Events

Jeffrey A. Kottler is one of the most prominent authors and presenters in the fields of counseling, psychotherapy, health, education, and advocacy. He has written over 100 books about a wide range of subjects, including On Being a Therapist, Creative Breakthroughs in Therapy,  Bad Therapy, The Client Who Changed Me, Divine Madness, Stories We’ve Heard, Stories We’ve Told: Life-Changing Narratives in Therapy and Everyday Life, Relationships in Counseling and the Counselor’s Life, On Being a Master Therapist, Secrets of Exceptional Counselors, and most recently, Living and Being a Therapist: Selected Writings of Jeffrey Kottler.

Jeffrey has also written several successful trade books about a variety of psychological themes: Private Moments, Secret Selves, Divine Madness: Ten Stories of Creative Struggle, Change: What Leads to Personal Transformation, What You Don’t Know About Leadership But Probably Should, and the best-selling true crime book, The Last Victim: Inside the Minds of Serial Killers that was produced as a feature film (Dear Mr. Gacy).

Jeffrey has been a counselor, therapist, supervisor, and educator for 45 years, having worked a preschool, middle school, mental health center, crisis center, hospital, medical school, refugee resettlement agency, nongovernmental organization (NGO), university, community college, private practice, and disaster relief settings. He is also the founder of Empower Nepali Girls, a foundation that supports and mentors at-risk children He has served as a Fulbright scholar and senior lecturer in Peru and Iceland, as well as worked as a visiting professor in New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Nepal. Jeffrey is Professor Emeritus of Counseling at California State University, Fullerton and is Clinical Professor in the Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at the Baylor College of Medicine. He currently lives in Houston where he works on projects related to refugee trauma with the Alliance for Multicultural Services.

Carol Levin was born in Waterbury, CT and graduated from Curry College in Milton, MA with a degree in Early Childhood Education. After completion of her husband's military service with the Air Force and as Judge Advocate General in Wichita Falls, the Levins moved to Katy. Carol taught at the New Hope Child Development Center, A Child’s Reflection, and Yorkshire Academy, where she remained for thirteen years. She received specialized training in Alphabetic Phonics through the Neuhaus Center, reading and language programs through Scottish Rite, and the Orton Society.  She is a member of the International Dyslexia Society and the winner of the 2005 Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award.

When she opened Tutorials for Excellence®, in 1999, her program was quickly recognized as a leader in reading, language, math, and test preparation (including TAKS, SAT and ACT).

Carol has great success in helping children with dyslexia, learning disabilities and processing problems. Her enthusiasm, devotion and boundless energy, combined with her passion for learning, make her an ideal source of support and encouragement to her students.

Carol is active in her community. She is on the Board of Directors for Breath of Life and MADD. She is a member of the International Dyslexia Association.  She is an active member of the Katy Rotary Club.

Carol is married to Stuart “Stu” Levin, Attorney at Law of Levin and Atwood, LLP. Their oldest son, Jason, his wife Stacey and their daughter Hayley moved to Katy. Later, Jason and Stacey were blessed with their second child, Addison Levin. In September of 2006, the Levin family suffered the tragic loss of their youngest son, Todd, to a drunken driver. Since then, the Levin’s have spent much of their spare time assisting MADD.

Helping children, assisting community, and dedication to family define Carol as an educator and a person.

Barry was born and raised in Yamhill, Oregon. He attended the United States Air Force Academy, where he was captain of the aerobatic flying team . He earned his BS in biology and a commission as a military officer, then served five years active duty in the US Air Force. Although he deployed to Balad, Iraq in the Air Force, he was chosen to serve as commander of an Army cavalry unit on combat missions across the country. After returning from Iraq, Barry attended the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, earning his MBA with a double major in finance and entrepreneurial management. At Wharton, Barry was a Leadership Venture Fellow, Veterans Club VP of Admissions, President of the Texas Club, and Social Chair of the Wharton Wharthog Rugby Football Club.

After Wharton, Barry was selected for a rotational leadership program and became an agricultural commodities trader at Bunge Global Agribusiness. During that time, he transitioned his military reserve status from the Air Force to join an Airborne unit in the Army. Barry again deployed to Iraq and led capacity building and humanitarian relief efforts, including building a school, a hospital wing, and demonstration farms in Baghdad province.

Upon completion of his second combat deployment, he returned to school, earning his MA in International Security Studies from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. At Fletcher, Barry founded an initiative for Security Studies students to experience military leadership training given by Marine Corps instructors at Officer Candidate School in Quantico, Virginia. He also continued his service as a paratrooper and pinned on the rank of Major. After graduation, he led a non-profit venture into Ethiopia, empowering the community to lift their remote, rural villages out of extreme poverty. In this position, he launched and built Nuru International’s second country project from scouting to implementation phase by empowering and mentoring a team of Ethiopian leaders. He then returned to the US and joined The Mission Continues in 2014 as Regional Director in Houston, Texas.

Barry also enjoys outdoor endurance sports. In less than one year, he climbed all 67 of the 4,000+ foot mountains in New England, including the Presidential Traverse in winter. He summited the highest volcano in North America and enjoys week-long dogsledding and kayaking expeditions. As a fundraiser for a Guatemalan orphanage, he kayaked over 300 miles solo from Canada to Boston in nine days. His favorite climb was a winter summit of Mt. Shasta. He currently lives in Houston, Texas.

BARBARA BRONSTEIN

President and Founder, Second Servings of Houston

Raised in New York, Barbara has called Houston home for over 30 years. She graduated from Tufts University (Medford, MA) before earning an MBA in Marketing from New York University (NY, NY). After a successful career marketing some of America's leading brands for Unilever, Mars, and Coca-Cola, Barbara piloted a banquet food rescue program known as "Banquet Bounty for the Hungry" for 18 months. It served as the precursor to the nonprofit organization, Second Servings of Houston, which she founded in 2014.

Barbara has always played an active role in the local community. In addition to numerous leadership awards, Barbara was recognized by the Houston Chronicle as one of “Houston’s Most Fascinating People of 2015” and one of 12 “Houston Heroes” in 2016.

When the first plane hit on 9/11, Billy was on the 85^th floor of One World Trade Center working as a commodity options trader for SMW Trading Company.  Despite twice thinking he would die that day, he made it out of the building, helping others along the way.  His survival story has been retold numerous times in books, magazines, on radio and TV, and online.  In addition, Billy has spoken about his 9/11 experience to numerous gatherings, including church groups, student bodies, rotary clubs, and other private and public groups.  

Billy is a native Houstonian and a graduate of Rice University.  He began his career as a financial advisor in Houston in 1996.  In 2000, Billy and his wife Tobey moved to New York City where he became a Coffee options trader on the New York Board of Trade.  After the birth of their first child in 2003, Tobey and Billy returned home to Houston, and Billy went to work for his father in the oil and gas business.  He has since moved on to pursue other endeavors, including the redevelopment of the old Palace Lanes on Bellaire Boulevard.

In his spare time, Billy coaches his daughter’s soccer and softball teams, serves on the Owls Fan Experience Committee at Rice University, and is the Harris County coordinator for the organization named CoCoRaHS (pronounced KO-ko-rozz), a grassroots volunteer network of weather observers that provides weather data for natural resource, education, and research applications.  You can find him tweeting about the weather regularly.

Billy and Tobey live in West University Place where they are raising three children – Isabella, Luke, and Lexie.