Middle Managers: Listening Session: Staff, Self, and Organizational Wellness

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Kristina Bryant, MBA, serves as a Senior Director at Rulo Strategies and brings over 28 years of experience in community corrections as a Juvenile Court Probation Officer, Criminal Justice Planner, and Assistant Director/Interim Director of an adult pretrial and probation services agency. Since 2017, Ms. Bryant has provided consultant services at the national level with clients across the criminal justice system. She has worked extensively with criminal justice professionals, judiciary, elected officials, and policymakers to improve justice policies and practices. Ms. Bryant is skilled in system analysis, process and outcome evaluations, training and leadership, and has broad experience in drug policy issues. She is a trained facilitator in the Sequential Intercept Model and has facilitated cross-system information sharing and collaborations between justice and behavioral health partners for over a decade. Ms. Bryant served four years on the Executive Committee of a statewide organization after an additional five years in committee leadership positions to address legislation, training, standards, and quality assurance for probation and pretrial agencies. She has extensive experience in education and learning styles, teaching at the university level for seven years. Ms. Bryant has a Master’s in Business Administration and received her BS in Criminal Justice with minors in Sociology, Psychology, and Business Administration.

Tara Kunkel, MSW, has served as the Executive Director of Rulo Strategies since 2020. Before founding Rulo Strategies, Tara served as a Senior Drug Policy Advisor at the U.S. Department of Justice, where she led the implementation of the Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Abuse Program (COSSAP). Under Tara’s leadership, the COSSAP program grew from a $27 million grant program in 2017 to $187 million in 2019. Tara also served as a consultant for the National Center for States for more than nine years leading, managing, and evaluating projects at all points in the justice system, from diversion programs, pretrial supervision, courts, probation, and corrections. Tara Kunkel began her career in the justice field, working for Chesterfield County, Virginia, as a Community Corrections Officer and Criminal Justice Planner. During this time period, she oversaw the development of the day reporting center and adult drug court. Ms. Kunkel has extensive experience managing and directing complex federal grants. She has also led national-scale initiatives at the federal level. Ms. Kunkel holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Virginia and a master’s degree in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University.