Executive Committee
Annette Burrhus-Clay
Annette Burrhus-Clay is the Executive Director for the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault (TAASA) in Austin. She has worked for 30 years in the crime victim services field. Her areas of expertise include sexual violence, sexual harassment, and stalking.
Clay is a member of several state and national advisory boards dedicated to interpersonal violence. She is a licensed law enforcement instructor in the state of Texas and continues to provide training and technical assistance as her schedule allows.
James S. Castro, LPC, LMFT
In 1996 James graduated with his Master’s degree in Marriage & Family Therapy from St. Mary’s University and has since become a leader in Texas promoting children and family’s well-being. Currently he is the Executive Director for St. Peter-St. Joseph Children's Home (St. PJ’s) in San Antonio. St. PJ’s cares for abused and neglected children, 143 at any given time, ranging in age from infancy to 17 years old. James was recognized by Governor Rick Perry for his work by being appointed in October 2009 to the Texas State Task Force to Reduce Child Abuse & Neglect.
Prior to this appointment Castro was appointed by Governor Perry and served six years on the Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors, he also served on the Board of Mental Health America of Texas. His commitment to children and families includes serving as the Chair for the Bexar County Community Resource & Coordination Group (CRCG) for six years, 2002 -2008, as one of the initial leaders for the Bexar County Children’s Diversion Initiative that began in 2007 and also serving the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission as a member of its Models for Change initiative. He currently holds licenses as a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist.
Nancy S. Harper, MD FAAP
Nancy Sanders Harper is the Medical Director for the CARE (Child Abuse Resource & Evaluation) Team at Driscoll Children’s Hospital in Corpus Christi, TX. Dr. Harper is Board Certified in General Pediatrics and Child Abuse Pediatrics. She graduated from Dartmouth Medical School in 1995, and completed her pediatric residency in 1998 at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth in Virginia.
After graduation, Dr. Harper served as a staff pediatrician and Child Abuse Consultant for Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, and then moved overseas to US Naval Hospital Okinawa in Japan where she continued as a Child Abuse Consultant and chair of the medical staff. In 2004, Dr. Harper resigned from the US Navy and entered into fellowship training in Forensic Pediatrics at Brown University in RI, graduating in January 2007. Dr. Harper has served on the Committee on Pediatric Centers of Excellence (79th Legislature) tasked with the development of guidelines for designating regional centers of excellence for child abuse in Texas.
Dr. Harper is a consultant on the medical advisory committee for Superior Health Plan for foster care. She is the current Co-Chair for the Texas Pediatric Society Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect. Dr. Harper was appointed by Governor Perry to the state-wide Blue Ribbon Task Force to Reduce Child Abuse and Neglect (81st Legislature SB 2080). The Task Force of nine people has been legislatively charged with addressing child abuse prevention and the promotion of child well-being for the state of Texas.
Pamela A. Russell, LCSW, LPC
Pamela Russell of Clarksville is senior therapist and owner of Paris Counseling Center. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Licensed Professional Counselor. Currently, she is an Advisory Board Member for the Downtown Food Pantry and has served on the Little Ark Center for Learning Advisory Board, Goodland Children's Home Board of Trustees, the Texas Council of Child Welfare Boards, and Texas A&M University - Commerce Social Work Advisory Board. She is a founding member of the Paris Pregnancy Center and Life Anew Adoption Agency. She authored a children's book about abuse. Russell received a bachelor's degree from Oklahoma State University, a master's degree in Social Work from the University of Texas at Arlington, and pursued a doctorate degree in Marriage & Family Therapy at Texas A&M University - Commerce.
Janetta Michaels
Janetta Michaels received a Bachelors of Social Work from the University of North Texas, and a Masters of Public Administration from the University of Texas at Dallas. Janetta has been with the Children's Advocacy Center of Collin County since 1994, and is the Senior VP of Operations and a Forensic Interviewer. In this capacity, Janetta is directly responsible for program development and implementation, staff development, coordination of client services, coordination of volunteer services and forensic interviewing.
Janetta has served on numerous committees including Senator Shapiro’s Blue Ribbon Legislation Committee that designed and passed “Ashley’s Laws”, an aggressive package of sex offender laws, the Collin County Council on Family Violence, Target Kids In Court Foster Care Forum, Children's Advocacy Center of Collin County Training Institute, and the Collin County Child Fatality Review Team. Janetta conducts training in the areas of forensic interviewing and developing a multi-disciplinary team.
Adriana Maddox
Adriana is a graduate of St. Mary’s University (BBA, International Business 1995) and St. Mary’s University—School of Law (JD/MBA 1999). She returned home to Laredo upon graduation and has been practicing law here ever since. It has been over ten years that she has enjoyed helping people through her practice. Every day, she works to find solutions to her clients’ most difficult and important problems. Adriana’s practice is primarily focused on civil litigation, including all aspects of family law, such as divorce, marital property, child custody, and child support. Families going through a difficult divorce and its aftermath need experienced counsel who can provide calm and clear advice coupled with strong, aggressive advocacy when necessary.
Adriana also practices in the area of probate litigation, including probating and contesting of wills and disputes involving trusts and estates. With her strong business background and litigation experience, Adriana handles business litigation and disputes involving customs, warehousing, and transportation issues.
Adriana regularly assists clients in the areas of oil, gas, and natural resources, including litigation and transactions.
Christopher S. Greeley, MD
Christopher Spencer Greeley, was received his undergraduate degree from Hobart College in Geneva New York where he majored in Biology and Religious Studies. He received his medical degree from the University of Virginia in 1992 and complete internship and residency in pediatrics at Vanderbilt University. He spent three years in private pediatric practice in Franklin Tennessee before returning to Vanderbilt University in the Division of General Pediatrics in 1998. He is board certified in pediatrics as well as Child Abuse Pediatrics, and is a member of the AMA and the AAP. He is a member of the AAP Section on Child Abuse and Neglect and Section on International Child Health. His main clinical interests are in International Child Health, Child Abuse and Neglect, and vulnerable populations.
Dr. Greeley was also the Medical Director of the Child Abuse and Neglect Program. He was on the state Board of Directors for Prevent Child Abuse Tennessee, Tennessee CASA as well as Nurses for Newborns of Tennessee. Dr. Greeley currently is Vice Chair for Academic Affairs in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. He is Associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Center For Clinical Research and Evidence-Based Medicine. He spends most of his clinical time working in the Pediatric Emergency Center and inpatient ward, and training residents and medical students. He has won the Pediatrics Departmental teaching award in 2008, 2009 and 2010. He is married to a pediatrician and they have triplet sons.
Madeline McClure, LCSW
Madeline McClure, LCSW is the founder and Executive Director of TexProtects, The Texas Association for the Protection of Children. Madeline is the Texas Speaker of the House Appointee to the Blue Ribbon Task Force on Child Abuse Prevention and Child Welfare; serves as a Collaborative Council Member on the Supreme Court Permanent Judicial Commission on Children and Youth (Children’s Commission) and Co-Chair of The Nurse Family Partnership Statewide Advisory Board. After a 9-yr. career in finance and economics as VP of SG Warburg in Manhattan, Madeline switched careers, earning her MSSW and her clinical license, practicing over 5 years providing therapy to child abuse victims.
Madeline now focuses on making systemic change by helping thousands of children via legislative advocacy in child protection issues. She founded TexProtects, which conducts research and provides blueprints for legislation and facilitates passage of dozens of Texas policy priorities and child protection funding. In this role of TexProtects E.D., she Chairs the Child Protection Roundtable, a collaborative of statewide child abuse researchers, private providers, medical staff, legal counsel, public policy groups and other stakeholders that work towards unanimous legislative and funding priorities for the benefit of children at risk of maltreatment and those victimized by child maltreatment.
Mary Tipps
Mary Tipps is the Executive Director of Texans for Lawsuit Reform. She manages the day-to-day operations of this statewide advocacy organization with over 18,000 members. She represents and is a spokesman for TLR at the Capitol and in communities across the State of Texas. Her previous employment was in the field of marketing, which took her from Mexico to North Texas.
Mary is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Latin American studies. She was appointed by Governor Bush to the Colonia Resource Committee of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs.
She is a resident of Austin. She is an active community volunteer. At the Austin Children’s Shelter, she was awarded Volunteer of the Year in 2003 and 2008 and has served on the board of directors since 2007. Mary also serves on the board of directors of Dress for Success and is a member of the Settlement Home for Girls. She is a member of the Women’s Fund of Central Texas and chaired the fund’s 2011-2012 grants committee.