Staff

Executive Director

Terry Chadsey, M.S.T., is Executive Director of the Center and is charged with leading a vital organization that strongly represents, supports and grows the Circle of Trust® approach.  The Center will thrive as we deepen our collaboration with the growing network of facilitators and expand our ways to engage a growing circle of supporters. Terry has been a Circle of Trust Facilitator since 2002 and on the staff of the Center since 2005. He worked in public education for 32 years, teaching grades K through 8 in Chicago, Australia and Washington for 22 of those years. After leaving the classroom he provided leadership to school and district improvement efforts and coaching and professional development to districts and schools, principals and teachers.

Senior Partner

Parker J. Palmer is founder and Senior Partner of the Center. A writer, speaker and activist, he serves as senior advisor to the Fetzer Institute and previously served as senior associate of the American Association of Higher Education. His eight books include Healing the Heart of Democracy, A Hidden Wholeness, Let Your Life Speak, The Courage to Teach, The Active Life, To Know as We Are Known, The Company of Strangers and The Promise of Paradox. He holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California at Berkeley, along with ten honorary doctorates, two Distinguished Achievement Awards from the National Educational Press Association, an Award of Excellence from the Associated Church Press, and major grants from the Danforth Foundation, the Lilly Endowment, and the Fetzer Institute. 

Senior Fellows

Marcy Jackson, M.S.W., M.P.H.,is co-founder and Senior Fellow. She served as Co-Director of the Center for 13 years. Her primary responsibilities include leadership of CCR’s Facilitator Preparation Program, supporting the ongoing development of facilitators in the Courage Collaboration, and contributing to the dissemination of ideas and stories related to the Circle of Trust approach through writing. She has been facilitating Circle of Trust retreats since 1996 with people from a variety of backgrounds and professions. Previously, Marcy worked extensively with individuals, groups, and families as a child and family therapist, grief counselor and group facilitator.

Rick Jackson, M.A.R., M.Div., is co-founder and Senior Fellow.  In his current role, he focuses primarily on developing programs for leaders and partnerships/special projects with kindred organizations. Rick has been facilitating Circle of Trust retreats since 1996 with people from a variety of backgrounds and professions. Rick consults and speaks with non-profit organizations and foundations on a range of topics, including sustaining the identity and integrity of teachers and leaders, community leadership development, and strategies to foster long-term social change. He was an executive with the YMCA for 25 years.

 

Program Manager/Registrar

Robin Gaphni, M.A., has been with the Center since the fall of 1998 in a variety of roles and is currently the Program Manager/Registrar. She has a background in Adult Education and has been an instructor in Motheread/Fatheread, a national family reading and literacy program. Robin has worked and volunteered for nonprofits her entire professional life. Her passion is writing, and she has one unfinished middle-grade novel, numerous picture books in various stages of production and an older blog devoted to children’s books. She has recently started a new blog called Grief & Gratitude.
  

Communications Director

Tracey Denlinger is the daughter of a public school teacher and has more than 20 years of experience serving non-profit organizations as a staff person, board member, and volunteer, and has particular expertise in fundraising and political activism. Prior to joining CCR in 2003, Tracey worked for Planned Parenthood of Western Washington for more than ten years.

 

 

Program Director, Courage & Renewal for Clergy

John Fenner is Program Director for the Center for Courage & Renewal's Courage to Lead for Clergy and Congregational Leaders.  He prepared for formation facilitation with Parker Palmer and the Center in 2003 and has co-facilitated numerous national Circle of Trust retreats as well as a seasonal series for nonprofit leaders. John also works as a consultant to nonprofits, churches, and communities on conflict resolution, dialogue, racial equity, and organizational/community change processes. Between 1989 and 2006, John served as Executive Director of the Center for Dialogue, a community-based nonprofit dedicated to the promotion of peaceful communities and positive change in individuals and organizations.  

Bookkeeper

Cyndi Merritt, prior to joining CCR in June 2006, served non-profits for many years as a staff person and volunteer in finance, operations, volunteer program management, development and records management, including 10 years with the Nature Conservancy and 8 years with the University of Washington.

 

Development Associate

Ann New, M.A., worked in regional educational non-profits for 20 years before joining our staff in 2007. She directed the Preparatory Dance Program at Seattle’s Cornish College of the Arts, and Community Programs at IslandWood.

 

Office Manager 

Anais Delamour joined our staff in October 2011 after moving to Seattle from Sacramento, California, where she worked for several years at Sutter Health, a nonprofit health care system, providing staff support, managing an office collaboration site, and promoting wellness. Her professional experience includes providing organizational and operational support for over ten years in a variety of industries.

 

Assistant Director

Rose Yu, M.A., MBA, joined our leadership team in January 2012. She has been charged to assist Terry in building better systems throughout the Center to enable us to thrive and grow. Rose most recently served as an organizational development specialist at the University of Washington. Past experiences include serving as a leadership coach and psychotherapist, running a non-profit, marketing Boeing airplanes in Europe and Honeywell controls in Asia, and consulting as an aerospace engineer.