Nutrition Environment Advisory Group for the 2007 -2008 school year. In her free time Andrea enjoys traveling, and cycling.
Community Member
Dr. Kristie Brandt is Director of the Parent-Infant & Child Institute in Napa and a teaching Fellow of the ChildTrauma Academy in Houston, Texas. She is visiting faculty with the Brazelton Touchpoints Center at Children’s Hospital Boston, and Director of the University of Massachusetts Boston Infant-Parent Mental Health Post-Graduate Certificate Program in Napa. Kristie was the Chief Public Health Manager for Napa County Public Health and retired after nearly 25 years overseeing maternal-child health and general public health services. She provides consultation, teaching, and training around the country.
Community Member
Mary Baracco coordinates Welcome Every Baby, the Universal Perinatal Home Visiting Program. In 1993, Mary fulfilled a longtime interest in nursing by earning her RN degree. She then graduated as a Certified Nurse Midwife and OB/GYN Nurse Practitioner. Mary is a Board Certified Lactation Consultant, completed the TouchPoints training, the Infant Parent Mental Health Fellowship Program, taught Maternal Newborn Nursing at Napa Valley College, and co-owned and directed several preschools. She is dedicated to working with socioeconomically and culturally diverse populations.
Community Member
Caroline Pietrangelo-Owens is the Project Director for the CDE/ECE Faculty Initiative Project with the WestEd’s Center for Child and Family Studies. She is an experienced early care educator, teacher, and administrator of programs serving infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Caroline has a Masters Degree from Pacific Oaks College and is certified in the TouchPoints Faculty Level Training. Caroline was involved in the start-up of the Welcome Every Baby Home Visiting Program in Napa in 2005.
Community Member
Stephanie Paravicini is a clinical psychologist who has spent ten years working with underserved children and families in nonprofit community health organizations like San Francisco General Hospital, St. Anthony’s Free Clinic, UC Davis Medical Center and Aldea Children and Family Services in Napa. She was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela and works with Spanish-speaking clients in her private practice in Napa. Stephanie is currently devoting most of her time to being the mother of a one-year-old son and an infant daughter born in March 2008.
Community Member
Ida Bruce is the Business Manager at Elizabeth Spencer Wines in Rutherford. From a young age, she felt a strong desire to help others, particularly children. As a child advocate, Ida has been involved with many organizations in Napa County and has served in several leadership roles. She also has personal experience as a parent of a child with learning disabilities. Ida is a Napa County native currently residing in the City of Napa with her husband and two children.
Napa County Board of Supervisors
Brad Wagenknecht is a middle school social science teacher as well as a County Supervisor. Brad served on the Napa City Council for several terms before his election to the Board of Supervisors. He is active in a variety of community organizations such as Sunrise Rotary and is well known for his leadership efforts with the Napa County 4-H. He has three children, Gretchen, Fritz and Max. Brad has been playing on a city basketball league for 33 years and he has scored better than 4,000 points.
Napa County Health and Human Services
Teresa is a Division Manager at Napa County Health and Human Services with responsibility for public assistance programs such as Medi-Cal, County Medical Services Program, Food Stamps, General Assistance and for vocational services such as Welfare-to-Work and Workforce Investment Act (WIA). A graduate from University of California, Riverside with a degree in psychology, she has worked for NCHHS for over 20 years. Other activities include being a coach and board member for Napa Valley Girls Fast Pitch Association.