Danielle Bishop, ACORNS team member
Danielle Bishop
Social Worker
Danielle earned a bachelor's degree in social work from Virginia Union University (VUU) where she will also earn a master’s degree in social work in May 2024. She is certified in youth and adult mental health first aid.
Danielle has a passion for helping children. She has experience as a school social worker, a mentor for at-risk youth, and a counselor providing intensive in-home services. Danielle noticed that situations with children tend to derive from family-related issues, and the ACORNS program allows her to consider the bigger picture when helping others achieve a better life.
Detective Wendy Clark, ACORNS team member
Wendy Clark
Detective
Wendy has spent 19 years with the Raleigh Police Department dedicated to helping persons in need. She has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from SUNY Oswego.
In 2007 Wendy earned Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Officer of the Year for the Raleigh Police Department, and CIT Officer of the Year for Wake County. In 2014 she received the Partner in Courage Award from National Alliance on Mental Health Wake County.
DaNysha Dickens, ACORNS team member
DaNysha Dickens
Social Worker
DaNysha has more than five years of social work experience, including time spent housing homeless and disabled veterans. She has a bachelor’s degree in social work from University of North Carolina at Greensboro and will receive a master’s degree in social work from Walden in the fall of 2023.
Growing up in Southeast Raleigh, DaNysha witnessed the challenges her community faced daily. Armed with a degree in social work and a strong determination, she joined the ACORNS team to bridge the gap between law enforcement and the community.
Senior Officer Madeline Horner, ACORNS team member
Madeline Horner
Senior Officer
Madeline has worked for the Raleigh Police Department for more than 16 years. As part of the ACORNS team, she responds to homelessness, substance use, and mental health concerns where she connects local residents to service providers for a wholistic care response.
Madeline has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Appalachian State University and a master’s degree in clinical counseling and psychology from Capella.
Chelsea Levy, ACORNS team member
Chelsea Levy
Social Work Supervisor
Chelsea has worked in multiple nonprofits serving survivors of human trafficking, sexual assault, and domestic violence. She has a bachelor’s degree from George Mason University. Chelsea is one of the original social workers in the ACORNS program and is the social work supervisor. She is trained in mental health first aid, crisis prevention, and crisis intervention.
Chelsea believes in addressing the root causes for people dealing with personal crisis. She also enjoys advocacy and macro-level social work to push decision makers to promote long-term change.
Officer Jeremy Pierson, ACORNS team member
Jeremy Pierson
Officer
Jeremy has served with the Raleigh Police Department for six years. For 12 years, he worked for the Lucas County Sheriff’s Office (Ohio) where he was on a heroin task force and worked with the U.S. Marshalls on a human trafficking task force. He believes that arresting people for addiction problems does not help anyone, and the community is better served through treatment and harm reduction.
Jeremy is passionate about helping people battle their addictions and believes that it is imperative to address the underlying issues causing homelessness.
Christopher Reed, ACORNS team member
Chris Reed
Officer
Chris graduated from North Carolina State University in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in criminology and a double minor in forensic science and social work.
During his four years doing patrol work as a police officer, Chris became interested in helping individuals in underserved populations experiencing a crisis. He became a member of the ACORNS team where he uses his tools of de-escalation, rapport building, and passion for community engagement.
Nicole Rice, ACORNS team member
Nicole Rice
Social Worker
Nicole is a human services professional with a master’s degree in human services from Capella University and a bachelor of science degree from Virginia State University. Nicole has experience as an educator and a trainer. She has worked with youth and adolescents in residential care and the public school system, providing learning and instructional aid.
Nicole transitioned from Volunteers of America working with homeless veterans to the ACORNS team to continue supporting the unhoused population on a broader scale.
Chase Sapp, ACORNS team member
Chase Sapp
Social Worker
Chase worked for the West Columbia Outreach program as a social worker with the West Columbia Police Department. She is particularly interested in substance use issues.
She obtained bachelor’s degrees in social work and interdisciplinary studies/nonprofit management from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, with additional studies in criminal justice and managing nonprofit re-entry organizations. Chase went on to achieve her master’s degree in social work with a certificate in drug and addiction studies from the University of South Carolina.
Cecile Williams, ACORNS team member
Cecile Williams
Social Worker
Cecile has worked in the social services field in both the government and nonprofit sector for more than 20 years.
Cecile has a passion for helping others realize their full potential, to meet people where they are, and help determine where they want to be. Her objective is to provide guidance to those who are down on their luck and help them set and achieve attainable goals. It’s her belief that healthy families yield healthy communities.
