Clinical Staff

James A. Burns, Ph.D.

• Licensed Psychologist
• Clinical Supervisor
• Dr. Burns obtained his Doctoral degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  His research interests were primarily cognitive-behavioral theories of anxiety disorders.  He gained experience working with medically complicated cases in several hospitals through his training including University of Nebraska Health Services, Rogers Memorial Hospital, and the Milwaukee VA Hospital.  He is widely regarded in the community as an expert in the cognitive-behavioral treatment of anxiety disorders in adults and children.  He spent an extensive part of his career working in specialty clinics honing his clinical technique for treating panic disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.  Although his practice at Genesis is quite general he has further developed his practice by applying behavioral techniques to parenting, ADHD, and oppositional-defiant children.  He splits his patient care with being the clinical supervisor and president of Genesis Counseling Services Ltd.

Julie Williams, M.S.

• Ms. Williams is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Licensed Professional Counselor.  She obtained her Master of Science degree in counseling from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.  She has had extensive training in cognitive-behavioral interventions for various specialty populations including developmentally disabled adults.  She is widely regarded in the community as an expert in treating developmentally disabled adults including those with co-morbid mental illnesses.  During her career approaching 2 decades she has developed her skills of applying cognitive-behavioral approaches to parenting, anxiety, work related problems, anger management, and mood disorders.  She also has significant knowledge and experience working with victims of sexual abuse and complex trauma.  Always adding to her repertoire she has more recently been building her practice providing mental health care to the elderly population.

Jeanne Babula, M.S.

• Ms Babula is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist, Licensed Professional Counselor, and Licensed Professional School Counselor. Her career spans over three decades in many settings.  The diversity of her employment experiences is extensive and includes school settings, large mental health facilities, hospitals, and outpatient agencies.  As well as her practice at Genesis she maintains a strong volunteer role with hospice at Monroe Clinic.  Her areas of expertise are psychotherapy with young children (3 years and older), couples, families, elderly and the terminally ill. Jeanne has played a key role in the development and implementation of teen suicide prevention programs and in-home therapy programs.  She possesses a unique and rare ability to work with families with small children who are in turmoil.  Jeanne strives to help each patient reach their full potential, thus contribute fully to society in their unique way, utilizing all of their talents.

Suzette Koebler, M.S.

• Ms Koebler is a Licensed Professional Counselor.  She received her BA degree in Psychology from the Univeristy of Wisconsin – Madison and her Master of Science degree in Counseling from Texas A&M at Corpus Christi.  Early in her career she spent a significant period of time gaining expertise treating victims of sexual abuse and this continues to be an interest area to this day.  She joined our staff in 1999 and quickly became known in the community for her talent working with couples having marital difficulties and the negative effects this has on children.  Her collaborative style working with families emphasizes communication, understanding, and fostering a strong family unit.  Another major portion of her practice involves women’s issues that emphasize positive change through empowering women to responsibly advocate for their own betterment.

Elizabeth Shadel, M.S.

• Ms Shadel is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Substance Abuse Counselor.  She received a Master of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Counseling Department. Before coming to Genesis in 2003 she gained extensive expertise in counseling a very complex dual diagnosis drug and alcohol population at Rock Valley Community Programs halfway house.  This difficult population of federal prisoners often had co-morbid personality disorders who were working toward being released back into the community.  She specializes in working with clients with addictions, complex trauma histories, and personality disorders.  Her style of counseling is person-centered, brief where possible, and positive. 

Diane Schulze, M.S.

• Ms Schulze is a Licensed Professional Counselor who earned a Master of Science degree in Counseling at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and is a Nationally Certified Counselor.  Early in her career she gained experience working with the children with learning disabilities and this continues to be an area of expertise for her.  Diane is especially skilled at working with young children and their parents with various parenting issues.  Other areas of emphasis include depression, anxiety, grief/loss, couples counseling, anger and stress management, and issues concerning the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community.  Her treatment approach fosters a sense that each person has the capacity to heal, grow, and learn in an environment where you are accepted unconditionally and valued for the unique aspects of each person.

Suzan White, M.S.

• Ms White is a Licensed Professional Counselor.  She joined our staff in 2006 and brings extensive experience working with diverse families and clients who are medically complicated.  She has extensive experience working in a hospital setting and brings a strong knowledge base of medical issues facing our population and how those issues complicate mental health treatment.  Her experience working as a nurse for over 24 years helps her interface with medical professionals and better coordinate care with a medically complicated population.  Suzan enjoys working with ages 12-adults experiencing problems with depression, anxiety, parenting, life transitions, women’s issues, health concerns both chronic and acute.  

Lissa Myhre, M.S.

• Ms Myhre is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Licensed Professional Counselor.  She brings to Genesis 27 years of experience in the counseling field in various settings and roles.  Her areas of expertise include working with victims of sexual trauma, eating disorders, and families of substance abusers.  Lissa is especially talented working with the adolescent population and is adept at forming a good working therapeutic relationship with this difficult population.  She has extensive training in this area from the widely known Savannah Family Institute, Savannah, GA.  Lissa maintains a strong interest in teaching within the field including various courses on counseling, ethics, and statistics.  She is widely known in the community for her volunteer involvement with numerous community organizations and remains active in them.

Dan Twardowski, M.S.

• Mr Twardowski is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, and Licensed Substance Abuse Counselor.  He earned his Master of Science in Counseling and Guidance from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.  He has extensive experience in the community with over 25 years working in both inpatient and outpatient clinical settings.  He specializes in substance abuse issues, dual diagnosis, compulsive behaviors, as well as extensive experience with associated anxiety, depression, bipolar, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and others.  Through his extensive career he has provided services to virtually all age ranges from small children to adults.  Because of his work history in Rock County he has excellent relationships and knowledge of the various social service agencies associated with alcohol and drug treatment.  These agencies include Child Protective Services, numerous local attorneys, Intoxicated Driver Program, Deferred Prosecution Program, Underage Alcohol Violation Program, and Rock County Probation and Parole.  He has been able to assist his patients in accessing, making use of, and benefiting from services in the community as an adjunct to their alcohol and drug treatment.  Dan appreciates that every person’s situation is different and is able to custom tailor treatment to the individual’s needs.

Sonia Wichmann, M.S.

• Ms Wichmann graduated from University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Counselor Education program in 2010 and is currently completing her licensure hours as a Professional Counselor and Marriage and Family Therapist, under the supervision of James Burns, PhD.  Before coming to Genesis, Sonia counseled women in abusive relationships through a women’s shelter in Waukesha Wisconsin.  She worked with men and women who were at high risk for recidivism at the Jefferson County jail, instituted skill building activities for at risk boys at Lad Lake in Dousman, and was trained as a therapist in collaborative divorce through the Wisconsin Law Counsel and worked as a mediator through the Waukesha County Court system. Sonia is a systems oriented professional with expertise in interpersonal communication and individual skill building, working with clients of all ages. Whether she is working with individuals, couples, families or groups, she believes it is important to work within a systems perspective, emphasizing collaborative problem-solving, while also promoting an understanding of individual responsibility and helping clients build the skills necessary to take control of their own actions and emotional reactions.

Teresa Terrill, M.S.

• Ms Terrill is a Board Certified Psychiatric & Mental Health Nurse Practitioner.  She completed her studies at University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Nursing and earned her Master of Science in Nursing in 2004 followed by ANCC Board Certification in 2005.  She worked at University of Wisconsin-Madison Counseling and Consultation Services where she provided psychiatric evaluations and collaborated with clinic prescribers on medication selection and management.  Teresa's background includes hospital nursing care of patients with acute mental health and addiction issues. She has also worked with critical and terminal patients and their families providing end-of-life care.  She joined Genesis in 2005, providing treatment to Adolescent, Adult and Geriatric patients with a full spectrum of psychiatric disorders and/or addiction issues. Her specific areas of interest include patients with unipolar and bipolar depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress, sexual abuse history, and dual diagnoses.

Helen Link, M.S.

• Ms Link is a Licensed Advanced Practice Nurse Prescriber and Board Certified Clinical Specialist.  She completed her Master of Science degree in Psychiatric Nursing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  She is board certified to provide psychiatric care to adults and children.  Her career in mental health includes 30 years experience providing clinical care in inpatient and outpatient settings in a range of capacities from psychotherapeutic to prescribing services. 

William Swift, M.D.

• Dr Swift is a child psychiatrist with over four decades of clinical and administrative experience.  He attended medical school at the University Wisconsin-Madison, a residency in general psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, and then a child psychiatry fellowship at the University of Colorado. He was a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin Madison in child psychiatry from 1978 until 2002.  For fourteen years of his tenure he was the Director of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.  Needing another challenge he joined the Foreign Service of the US Department of State as a Regional Medical Officer/Psychiatrist for the next 8 years in various placements around the world.  His primary interest is child and adolescent psychiatry and his philosophy emphasizes a combination of psychosocial interventions with medication management as an adjunct to treatment. 

Michael G. Brown, PhD

Dr. Brown is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist in Wisconsin.  He obtained his Doctoral degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Dr. Brown has over 20 years of experience in a number of settings including Central Wisconsin Center, St Colettas School, and many others.  His duties included behavioral assessment and therapy for children, adolescents, and the developmentally disabled population.  He has extensive experience in clinical assessment, treatment, program development, and staff training.  He has a reputation in the community for being especially talented working with adolescent boys and men.  His other areas of clinical expertise also include but are not limited to assessment, testing, depression, anxiety, ADHD, oppositional defiant children, and men’s issues.  He is the newest member of our staff and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience.