Kim Jenkins, LCSW, CADC has practiced in the field of addiction and mental health since 1995, upon completion of her Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from Illinois State University. Kim became a Certified Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor (CADC) in 1997, and maintains this certification today. After working in the addiction field for a few years, she obtained her Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of South Carolina in 2000. Upon returning to Illinois, she continued to work with adults, adolescents and families in both outpatient and residential treatment for substance abuse and mental health issues. She quickly found her passion for assisting families in finding the best treatment program or school to meet their children’s needs. She began educational and therapeutic consulting with families in 2008 and launched her practice, One Oak Educational Consulting in 2012. Since beginning her consulting career, she has worked with hundreds of families and has never lost her devotion to supporting families who are often in crisis or at a crossroads in their lives. While Kim continues to be dedicated to working with individuals and families who struggle with substance abuse issues, her area of expertise and interest has broadened to working with a adolescents and young adults with a wide range of struggles. In particular, Kim is known for working with clients and families who have a significant degree of clinical complexity and need a lot of support in navigating the daunting road of finding the right program fit that will create the best opportunity for success. She is creative and intuitive in her approach with clients who may have experienced prior programs and/or schools that didn’t meet their needs. Kim personally visits and assesses schools and programs around the country and internationally each year. She connects with students, evaluates the campuses, curriculum and therapeutic approaches that each program offers in order to make a confident match for her students. Kim has been a Professional Member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) since 2011, Professional Member of the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs (NATSAP) since 2010, and Professional Member of the Therapeutic Consulting Association (TCA) since 2016. When not working, Kim spends her downtime with her family, enjoys skiing, running and hiking and traveling to as many National Parks as possible in order to connect with the healing power of nature.