Amanda Spies is employed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) where she has served since 2019 as a Clinical Psychiatric Social Worker in community mental health. In her current position, she serves in Community Residential Care (CRC), assisting veterans with serious and chronic mental illness to find appropriate housing and level of care in group homes, assisted living, and nursing homes, also overseeing VA contracted group homes for efficacy and compliance according to VA standards. Amanda is also concurrently employed as an independent contractor for Psycho Social Therapies, LLC as a psychotherapist for residents at The Pavilion, an 80-bed nursing and rehabilitation facility, since December 2021. She has previously served at VA from 2019-2023 in Mental Health Intensive Case Management (MHICM), providing case management and community care to veterans with serious mental illness through home visits to assess current mental health status, assistance with treatment adherence (medications and appointments), and support in the community with the goal of reducing or eliminating recidivistic behaviors, such as excessive use of emergency services and increased psychiatric hospitalizations, to increase time spent in the community. Amanda is a military veteran herself of the U.S. Army Reserve, serving from 2003-2005 as a Light Wheeled Mechanic in support to Military Police. She received a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Baldwin Wallace University in 2014, where she completed research on the effects of meditation on stress with significant results. She then received a Master of Arts in Psychology with a Specialization in Military Psychology from Adler University in Chicago, IL in August of 2017 and received a Master of Science in Social Administration from ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ in 2019. Amanda is a Licensed Independent Social Worker with a supervisory designation in the State of Ohio. Amanda has spent most of her academic life focusing on PTSD in military veterans from all theaters of war. Her research interests are focused on the effects PTSD in veterans during late life and improved community care for individuals with serious mental illness. Advisor: David Miller; part-time program