Addiction Series: LaToya Shields and Cheryl Kalinec, The Council on Recovery
LaToya Shields and Cheryl Kalinec, The Council on Recovery
LaToya Shields has been in the social service field for 20 years. LaToya holds a bachelor’s degree in social work and a master’s degree in public administration with a concentration in public policy and non-profit management. Both degrees were earned at Texas Southern University, here in Houston, Texas. Recently she was invited to serve as an adjunct professor at the university, serving in the Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs. She currently holds the position of Director of Community Intervention and Support Services at The Council on Recovery. Under this department, LaToya supports various programs with the Harris County Juvenile Probation departments diversion and intervention programs, the Elderly Program, a prevention program for older adults age 60 and over; the Cradles Project, a community based intervention program that targets pregnant and postpartum women and teens; the Healthy Woman Houston Initiative, which is a collaborative effort that hones in on care coordination for women at risk of maternal mortality and morbidity in unique communities, such as Third Ward, Sunnyside, and OST/South Union; and Recovery Support Services, which is an evidence-based practice that supports services to increase long-term recovery and recovery quality. She has spent the last seven years advocating specifically for women and older adults that have been impacted by substance use, addiction, mental health, and systematic disparities.
Cheryl Kalinec, LCSW-S, is the Director of Admissions, Referrals and Engagement at The Council on Recovery. In this role she oversees the intake and admissions of clients to various programs at The Council as well as referrals out to community partners. She has been with The Council since 2010. Cheryl is originally from Southern California where she previously worked as the program manager for a children’s treatment center, focusing on treatment of abused and neglected children. Cheryl holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from University of the Pacific and a master’s degree in social work from Arizona State University. She currently lives in Houston with her husband and a 9-year-old daughter and a dog.