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Our Team

Key Assets Nova Scotia is led by a team of dedicated professionals and staffed by many exceptional child and youth care workers who believe we can always do better for the youth we serve.

Leadership Team

    Todd

    Todd Leader

    Provincial Director, Key Assets Nova Scotia
    Todd Leader is a Registered Social Worker, spent more than 20 years as a Registered Community Psychologist, and has had a decades-long career as a multiple-award-winning transformational leader in healthcare.. He has also been a multiple-award-winning member of the Faculty of Science (Psychology) at Saint Mary’s University since 1990. Todd has been a member of the Nova Scotia Ministerial Advisory Panel on Innovation in Mental Health and Addictions, President of the Public Health Association of Nova Scotia, President of the Association of Psychologists of Nova Scotia, a member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Public Health Association, and is currently Vice President of the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers. Todd’s contribution to his community has been recognized by a declaration in the Nova Scotia Legislature, and his 2016 book “It’s Not About Us; The Secret to Transforming the Mental Health and Addiction System in Canada” continues to influence client-centered system change across Canada.
    Heidi

    Heidi Holloway

    Manager of Care Services
    Heidi Holloway holds a degree in Child and Youth Studies from Mount Saint Vincent University, and has had the privilege of practicing in this field for over 12 years. Throughout that time she has worked in a variety of direct-care settings serving vulnerable populations of children and youth. Heidi has published articles in CYCW journals and most recently authored a chapter in the 2021 publication Relational Child and Youth Care in Action. She has presented at both national and international conferences for various social-service-related disciplines. Heidi is a facilitator of PersonBrain training and 3 Pillars of Trauma Informed Care, as well as being an experiential-recreation trainer with High Five (a Canadian standard for physical literacy programs with children). Heidi has a deep passion for quality, both in the therapeutic care provided to children and youth, and in the leadership and support she offers to the care providers.

     

    Jacolyn

    Jacolyn Trites

    Program Supervisor
    Jacolyn Trites is a graduate of the Child and Youth Care program at the Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC) and has practiced Child and Youth Care in a variety of milieus since 2008. Her passion for this field is unparalleled. Jacolyn has been an active Board Member of the Nova Scotia Child and Youth Care Workers Association throughout most of her career, and was the Co-Chair of the Canadian National Child and Youth Care Conference in 2014 and again in 2016. Coming full circle and giving back, Jacolyn teaches on a part time basis, as a member of the Auxiliary Faculty in the Child and Youth Care Program at NSCC. Jacolyn has written and cowritten several articles for the Relational Journal of Child and Youth Care in relation to the work she has done in both practice and educational settings.  Jacolyn also finds time to volunteer and offer respite for a community family.
    Jason Thomas

    Jason Thomas

    Program Supervisor
    Jason Thomas completed a Child and Youth Care Diploma with honors, from the Nova Scotia Community College, and is currently enrolled in further studies in the Child and Youth Care field. He has practiced as a Child and Youth Care Worker in a full-time capacity for eight years serving children and youth who have endured adverse childhood experiences, and who often express this with aggressive behaviors. Jason has developed and implemented materials and programming on Empathy Building in Child and Youth Care Practice. He has been dedicated to educating others in Trauma Informed Care principles and has facilitated learning for community groups on this topic. Jason joined the Key Assets Nova Scotia team as Program Supervisor in 2019 as the program in Nova Scotia was being developed.
    Jessica

    Jessica Weyman

    Program Supervisor
    Jessica Weyman completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Mount Saint Vincent University then continued her education at the Nova Scotia Community College where she obtained an Advanced Diploma in Behavioural Interventions. This is when her passion for implementing interventions to address emotional and behavioural concerns lead her to the Child and Youth Care field. She has worked in residential programs for 10 years, serving children and youth who have endured adverse childhood experiences, as well as female youth who are involved in sexual exploitation. This work experience gave her the opportunity to work in one of the first programs utilizing a trauma-informed approach within Nova Scotia, becoming an advocate for children and youth and having the opportunity to spread awareness of trauma-informed care to allied professionals.