Course Support Team
In addition to our Faculty, we have a hand-picked team of individuals who have all studied extensively in Dr. Neufeld's approach and have not only demonstrated their mastery of the material but also their ability to support the students of our courses.
These members of the Course Support Team (affectionately known as CAT’s) are also available to present/teach Neufeld Institute courses to groups and teams around the world via virtual means and in person in their communities.
The Course Support Team is listed in alphabetical order by surname.
Jeanie Alderson
Montana, USA
Jeanie has been teaching and supporting adults and parents for over 25 years. She has worked as a consultant with Northern Cheyenne Head Start and Lame Deer Public Schools, and as an instructor in the Adult Basic Education Program at Chief Dull Knife College. Jeanie ranches with her family in Montana and is the mother of two children. She brings a grounded, community-based perspective to her work and is passionate about supporting those who care for children.
Kevin Bredeman
British Columbia, Canada
Kevin is a Canadian Certified Counsellor with an M.A. in Counselling Psychology from Trinity Western University. He works as a therapist supporting youth with mental health challenges who struggle to stay connected to school. Since completing the Neufeld Institute’s Facilitator Diploma Program in 2016, Kevin feels so much hope and inspiration whenever he sees this paradigm working in his involvement with youth and their families as well as his own parenting. He lives in British Columbia with his wife and two sons.
Nina Bregman
Ontario, Canada
Nina graduated with a Master's in Social Work from the University of Toronto in 1995. She has been working in the area of attachment since then but really came to understand its preeminence in 2013 when she encountered Dr. Neufeld, first as a mother, and then as a professional. Nina has been studying the developmental paradigm ever since and she brings this model, and her focus on emotion and relationship, to her clients and colleagues at the Toronto District School Board where she works full-time as a School Social Worker. Nina brings her warmth, and compassion to her parent groups and she enlivens the material through her personal stories and experience.
Christine Brook
Ontario, Canada
Christine is originally from New Brunswick but moved to Ontario 30 years ago. She has been working with children and families for well over 30 years in various capacities. For many years, she served as Director of St. Lawrence Youth Association, providing restorative and preventative youth justice programs. She has a private practice and has been the mental health consultant for two school boards in Ontario. Christine has 3 grown children, and is a step-parent to two more, and a grandmother.
Wanda Christensen
Alberta, Canada
Wanda is an education consultant with over 30 years of experience in the field, having the honor of serving as a teacher, school counsellor, administrator, and assistant superintendent. She is deeply passionate about supporting the healthy development of children and youth and relies on an attachment-based developmental approach in all areas of her work. Wanda offers training and consultation to educators, professionals, and caregivers, helping them make sense of the children and youth in their care. She lives on a small farm near Rimbey, Alberta, and enjoys time with her family, being in nature, and exploring the world through travel.
Dayna Davis
British Columbia, Canada
Dayna Davis has been a teacher for over 30 years in Waldorf, public and alternative school settings. She is a parent of two grown children and currently teaches music and art in an outdoor program in an elementary school on Cortes Island in B.C. Dayna brings a passion for the wellbeing of children through an attachment- developmental lens. She is an advocate for play and arts-based programming in schools. Dayna offers parenting classes on Cortes and Quadra Island and professional development for teachers in the Campbell River School District.
Andrea Dyck
Manitoba, Canada
Andrea Dyck holds a MA in Counselling Psychology. She is a professional counselling therapist and certified childbirth educator. Andrea is passionate about the Neufeld approach. Grateful for the way this insight has supported her own family story, she enjoys coming alongside parents in their journeys to support their children. Andrea applies this understanding of relationship and development both to supporting parents as well as emotional well-being for people of all ages in her counselling practice. She sees therapy as a relational support for the natural healing and growth process. Andrea is married with three children, two of whom are young adults.
Jennifer Miller Gehman
Manitoba, Canada
Jennifer is an educator, curriculum writer, and home education consultant with a deep passion for protecting the integrity of childhood. She is especially interested in the vital role of play in a child’s development and how its erosion—alongside growing academic pressures—is contributing to the struggles many children face today. Jennifer sees the Neufeld approach as a powerful lens for restoring what childhood is meant to be. She is dedicated to supporting parents and educators in creating environments where children can grow and learn in ways that honour their developmental needs. Whether through writing, consulting, or teaching, Jennifer brings a thoughtful, heartfelt commitment to nurturing the conditions in which children can truly thrive.
Janet Greaves
Alberta, Canada
Janet is a retired Child Development Advisor with a background in psychology and over 30 years of experience working with children and families in both educational and community settings. She is the parent of two adult daughters and has been an active member of the Neufeld Institute community for many years. As a Course Facilitator, Janet is passionate about helping adults make sense of the children in their care. With a calm and steady presence, she brings her deep experience and heartfelt commitment to supporting those who are raising and working with children.
Liz Hatherell
Manitoba, Canada
Liz Hatherell is a mother of three adult children, grandmother of five, and has been married to her husband Julian for nearly 50 years. She is deeply passionate about helping parents make sense of their children and finds great joy in sharing the Neufeld approach with those who care for the young. For Liz, this material resonated from the start—it felt like it fit just right in her heart. She believes Dr. Neufeld’s insights offer not only a way to understand our children, but a way to make sense of life itself. Liz continues to deepen her studies through the Neufeld Institute and is actively engaged in ongoing training, always eager to expand her understanding of this rich developmental paradigm.
Jane Jewitt
Ontario, Canada
Jane is a retired teacher, special education consultant and school administrator. With her extensive education and experience both in and out of school systems, she brings a wealth of perspectives to her support of Neufeld Institute students. She has taught children of all ages and functioned as both consultant and case manager for students struggling in school with behavior/learning difficulties and with special needs. She is a mother of 3 daughters and is enjoying time with her 4 young grandchildren. She supports many of the Institutes online courses. Lifelong learning and supporting the developmental needs of children have always been close to her heart.
Elaine Jones
Ontario, Canada
Elaine worked in children’s mental health for 9 years and in education for over 30 years. Although her formal education was a BA in Psychology, she worked as a Social Worker for most of her career. She started with the Neufeld Institute in about 2014 and has been using the developmental attachment framework in her practice since. While her children have grown up, they are still her children and the family has only grown with the addition of their lovely partners and recent grandchildren and two adopted adolescent grandsons.
Catherine Kirkness
British Columbia, Canada
Catherine has studied Dr. Neufeld’s approach for over 20 years. She holds master`s degrees from the University of British Columbia in English (MA) and Counselling Psychology (MEd), and she is registered with the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors. Her experience of parenthood inspired her to build a career supporting others. She works as a counsellor with No Fear Counselling, where she offers remote and in-person sessions to adult clients, as well as with Dr. Deborah McNamara`s practice, Kid`s Best Bet, where she offers remote sessions to parents, rooted in Dr. Neufeld`s attachment-based, developmental model.
Eugena Maguire
Alberta, Canada
Eugena Maguire is a social worker, Neufeld course facilitator and former foster parent. She has been studying the Neufeld paradigm since 2013 and has implemented it into both her counselling practice and her everyday life. Eugena works as a therapist at Karunia Counselling in Leduc, Alberta and ASK Therapy, a telehealth clinic focused on serving moms in the perinatal period. She lives in Leduc County with her wife and in her spare time enjoys writing poetry, travelling, event organizing and connecting to nature. She finds play through learning and is a self-proclaimed children’s book enthusiast. Eugena is passionate about working with 2SLGBTIQ+ folks. She also has a vested interest in supporting clients through grief, including loss related to suicide, as well as helping parents navigate co-parenting dynamics.
Jennifer Pearson
Ontario, Canada
Jennifer is a Registered Psychotherapist in private practice in Toronto, where she works with parents, children, adolescents, and adults. She was introduced to Dr. Neufeld’s work in 2016 and has embraced the attachment-based developmental approach both professionally and personally. A mother of two young adults, Jennifer has found this perspective indispensable in parenting her own children. She became a Neufeld Course Facilitator in 2019 and her work continues to be deeply informed by the insights of the Neufeld paradigm.
April Quan
Ontario, Canada
April Quan is long time Neufeld course facilitator and parent consultant. She is a former teacher and administrator at the Waldorf Academy in Toronto, and former lead for their Parent & Child program. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts, a Bachelor of Education, and is a member of the Ontario College of Teachers. She is a certified grief recovery specialist with the Grief Recovery Institute. She lives in Toronto with her husband. Her two children are now wonderful young men.
Pamela Tobin
British Columbia, Canada
Pam is based in Victoria, BC where she creatively weaves her numerous skills together in various endeavors including designing and facilitating pre-adolescent girls groups, forest school consulting, parent, teacher and early childhood educator course facilitation, workshops, and one-on-one support. She is the program coordinator and family consultant for a non-profit learning center for children presenting with behavioural and learning challenges, offering an array of programs, Neufeld courses and workshops for parents and educators, and in private counselling practice.
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Charity & Non-Profit Status
The Neufeld Institute is a registered Canadian charitable organization under the name Neufeld Institute Foundation and is also registered as a NPO in British Columbia. If you would like to make a contribution to us, please go to our donation page.
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