Stacey R. Roth, LCSW, President and Chief Executive Officer
Stacey R. Roth was appointed Chief Executive Officer in July 2020 to replace former CEO Joe Costa, who will be retiring from Hillsides in 2021. Prior to this role, Stacey served as executive vice president and chief operating officer where she oversaw Hillsides' behavioral health division; campus-based services, including Hillsides Education Center; community-based outpatient services, which includes all Family Resource Center programs; foster care and adoptions; new funding and program opportunities; Trauma-Informed Care; and transition-aged youth services.
Stacey, a licensed clinical social worker, has been a part of Hillsides since 1996. Stacey was a therapist in Tradewinds cottage for seven years before moving to the Family Resource Centers. As coordinator at of the school-based mental health program at San Rafael Elementary, Stacey oversaw the counseling and support services for students and their families.
She quickly became the clinical director and in less than a year was asked to be the director of Family Resource Centers. Overseeing all aspects of Family Resource Centers programs, Stacey was responsible for managing the school-based mental health programs and numerous Los Angeles County contracts for programs such as Family Support, Family Preservation, and Mental Health Services Act. In addition, Stacey oversaw the three Family Resource Centers located at Pasadena, Baldwin Park, and downtown Los Angeles. Stacey oversaw the relocation of the Family Resource Center from the Cathedral Center location in Echo Park to its current site in Los Angeles. In addition, she has encouraged the expansion of mental health programs to serve many more families in Greater Los Angeles, East Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley.
Previous to her most current position, Stacey served as Hillsides chief program officer. In this position, Stacey was responsible for the growth and maintenance of all Hillsides programs. During this time period she helped to create a Behavioral Health Division, which included a centralized intake system, a professional development department, and a research and evaluation department. In 2016, she helped to facilitate an affiliation between Hillsides and Bienvenidos, another leading child welfare agency. Due to this affiliation, Stacey oversaw an expansion of several mental health programs resulting in acquiring four more sites within Los Angeles and San Bernardino Counties. In addition, Stacey helped to integrate a brand new Foster Care and Adoptions Program within Hillsides’ array of services.
One of the priorities dear to Stacey’s heart is Hillsides commitment to Trauma-Informed Care (TIC), part of a movement in the mental health field to recognize the profound cognitive, social, and emotional impacts of trauma, especially among public mental health clients. TIC has been shown to reduce the length of treatment and improve outcomes for clients. Stacey has been leading the effort to train all Hillsides employees in trauma-informed practices that are endorsed by the National Council on Behavioral Health since 2013 and she has overseen a TIC committee of Hillsides employees.
Among the most immediate tasks for Roth will be to help the organization navigate the many challenges presented by the COVID-19 crisis, both organizationally and financially, and work with the board on a new strategic planning process.
Carrie Espinoza, Chief Advancement Officer
Well-respected among her peers and donor community, Carrie Espinoza serves as the agency’s chief advancement officer. In her role, Carrie is responsible for raising more than $2 million a year to augment public funding for Hillsides programs. In addition, she is charged with fundraising for special initiatives, such as the agency’s recent $17 million capital campaign to enhance its aging Pasadena campus.
Carrie began her career at Hillsides in 1997 in the community resources department, cultivating relationships with volunteers and in-kind donors along with organizing special events, outings, and activities for the children living at Hillsides. In 2004, she was named assistant director of development and in 2013, director of development. Carrie brings knowledge of the various components of our advancement services department, an effective working relationship with her team, the confidence of our donors, and a demonstrated commitment to our mission. She oversees major gifts and planned giving, annual support, grant management, corporate sponsorships, communications, direct mail, and marketing, special events, and the fundraising component of support groups. In addition, Carrie participates in the board of directors meetings including attending executive, finance, capital campaign, membership, and building and grounds committees. Carrie is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
As a former board member and Ways & Means committee member at Holy Angels Catholic elementary school in Arcadia, she honed her special event skills by developing and overseeing all fundraising events for several years.
Previous to Hillsides, Carrie owned and operated adult residential care facilities for thirty years. She received her associate’s degree and certificate of achievement in nursing home administration from Pasadena City College. Carrie also earned her nursing home administrator license from the California Department of Public Health.
Diana Buehler, JD, Chief Administrative Officer
Diana Buehler is the chief administrative officer, bringing some 25 years experience working in nonprofits. In this role, she is responsible for overseeing risk management, the human resources department, the quality assurance department, operations, contracts, and our accreditation process.
Diana comes to Hillsides from Bienvenidos, where she served as the chief operating officer for 11 years, from 2005 to July, 2016. There, she oversaw 170 staff and 15 satellite offices, acted as a liaison with the Department of Children and Family Services and Community Care licensing, managed human resources and partnered with the division directors to plan and direct all aspects of the agency’s operational policies, objectives, and initiatives.
Diana also worked for Bienvenidos from 1990 to 2000 as the human resources director. She created the human resources department and instituted all necessary state and federal labor laws. She also assisted the agency in creating the employee policies and procedures handbook.
In between jobs at Bienvenidos, Diana earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of La Verne and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of La Verne Law School. During these years, she also worked as the human resources director for the Urban Education Partnership, an education nonprofit in Los Angeles. She also earned a masters of science in leadership and management with a concentration in nonprofit management from the University of La Verne in May 2015.
Gina M. Perez, Psy.D., Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
Dr. Perez brings over 23 years of professional experience to her work at Hillsides, having served as Chief Administrative Officer & Compliance Officer at Hathaway Sycamores, Chief Program Officer at Five Acres, and Corporate Director at Pacific Clinics. Dr. Perez brings experience in serving multiple counties throughout California. She has been responsible for the development and oversight of an array of clinical programming in the specialized areas of prevention and early intervention, birth to five, and transition age youth, populations. Dr. Perez also brings business acumen to her role having led research, training, finance, quality management, contracts, and compliance departments. Dr. Perez is trained as a Early Child Development Specialist at Cedars Sinai Medical Center, Early Childhood Center. Dr. Perez has served as co-chair of the L.A. County Department of Mental Health Advisory Committee for ten years, and as County-Wide Delegate for two years. She has also served as Board Member of California Mental Health Advocates for Children and Youth, and held various committee positions as part of the California Alliance of Child and Family Services.
Greg P. Santilli, CPA, CIA, Chief Financial Officer
Greg P. Santilli, CPA, CIA was appointed Chief Financial Officer in February 2021 and is responsible for all finances of Hillsides and its affiliate Bienvenidos. Prior to this role, Greg was the Director of Accounting and Financial Reporting for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, and before that he was the Chief Financial Officer for New Horizons: Serving Individuals with Special Needs.
Greg brings to Hillsides extensive for-profit and nonprofit experience across multiple industries. This experience includes financial reporting and analysis, financial planning, budgeting and forecasting, internal auditing, treasury management and staff member participation on nonprofit finance, development, strategic planning, facilities and risk management committees.
After losing his only sibling brother to suicide in 2005, Greg became a staunch mental health advocate. He is an Advisory Board Member for Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services’ Survivor After Suicide (SAS) Program, is a trained co-facilitator for the SAS program, and attends monthly SAS drop-in meetings to provide newer survivors of suicide loss with a sense of hope and purpose. Greg’s mental health and suicide prevention commitment includes congressional advocacy efforts in Washington D.C. while he was a board member of the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
Greg has a strong commitment to community service which includes being a former member of the Los Angeles Catholic Archdiocesan Finance Council; former Finance Council Chair at Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Catholic Church in Santa Clarita for eight years where he led a capital campaign that resulted in the construction of the second-largest Catholic church in the Los Angeles Archdiocese; and former Treasurer and Board Member of the Santa Clarita Valley Food Pantry for four years.
Greg holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, Option in Accounting from California State University, Northridge, and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in California. He also holds a Certified Internal Auditor designation. In 2017 he was recognized with the CFO of the Year designation by the San Fernando Valley Business Journal.
Cindy Macias, LMFT, Division Chief, Bienvenidos Foster Care and Adoption Services
Cindy Macias, a licensed marriage and family therapist, is the division chief of Bienvenidos Foster Care and Adoption Services. In this position, she works closely with the Chief Clinical Officer to develop and implement a strategic plan for the direction, growth and diversity of services of the program. She also assists in the development and management of the annual budget and goals for the foster family division and all activities associated with program operations. Further, she directs the development and implementation of program infrastructure, policies and procedures to assure consistency across sites and within the department and ensure adherence to the state and county standards for out-of-home care, among other duties.
Previously Cindy served as the director for Hillsides Family Resource Centers, South Pasadena for four years, where she managed all programs and services and worked with other Family Resource Centers directors in the overall planning and development of the many resource centers Hillsides maintains throughout Southern California. Prior to that, Cindy headed up both the Family Resource Centers, Pasadena (which moved to South Pasadena) and the Family Resource Centers, Echo Park.
Cindy started her career at Hillsides in 2001 as a therapeutic behavioral specialist. She then became a marriage and family therapist intern before moving into the position of Hillsides Family Resource Centers, Echo Park program manager, where she supervised mental health staff and Hillsides contractors, among other duties.
Cindy received a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from California State University, Los Angeles and a Master of Science in Counseling Psychology from Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles.
Casey Meinster, LMFT, Division Chief, Campus-Based Services
Casey Meinster serves as the division chief of campus-based services at Hillsides. In this role, Casey provides clinical and administrative oversight to the legacy Hillsides Residential program, HillsidesCares, and the migrant children shelter program. The collective group of programs serve a wide range of children and youth ages 6 to 17 that come to Hillsides through the Department of Children and Family Services or through families’ health insurance and private pay.
Casey has dedicated her professional career to working with populations that need intensive behavioral healthcare and support. For nearly twenty years she has worked in various roles in facility-based settings including state hospitals in Northern California, juvenile treatment centers in Colorado, and residential treatment programs in San Diego, Altadena, and Pasadena. Early in her career, she made the decision to remain committed to this vulnerable population following personal life experience with losing loved ones to suicide.
Casey holds a Master of Arts degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Alliant International University, Alhambra CA and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Fort Lewis College, Durango CO. She also maintains a small private practice in South Pasadena seeing adolescents struggling with depression and anxiety.
Correnda Perkins, LCSW, Division Chief, Community-Based Services
Correnda Perkins joined Hillsides in December 2017 as the new division chief of transition-aged youth services and has since expanded her role to the division chief of community-based services. She supervises the transitional housing program, Youth Moving On, the Peer Resource Center, and Hillsides Family Resource Centers. Correnda comes to YMO from St. Anne’s where she was the vice president of Community-Based Programs. She is very familiar with workforce development services as she managed the Los Angeles TAY Collaborative and was responsible for budgeting, reporting, conducting presentations, and strategic planning. Correnda worked at St. Anne’s for eight years and began as a therapist for individuals and families/caregivers. In her most recent position, she oversaw the programs in the Family-Based and Mental Health Services departments. She also managed and complied with public and private grant requirements for workforce development services and other areas.
Correnda has a master’s in social work from San Jose State University, and holds a bachelor’s in sociology with a minor in Spanish from University of Redlands. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and certified in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy and Managing and Adapting Practices.
