Denise L. Kolivoski, MBA
Denise L. Kolivoski, MBA was named Executive Director at the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or (NAMI) of Erie County in December 2009 after serving on the Board of Directors at the agency. “It an honor to represent the agency. I hope to increase the awareness of mental illness in the community as well as combat the stigma that exists for persons with mental illness. Mental health not only affects the individual facing the brain disorder, it impacts the entire family. At NAMI, we believe that empowering the family through education improves the quality of life for everyone.” NAMI specializes in educational programming, called Family-to-Family, which is provided at no cost to family members or caregivers who have a loved one with a mental illness.
Denise is no stranger to advocating on behalf of persons with mental illness. She worked at Community Shelter Services, a local homeless agency, which has a significant number of persons with mental illness throughout the emergency shelter and single-room occupancy facilities. In addition, Denise worked at the United Way of Erie County. She also has an extensive background in media with her eight years of experience at WICU 12 and as a winner of an Erie Advertising Club award for logo design.
In addition, Denise is actively involved in the local community by serving as the President-Elect of the Board of Directors for the Kiwanis Club of Erie and winning a Kiwanis International Award for her work with the Barber National Institute’s volunteer group, the Aktion Club in 2009.
Meanwhile, Denise pursued educational goals as well. She graduated from Gannon University with a Master of Business Administration in 2008 and has a Bachelor of Arts, undergraduate degree from the University. She was also involved in student management of Gannon University’s radio station, WERG-FM.
Since beginning her leadership at NAMI, Denise has launched a Peer-to-Peer program in Corry, PA and significantly increased the level of participation in the agency’s Family-to-Family educational courses. She is also proud to announce that the agency is debt-free so that all donations directly support programs at NAMI of Erie County. In her first year at the agency, grants and revenue increased by 45 percent.
The local office of the National Alliance on Mental Illness helps over 3,000 unduplicated individuals each year.
