Our Mission & Team
BEST provides webinars, workshops, and courses to help brain injury survivors relearn skills and develop practical strategies to navigate the daily challenges they encounter.
BEST also provides a community for survivors to share stories, tips, and strategies from their recovery journey.
Our Mission
BEST helps those with brain injury—and other medical conditions impacting cognition—who have never received or have exhausted their medical rehabilitation and continue to struggle with day-to-day cognitive challenges.
Our Vision
To be the premier cognitive rehabilitation resource for those living with brain injury around the world.
Our Core Values
- Be authentic
- Generalize to new areas
- Listen actively
- Embrace diverse perspectives
- Learn with purpose
Meet Our Team
Michelle Ranae Wild
Founder/CEO
Michelle Ranae Wild
Founder/CEO
Ms. Wild contributes an
unmatched expertise and experience in the design and delivery of learning opportunities,
curricula, and other products for individuals with ABI, as well as their family members,
informal caregivers, and professionals who work with this population. She is a nationally
recognized leader in this field who has authored more than 30 publications and given more
than 200 presentations and customized trainings to survivors, educators, clinicians,
administrators, nonprofits, and other stakeholders in the ABI community.
As a tenured, award-winning Professor of Special Programs & Services at Coastline College since 1986, she has taught cognitive retraining and psychosocial skills designed to foster greater confidence, autonomy, productivity and personal/community engagement to over 1000 adults at various stages of their brain injury journey in the school’s Acquired Brain Injury Program. She has an exemplary track record in conceptualizing and leading projects aimed at addressing the educational needs of the ABI community in her seven years as CEO of BEST, and in her capacity as Project Director/Chief Instructional Designer through grants and contracts with several federal, state, and local agencies across the country throughout her career.
As a tenured, award-winning Professor of Special Programs & Services at Coastline College since 1986, she has taught cognitive retraining and psychosocial skills designed to foster greater confidence, autonomy, productivity and personal/community engagement to over 1000 adults at various stages of their brain injury journey in the school’s Acquired Brain Injury Program. She has an exemplary track record in conceptualizing and leading projects aimed at addressing the educational needs of the ABI community in her seven years as CEO of BEST, and in her capacity as Project Director/Chief Instructional Designer through grants and contracts with several federal, state, and local agencies across the country throughout her career.
Kristi Kragthorpe
Co-Founder
BEST Co-founder, will serve as an Instructional Designer and an
ABI Contributor. Ms. Pero, a brain injury survivor, who graduated from Ms. Wild’s Coastline
College ABI class in 2017, was instrumental in inspiring and supporting Ms. Wild’s efforts
to establish a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that more people with ABIs
have access to the wealth of knowledge and skill-building experiences available to Coastline
students. She plays a key role in helping to design and deliver BEST’s online courses and
live, virtual training programs. Participants routinely cite her contributions to BEST
webinars, workshops, and After Hours sessions as enriching, insightful, relatable, and
supportive. She also shares her hard-won wisdom on strategies to address the needs of
people with injured brains as a co-presenter at national and community-based conferences.
David Brian Rhodes
Project Manager
David Brian Rhodes
Project Manager
David serves as the Project Manager and an Instructional Designer. He
brings to these roles more than eighteen years’ experience as a training and development
manager for communications corporations, and a strong track record in crafting solutions
that captivate diverse audiences through applications of adult learning theory.
He has extensive expertise in designing curricula that improve process and performance via the integration of best practices, based on his demonstrated skill in identifying instructional objectives, research and analysis of trends and knowledge gaps, sequencing of content for effective learning, assessment and post-evaluation of learning, quality assurance and ethical considerations.
As Project Manager at BEST, Mr. Rhodes co-creates educational content for workshops and webinars; helps to ensure responsiveness to clients’ needs by analyzing logistical building blocks, diversity of learners, and solicited feedback; and provides audio/visual editing support to ensure quality and accessibility.
He has extensive expertise in designing curricula that improve process and performance via the integration of best practices, based on his demonstrated skill in identifying instructional objectives, research and analysis of trends and knowledge gaps, sequencing of content for effective learning, assessment and post-evaluation of learning, quality assurance and ethical considerations.
As Project Manager at BEST, Mr. Rhodes co-creates educational content for workshops and webinars; helps to ensure responsiveness to clients’ needs by analyzing logistical building blocks, diversity of learners, and solicited feedback; and provides audio/visual editing support to ensure quality and accessibility.
Anna K. Anderson
Technical Writer/Editor
Anna K. Anderson
Technical Writer/Editor
Anna is a certified technical writer and editor
with over 20 years of experience in professional writing, editing, and coaching writing and
academic subjects. In her coaching, she has expertise in working with students with
executive function challenges using a systems-based approach that builds on students’
strengths. She sustained a traumatic brain injury in 2018, became aware of BEST in 2020,
and has volunteered for BEST since February 2023, editing and providing peer support.
Ms. Anderson earned her BA and MA (ABT) in Scandinavian Languages and Literature, and
Certificate in Technical Writing and Editing all at the University of Washington.
Meet Our Board
Stacey Hunter Schwartz, Ph.D.
Board President
Stacey Hunter Schwartz, Ph.D.
Board President
Stacey Hunter Schwartz has eighteen years of experience in the cognitive rehabilitation field. As former dean and director of Coastline College’s acclaimed Acquired Brain Injury Program, in which she previously also served in the roles of counselor, professor and psychometrist, she led the program to receive several awards. She co-authored with Ms. Wild the original book of the Making Cognitive Connections series and is also the author of a chapter on Traumatic Brain Injury for a widely used textbook in rehabilitation training. She is currently fulfilling her childhood dream of teaching children.
Dr. Schwartz also brings a variety of nonprofit leadership experiences–as executive director of two nonprofit organizations in Kansas, as director of education and certification programs at Goodwill Industries of Arkansas, and as co-founder of BEST, initialing serving as chief operating officer. In her professional roles, she has secured and administered several million dollars in private and publicly funded grants. In addition, Schwartz has extensive nonprofit governance experience; she has served as chair, treasurer, secretary and member of several other nonprofit boards.
Schwartz earned a Ph.D. in Education (Counseling Psychology) from the University of Southern California, an M.A. in Counseling Psychology from Loyola Marymount University, and a B.A. in Psychology from UCLA, graduating Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude. She completed the Management Development Program at Harvard University’s School of Education.
Lisa Winger
Board Treasurer
Lisa Winger
Board Treasurer
Lisa Winger is the Administrative Assistant, II for Coastline Community College’s Acquired Brain Injury Program for 16 years. She coordinates many program related events, include fundraising events in support of the programs foundation such as the Annual Walk for Brain Injury Awareness. Lisa has served as BEST’s Secretary/Treasurer for 3 years. Lisa has also served on several non-profit boards such as the Assistance League Huntington Beach, Huntington Beach High Schools Model United Nations Boosters, Huntington Beach High School’s Cross Country Boosters, Dwyer Middle Schools PTA, Seacliff Elementary PTA and Cub Scout Pack 101.
- Email:lisa@bestconnections.org
Ciro Visone, Ph.D.
Board Member
Ciro Visone, Ph.D.
Board Member
Ciro is currently serving as a military psychologist in the United States Army Medical Department. He holds a Doctorate of Psychology in Clinical Health Psychology, with primary training, education, and experiences in neuropsychological research and physical medicine and rehabilitation. He completed his clinical internship and postdoctoral residency at the Dwight. D Eisenhower Army Medical Center (Ft. Gordon, GA). Much of his research and publications lie within the realms of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and neurological disorders, including strokes, cerebellar cancers, movement disorders, and various forms of dementias.
As a researcher, Ciro has been involved in proposing and developing statewide concussion laws for adolescent athletes, while working closely with medical professionals from various professional sport leagues, namely, the NFL, NHL, and MLS. As a military psychologist, his research has consisted of identifying neuroendocrine markers of TBI, and reestablishing guidelines used to diagnosis and differentiate head injury from combat influenced adrenal disorders in post-deployment service members. His personal research has been largely devoted to the emerging field of nutritional neuropsychiatry and the performance enhancing, protective cognitive effects of ketogenic dieting. As a clinical psychologist in practice, his theoretical orientation is heavily influenced by existential metapsychology, and the likes of Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard and Austrian neurologist/psychiatrist Viktor Frankl.
As a board member for BEST, Ciro has worked closely with Michelle and the Coastline Community College Acquired Brain Injury Program, originally being part of the initial research conducted on the BEST apps in 2015. He now does much of his BEST research from Germany, where he is a Behavioral Medicine Health Officer with United States Europe, Regional Command.
- Email:ciro@bestconnections.org
Davette Rucker
Board Member
Davette Rucker
Board Member
Davette Rucker is an Assistive Technology Specialist and Occupational Therapist.
She has been in the field of disability and rehabilitation since 1998.
Davette conducts assistive technology product demonstrations, assistive technology consultations and assessments, and assists with outreach activities for the one of the state assistive technology programs.
Allison Patrick
Board Member, Brain Injury Survivor
Allison Patrick
Board Member, Brain Injury Survivor
Allison started working with BEST on its fundraising efforts while she was a student in Coastline Community College’s Acquired Brain Injury Program. After sustaining a traumatic brain injury in 2016, she graduated from the ABI program in 2018. Prior to her TBI, Allison was an investment banker specializing in structured finance. Throughout her life, she has been active with non-profits and has served on several other nonprofit boards. After the help the BEST suite of applications provided Allison during her on-going recovery process, she is excited to help as many other survivors as possible learn about the BEST suite and incorporate it into their everyday lives.
Tom Tatlock, M.D.
Board Member, Brain Injury Survivor
Tom Tatlock, M.D.
Board Member, Brain Injury Survivor
Tom (or Dr. Tatlock) graduated from the University of Kansas,
attended the University of Kansas School of Medicine, did a
straight medicine internship, and then completed a residency in
psychiatry at the Unveracity of Wisconsin in Madison, WI. He was
a psychiatrist in Appleton, WI. In 1993, he received the Exemplary
Psychiatrist Award from National Alliance on Mental Illness. Also,
he was Selected as one of “The Best Doctors in America, 1998”
and before that as one “The Best Doctors in America, Midwest
Region, 1996-97.”
On March 19, 1999, he fell off a ladder and sustained a traumatic brain injury. He was unable to obtain adequate care locally and was finally treated as an outpatient at The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. The symptoms form his TBI forced him in to an early, involuntary retirement. He wanted to become a better educated and more informed person so that he could be a better advocate for persons who had sustained a brain injury, so he enrolled in 5 semester Graduate Certificate in Special Education and Brain Injury, from The George Washington University, Washington, DC. He completed this program in 2007. Over the years, Tom has met with many persons and families who have been affected by brain injury, providing support and information.
He also done numerous presentations, locally, regionality and nationally, on brain injury to groups that he thinks need to know about brain injury, even if the hadn’t recognized that need. He has a special interest in brain injury and the persons who are experiencing homelessness and domestic violence.
He is a member of the Brain Injury Association (now Alliance) of Wisconsin, and in 2009, received the Education and Community Service Award. He was a member Brain Injury Advisory Council to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Family Services, State of Wisconsin. He served as a member of The Mayo Clinic Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems Regional Advisory Board from 2005 to 2020. He has and is continuing to serve on other committees.
On March 19, 1999, he fell off a ladder and sustained a traumatic brain injury. He was unable to obtain adequate care locally and was finally treated as an outpatient at The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. The symptoms form his TBI forced him in to an early, involuntary retirement. He wanted to become a better educated and more informed person so that he could be a better advocate for persons who had sustained a brain injury, so he enrolled in 5 semester Graduate Certificate in Special Education and Brain Injury, from The George Washington University, Washington, DC. He completed this program in 2007. Over the years, Tom has met with many persons and families who have been affected by brain injury, providing support and information.
He also done numerous presentations, locally, regionality and nationally, on brain injury to groups that he thinks need to know about brain injury, even if the hadn’t recognized that need. He has a special interest in brain injury and the persons who are experiencing homelessness and domestic violence.
He is a member of the Brain Injury Association (now Alliance) of Wisconsin, and in 2009, received the Education and Community Service Award. He was a member Brain Injury Advisory Council to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Family Services, State of Wisconsin. He served as a member of The Mayo Clinic Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems Regional Advisory Board from 2005 to 2020. He has and is continuing to serve on other committees.