Red Rock’s Executive Team
Verna Foust, MS, LPC, NBCC
Chief Executive Officer
Verna Foust is the Chief Executive Officer for Red Rock Behavioral Health Services. She has 35 years of experience in Community Mental Health in the creation, implementation, and sustainment of a wide variety of behavioral health traditional and specialty programs in urban and rural settings. Under her leadership, Red Rock has experienced unprecedented growth, doubled the number of staff, and increased the number of clients served by 90%. She has obtained key partnerships with community and national leaders, including the national Cohen Veterans Network. This partnership has resulted in three mental health clinics in Lawton, OK; Oklahoma City, OK; and Colorado Springs, CO specializing in serving military, veterans, and their families. Under her leadership, in partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, Red Rock was chosen to be a part of a federal demonstration program that transformed Red Rock into a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic in 2017, resulting in Red Rock being one of the first Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics in the United States.
Foust is past president of the Oklahoma Behavioral Health Association, former member and chair of the Oklahoma Forensic Review Board, a position appointed by the Governor, and a founding member and President of the Alliance of Mental Health Providers of Oklahoma. She serves on the Oklahoma Behavioral Health Advisory Committee and is a member of the Mental Health Corporations of America. A native of Clinton, Oklahoma, she holds bachelor’s degrees in business management and psychology and a Master’s Degree in Psychology from Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford, Oklahoma. In 2021, she was asked to testify before the Congressional Health and Human Services Committee as an expert witness in behavioral health services in the public sector. In 2022, she was inducted into the Southwestern Oklahoma State Universities’ (SWOSU) Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame. Foust is a Licensed Professional Counselor and National Board-Certified Counselor.
Dr. Wana R. Ellison, PsyD, LPC, LADC
Chief Operating Officer, Outpatient Services
Dr. Wana Ellison, PsyD, LPC, LADC, is the Chief Operating Officer of Outpatient Services at Red Rock BHS. Her time is shared between practicing, consulting, supervising, and clinical oversight. She is a licensed clinical psychologist who is passionate about educating clients and staff in the use of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). She has had the honor of seeing firsthand the exceptional outcomes of CBT.
Dr. Ellison received her M.A. in Counseling Psychology with Honors from Southern Nazarene University and an M.A. in Clinical Psychology with Honors from Texas School of Psychology. She then went on to complete her Doctor of Psychology degree (Psy.D.) in Clinical Psychology from Texas School of Psychology. She completed her clinical psychology practicum and internship years at the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Her previous academic positions include an Adjunct Professorship, teaching both Ethics as well as Drug and Alcohol Theories in the Graduate Program in Counseling and Psychology at Southern Nazarene University.
Since beginning her career at Red Rock in 2011, Dr. Ellison has directed and supervised outpatient programs including: outpatient for mental health and substance use, drug court, mental health court, Medication Assisted Treatment with Suboxone, and children’s outpatient programs. Additionally, she has worked to implement CBT curriculums across diverse populations. Dr. Ellison is a nationally certified trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapist (TF-CBT) and was instrumental in the development and design of Red Rock’s children’s outpatient center, Planet Rock. Through careful planning, Dr. Ellison incorporated trauma-informed practices and TF-CBT into the design of Planet Rock ensuring the clinic provides a therapeutic space. Dr. Ellison has been instrumental in contributing creative ideas for federal grants that Red Rock was successfully awarded. Such grants include Red Rock’s Virtual Outpatient program, Route 180 (a program aimed at breaking the 360 cycle of inpatient), and Equal Ops (an initiative specifically addressing social determinants of health).
Dr. Ellison’s contributions to clinical psychology have made her a visionary in her field and has ensured Red Rock provides innovative services and the highest quality of technology driven, evidenced-based care.
Kile Kuykendall
Chief Financial Officer
Kile Kuykendall is the Chief Financial Officer for Red Rock Behavioral Health Services. He has been with Red Rock BHS for more than10 years and has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, with a specialization in Accounting from the University of Oklahoma.
During his tenure with Red Rock BHS, Kile has been promoted from General Ledger Accountant to Financial Controller, to Chief Financial Officer. He has over 15 years of leadership and accounting experience and has extensive knowledge of Red Rock BHS’s financial systems. Kile is from Moore, Oklahoma and enjoys spending time with family and friends.
Steve Norwood
Chief Operating Officer, Specialized Services
Steve Norwood is the Chief Operating Officer for Specialized Services for Red Rock Behavioral Health Services. He has been with Red Rock for 17 years. He has a Master’s Degree in Psychology from East Central Oklahoma State University.
Norwood retired in 2006 from the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services after 27 years of service. He served the last 15 years in the Department as the Executive Director of Northwest Center for Behavioral Health (NCBH) in Woodward, Oklahoma. NCBH was a large rural comprehensive Community Mental Health Center with more than 240 employees and had offices from Guthrie to Guymon.
Norwood has published four journal articles in major mental health and law journals regarding Forensic Mental Health. Before retiring from the State he helped establish and serve on an Internal Forensic Review Board. He is a Licensed Professional Counselor and has extensive knowledge of the Mental Health System and Services in Oklahoma.
While serving as Forensic Director of ODMHSAS, he had the opportunity to visit several State Forensic Facilities and served as the Program Chairman for the Twelfth Annual Forensic Conference in Birmingham, Alabama.
Truth & Courage
“Vulnerability sounds like the truth and feels like courage. Truth and courage aren’t always comfortable, but they’re never weakness.”
–Brené Brown
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