Who We Are

Cath Burns, Ph.D., is a Licensed Psychologist Doctorate in the State of Vermont.  She is the proprietor of Synchrosaic LLC, a small business with a large mission of developing positive solutions for complex issues experienced by individuals, families, programs, agencies, and systems. 

Currently, Dr. Burns practices in a primary care pediatric practice setting and supports the development of their integrated mental health response system.  She is a consultant with Vermont Care Partners working on a variety of system-wide quality improvement and evaluation projects.  Dr. Burns provides training around the region for profit and non-profit groups on a variety of issues related to resilience, mental health, and wellness and is a part-time Lecturer in the Department of Psychological Science at the University of Vermont supervising clinical psychology students.  And, finally, Dr. Burns provides organizational facilitation for groups and businesses interested in developing action-oriented plans.  

From 2015 to 2022, Dr. Burns was the Quality Director at Vermont Care Partners (VCP) supporting program improvement across the Vermont Care Partners’ network of 16 agencies supporting people living with mental health conditions, substance use disorder, and intellectual and developmental disabilities.  While at VCP, Dr. Burns was the clinical supervisor for COVID Support VT, a FEMA crisis counseling grant, and provided prevention and intervention services for people struggling with the COVID 19 pandemic.  Since the mid-90’s, Dr. Burns has held a variety of clinical and administrative positions in the Vermont Designated Agency system.  She also has held adjunct positions throughout her career in Vermont at Johnson State College, the University of Vermont, and in the Program in Community Mental Health for graduates and undergraduates studying psychology and related fields.  

Dr. Burns approaches all her work with a foundation in best practices, pragmatism, action, and humor.  She earned a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology and a master’s degree in Psychology from the University of Vermont and a master’s degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Colorado at Boulder and continues to learn from the children, youth, families, and community partners she has the honor to support.  In her free time, Dr. Burns enjoys spending time with her family doing almost anything outside, particularly if it involves going up or down a mountain.  

Preferred pronouns:  (she/her)

Mary Moulton served as the executive director of Washington County Mental Health Services from 2013 until 2024. Ms. Moulton began her career at Washington County Mental Health in 1990 as an emergency services clinician on the mobile crisis team. She became director of intensive care services in 2005 and chief of operations in 2010 when she worked with multiple programs throughout the agency.  

In August 2011, Mary served at the request of the State of Vermont as the deputy commissioner, and then commissioner of the Department of Mental Health. Her primary directive was to work with teams in all designated agencies to implement Act 79, also known as Vermont’s mental health reform act. As part of that reform, Mary was instrumental in developing law enforcement and crisis team training and remains actively involved in the continuing development of Team Two mental health response training today.  

She has also been the coordinator of Vermont’s Behavioral Health Disaster Response Team, training 500 responders and creating a system for behavioral health response in the event of disaster. Mary received her master’s degree in public administration from Norwich University in 2011 and currently resides in Moretown, Vermont.

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Nicole Breslend is a Licensed Psychologist – Doctorate in the State of Vermont. She received her doctorate at the University of Vermont with a focus in Developmental Psychopathology and has published more than 25 peer-reviewed articles in this area. She is a lecturer at the University of Vermont and teaches graduate classes in clinical and developmental psychology in the UVM Clinical Psychology Doctorate Program and in UVM’s undergraduate psychology program. Nicole works in an integrated medical setting where she provides therapy to children, adolescents, and parents (through behavioral parent coaching). She is also a lead program evaluator for the Vermont Child Welfare Training Partnership. Nicole is a trained Youth Mental Health First Aid instructor. She also specialized in diagnostic evaluations for autism spectrum disorder (as well as evaluations for other types of neurodivergence and mental health conditions). She is passionate about improving child mental health and overall welfare by educating families, schools, and other mental health providers. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time on adventures with her husband and two sons. 

Preferred pronouns:  (she/her)

Simone Rueschemeyer is the Executive Director of Vermont Care Partners. In this position she provides vision and strategy across the organization’s leveraging strategic partnerships and external opportunities. Simone has worked in the fields of health and health care for more than thirty years. In the early nineties, she served in the Clinton Administration as a member of the Health Care Task Force in the White House offices of Policy Development and Communication. Simone remained in Washington, DC to work for The Rendon Group as a strategic health care communications consultant for foreign governments.

With an eye toward improving inequities that exist around access to, and the quality of, services and supports, Simone returned to Vermont to receive her Master of Science in Evaluative Clinical Sciences from The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice. Simone continued her focus on improving inequitable access to care as the Vermont State Affairs Manager for Bi-State Primary Care Association and as a consultant specializing in health care and homelessness providing consultation to organizations and state governments on operations, policy, and influence. In 2010, Simone joined VCP where she continues to be dedicated to the provision of community-based services and supports enabling all people to thrive in their communities. Simone enjoys working with then Synchrosaic team to support programs and agencies with planning and positive growth.

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Megan Mayo is a doctoral candidate at Antioch University New England and a rostered psychotherapist under the supervision of Dr. Cath Burns. She is also a licensed behavior analyst with over fifteen years of experience working with children with intensive needs. Megan currently works as a clinician in an integrated primary care practice providing individual and group therapy to children, adolescents, and transition-age adults. She is working on a dissertation that will examine the effects of combining content from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with Behavior Skills Training within a social skills group to improve outcomes.

Megan is a trained facilitator of and member of a research lab focused on Prosocial, a framework that uses evolutionary science and behavioral principles to support groups and systems to be more collaborative, equitable, and effective. She is passionate about social justice and equity, with a particular focus on the impact of ableism on our society.  Megan is an ally of the queer and neurodivergent communities and operates from a framework of cultural humility.

Outside of work, she is an avid and novice inline skater. Megan also enjoys exploring Vermont, crocheting, consuming science fiction, and practicing meditation.

Preferred pronouns:  (they/she)

Ernest Buford, M.S. is a research specialist and systems administrator in the Spatial Analysis Lab, where he has 20 years of experience with geospatial analysis and management of computer systems for GIS and remote sensing. Ernie has worked on development of tools and databases for conservation planning, wildlife habitat modeling, biodiversity assessment, land cover mapping, geoprocessing automation, dynamic database-driven web site development, wetland inventory and avian field research. He was a technical leader on the Vermont Biodiversity Project and Gap Analysis for Vermont and New Hampshire and has developed data, models and analytical techniques for projects investigating a variety of topics ranging from Bobcat movement and habitat use, to public health effects of transportation networks to vineyard site selection.  In addition to providing server, workstation and software support in the Spatial Analysis Lab, Ernie manages computer systems in the Geospatial Teaching Lab and also serves as UVM’s Esri site license administrator.  

Preferred pronouns:  (he/him)

Eliza Behrsing is a licensed social worker and licensed alcohol and drug counselor. She grew up in Hardwick, Vermont. She completed her undergraduate degree at Bates College where she studied American Cultural and African American studies. She earned her MSW at the University of Vermont. She has been in private practice since 2015. Eliza primarily treats older teens and young adults who are struggling with mood disorders, anxiety, OCD, or substance use issues. Prior experience includes substance use counseling at the women’s jail, mental health and substance use counseling at Lund’s residential program, education and outreach for domestic violence prevention programs, and providing treatment for men convicted of acts of violence against women. She has completed Postpartum Support Internationals’ Advanced Psychotherapy training in order to better serve newly postpartum parents. Eliza practices from a humanistic and feminist perspective, and utilizes CBT and mindfulness skills in supporting clients to make meaningful and specific changes in their lives. She lives in Fairfax with her family.

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Gina Watson is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker in the state of Vermont.  She received her degree from Smith College School For Social Work in 2004 and has been licensed since 2007.  Along with working as an independent contractor at Essex Pediatrics providing psychotherapy to children of all ages, families and parents, Gina spent a decade working at a community mental health center as a psychotherapist and clinical supervisor in the children and families program as well as a clinician in the emergency services program.  When she is not at work Gina enjoys spending time cooking, hiking, mountain biking, running and spending a lot of time with her family!

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Jenn is dually licensed in Vermont for mental health and substance use counseling. She received her Master’s degree in counseling from UVM and worked more than 10 years in community mental health where she provided individual and group therapy to people of a variety of ages and backgrounds as well as supervised other counselors and case managers. Jenn specializes in helping older teens, young adults and adults manage anxiety, depression, and other life-interrupting problems. Jenn believes that each person is their own expert and, through the counseling relationship, together we can help create meaning and positive action. In her free time, Jenn enjoys mountain biking, skiing, playing Pickleball, cooking and watching movies.

Preferred pronouns:  (she/her)