Gail Thomas has extensive management experience in both public and private sectors. She has served on the Board of Restorative Resources since 2005.  She is active in many community organizations, including Rotary and the Palm Drive Health Care Foundation, where she serves as President of the Board. Currently owner of Pooh Corner Farm Enterprises, Gail has previously  held a wide variety of positions including Director of Evaluation under the Assistant Secretary for Human Resources of the US Department of Education; Director of Personnel and Management Analysis at the National Institute of Education; and Management Evaluation Specialist at the US Office of Personnel Management. She has authored over 20 professional articles and publications including in Sonoma Management Review; education publications including Academic Administration and Student Financial Aid, and various computer-related manuals and materials. Ms. Thomas holds a BA in Public Administration and Economics from Duke University.

Ross Bickford holds a B.A. in Social Sciences at Sacramento State College; a Teaching Credential and minor in Industrial Arts at Chico State College; a Masters in Education at Los Angeles State University; a Counseling Credential at Long Beach State University; and a Special Education and Administrative Credentials at Sonoma State University. His entire professional career, from September 1968 until June 2009 has been as an educator. He began as a teacher of Social Sciences at Artesia High School in Southern California. Subsequently he  became a special education teacher at the same school.  After moving to Sonoma County in 1977 he started the special education program at Laguna Continuation High School.  In 1986 he and his family moved to Puerto Rico where he served as the counselor at Roosevelt Roads Middle and High School.  In 1994 he became the school's assistant principal until 2001 at which time he became the special education program manager for the same school. When he returned to Sonoma County in 2003 he served as Principal at Laguna Continuation High School until retiring in June of 2009. He’s married to Barbara Kenney who is an elementary school principal in Cotati/Rohnert Park. Ross and Barbara have three grown sons, two of whom are educators. The third is a psychiatrist.

Mike Cook was born and raised in the SF Bay Area, and raised his son Andrew (now 30) in Sebastopol. He is a student of Organization and Leadership Development with an MBA from UCLA.  Mike is a freelance computer professional. A few years ago he attended a course on fund raising offered by the Sonoma Volunteer Center. He has been providing computer support at Restorative Resources and sharing what he learned about fund raising. Mike believes that many of us can find a deep connection to the mission of providing an effective and meaningful approach to justice. As President of a Toastmasters club this year, he sees a possible connection to strengthen Restorative Resources’ outreach and awareness. He is excited to join Restorative Resources' board.

Julie Drogin is a native New Yorker, spending most of the past two decades in Chicago and Boston. She has taught English and History at urban middle and high schools since 1993, as well as led numerous Outward Bound wilderness expeditions with youth and adults. Restorative Justice has been her passion since she began teaching and recognizing the unjust nature of punitive disciplinary policies in schools. She has been incorporating peer mediation and circles into her classrooms for years. Last year, she spent six months studying the implementation of Restorative Justice in schools with the Center for Restorative Justice at Suffolk University in Boston. Recently relocated to Santa Rosa, CA, she is excited to join Restorative Resources’ board as a vehicle for becoming more deeply involved in the schools and communities of Sonoma County.

Laila DeRouen serves as the Board’s Youth Representative. She is a member of the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians.  Laila has been working in Indian Child Welfare for the past four years.  In this capacity she advocates for Indian children and families in both the school and court systems.  Additionally, she also works at Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County facilitating a mentoring program in the Santa Rosa City School District for grades 4th through 8th.  Laila has an Associates Degree is Administration of Justice and General Education and Certificates in: Working with Children in the Justice System, Law Enforcement, Corrections and Juvenile Correctional Counseling.  She is working towards completing a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration with the University of San Francisco.  She also currently serves as a Board member for the Ya-Ka-Ama Indian Education and Development Inc. Laila finds great joy in serving my community and guiding our future generations.

Liz DeRouen Liz is of Pomo descent. She is an ICWA Advocate employed with Indian Child & Family Preservation Program (ICFPP) from 1994-present. Liz graduated from Santa Rosa Junior College with a degree in Administration of Justice and certificate in Juvenile Corrections; Graduated with a degree in Court Reporting from Empire Business & Law School; Currently completing a Paralegal program at Sonoma State University. She has served 1994-2002 in numerous positions including that of the Chairperson for her Tribe.  She has testified on numerous enactments related to Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA, 25 U.S.C., §1901, et seq.) legislation in California and at National Congress of American Indians; Provided training on code and Tribal court development with the National Indian Justice Center for several federally-recognized Tribes, and serves as an expert witness in ICWA hearings for numerous Tribes and Counties. She has served as an ICWA trainer with California Indian Legal Services 1994-2007; Serves as an ICWA consultant and curriculum developer with the CA Administrative Office of the Courts 2001-2009.  In 2008 she was appointed and currently serves as a Task Force Member on the CA OES/ Children’s Justice Act Task Force as a Tribal Appointee. She additionally serves as current Chairperson of the Board of Directors at Ya-Ka-Ama Indian Education & Development, Inc. 2008-2010; Serves as an ICWA Roundtable Participant in Lake, Mendocino and Sonoma Counties and is also Co-Chair of the ICWA State Department of Social Services Workgroup.

Cate Griffiths is Executive Director of RECOURSE Mediation Services, a Sonoma County 501(c)3 not-for-profit community organization. RECOURSE is a founding member, with Restorative Resources, of the Sonoma County Coalition for Restorative Justice. In her work with RECOURSE, Cate works closely with the Superior Court in Sonoma County, Sonoma State University (particularly with the Conflict Resolution Certificate Program), Empire College and many community-based organizations that provide law-related and wrap-around services to marginalized people. She is co-chair of the Alliance for Law Related Services (ALRS), a group of community based organizations and court personnel who work together to help self-represented people navigate the legal and justice systems. Cate is an advanced Toastmaster and speaks to many groups about the benefits of alternatives to litigation, such as mediation, restorative justice, consensus building and other methods of collaborative problem solving.

Patricia O’Reilly is the Owner and Artistic Director of Sonoma Ballet Conservatory in the town of Sonoma.  Previously, she was the Owner- Artistic Director of Vallejo Ballet Conservatory, which she had established in 1993.  Tragically in 2004, her husband Danny O’Reilly was killed by a drunk driver while bicycling home from his job in Santa Rosa.  Patty realized that she was unable to run a business in Vallejo and raise two young daughters while living in Sonoma, where Danny and she had settled in 1992.  In 2005 when the opportunity arose to assume directorship of Sonoma Ballet Conservatory from its retiring founder, Patty fully embraced it, as this had been a dream shared with Danny—to live and teach in the same community.  Patty became involved with Restorative Justice through the desire to have a dialogue with the drunk driver who had killed Danny.  While investigating how to meet with him, she became involved with Insight Prison Project and the Victim-Offender Education Group classes they sponsor.  Since early 2005, she has participated as a Surrogate Victim in group dialogues with offenders in San Quentin.  She is passionate about Restorative Justice and the favorable impact it can have for survivors, offenders and the world at large.  She is pleased to be joining the board of Restorative Resources and looks forward to promoting its goals of transforming conflict, repairing harm and building community.

Sara Tickler is a principal with Tickler & Thomas consulting and has over twenty years of organization development experience. She brings a depth of experience and expertise to her work in process improvement, change management, strategic planning, group facilitation and conflict resolution. She has extensive experience in managing complex, long-term projects and has a successful track record of completing projects on time and within budget. She has worked with a wide variety of public (local and state) and private clients. She is currently focusing her efforts within Sonoma County, where she has lived and worked for over thirty years. Sara holds a doctorate degree in organizational/industrial psychology, a masters in organization development and is an Associate Professor at Sonoma State University in the Organization Development Masters Program. She has a coaching certificate from the Professional School of Psychology and is certified to administer the Myers-Briggs Personality Indicator (MBTI) test.