Shoreline team

Group CEO

Chrissy Hall, LCSW

Executive Director

Maryanna Staerk, MPH, MBA, RDN

Maryanna Staerk, MPH, MBA, RDN is a Registered Dietitian with a passion for behavioral health and helping people become their best selves. She received her Master’s in Public Health Administration from Loma Linda University and her Master’s in Business Administration from Western Governors University.

Maryanna has twelve years of leadership experience in a wide variety of healthcare settings, ranging from acute care hospitals, nursing homes, inpatient behavioral health hospitals and large hospital systems. She has also run a private practice for the past three years, focusing on nutritional genetic predispositions and mental health. She has also been teaching nutrition classes for both inpatient and outpatient behavioral healthcare facilities. 

Maryanna has been described as exceptionally inclusive and encouraging of her employees, and truly believes strong happy teams are needed to provide excellent patient care.

In her free time, she grows food for her family of four and raises chickens. Someday she hopes to have her own small farm, growing and raising all the food her family needs.

Network Medical Director

Dr. Tom Scales

Dr. Tom Scales is the Network Medical Director for Odyssey Behavioral Healthcare’s Eating Disorder Network, which includes
Shoreline. In his role, Dr. Scale provides psychiatric and medical care to Shoreline clients. He did his undergraduate training at Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL, went to medical school at the University of Tennessee, Memphis, and did his residency training in a combined Internal Medicine/Psychiatry program at Rush Presbyterian St Luke’s Medical Center in Chicago, IL. He has done many presentations about eating disorders in the community and has made local media appearances discussing eating disorders. He was a radio show host in 2007 of a live web-based program entitled “Understanding Eating Disorders” on the website www.health.voiceamerica.com and featured professionals and lay people as guests in the eating disorder field.  Most importantly, he is a husband and proud father of two children. He is a diplomat in the American Board of Internal Medicine, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and in Addiction Medicine through the American Board of Preventive Medicine.

AVP of Clinical Operations, Eating Disorder Network

Kate Fisch, LCSW

Kate brings over 17 years of clinical experience working in the field of eating disorders to the Odyssey Eating Disorder Network. Kate draws on her experience working in all levels of eating disorder treatment and care to inform her dedication for developing and delivering evidence based and best practice clinical services. Kate’s extensive knowledge of eating disorders and years of direct client care have also shaped her passion for clinical supervision, support, and development of other mental health clinicians treating individuals with eating disorders.

Kate earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Indiana University and her Master’s in Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis.

AVP of Eating Disorder Admissions

Alycia Aldieri, LPC

As the AVP of Eating Disorder Admissions, Alycia works with the Eating Disorder Clinical Partnership Team to provide a responsive, compassionate, and streamlined process for admission into treatment. Her professional experiences include working with both adults and adolescents with co-occurring disorders, primarily in a residential setting. She’s a graduate of Benedictine University’s Master of Science of Clinical Psychology program. She also received her bachelor’s degree in Music Therapy from East Carolina University, where she received classical vocal training. Alycia’s therapeutic and professional approach derives from her therapeutic work, spiritual beliefs, and 12-step principles. She strongly values providing the highest level of integrity, compassion, and ethics when helping families and individuals affected by eating disorders and addiction. She believes living a life of recovery is worth the fight and holds hope that recovery is achievable to anyone willing. Alycia finds peace in being of service to others, and her goal is to ensure a smooth admission process for each client and their loved ones.

Clinical Practice Director

Sheena Gill, PsyD, CEDS

Dr. Sheena is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Certified Eating Disorders Specialist who has been working with eating disorders since 2014. She received both her masters and doctorate in psychology at Loma Linda University. Dr. Sheena has experience working with diverse populations of adults, adolescents, and families at various levels of care including inpatient hospitalization, residential, partial hospitalization (PHP), intensive outpatient (IOP), and traditional outpatient. As a clinician, she takes an integrative therapeutic approach by utilizing client-centered and humanistic principles to deliver Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Family-Based Treatment (FBT) interventions. She prioritizes developing a therapeutic relationship with clients and their families to help them reach their treatment goals.

Dr. Sheena previously worked at Shoreline and helped develop our first residential treatment program, by utilizing both her clinical expertise and experience working in other treatment programs. She is passionate about promoting inclusive and culturally appropriate care for those who struggle with eating disorders and looks forward to being instrumental to the continued growth of Shoreline.

In her free time, Dr. Sheena enjoys spending time with her family, playing with her dog, and baking like she is the next Food Network star.

Dietetic Clinical Supervisor

Marissa Kent, MS, RDN, CDCES

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
Master’s in Community Nutrition
Certificate in Intuitive Eating
Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist

Marissa received a degree in food and nutrition from California State University, Long Beach. She has been practicing in Orange County in the field of dietetics for over two decades. Marissa’s experience includes and is not limited to, eating disorders, diabetes treatment, and prevention as well as integrative and functional nutrition. She has a private practice in South Orange County.

Marissa participates in her community and acts in a supervising role to nutrition students and fellow dietitians nationwide.

Marissa has experience collaborating with a multi-disciplinary team to help her clients who have a poor relationship with food and their body. Marissa enjoys educating people about the importance of nutrition regarding metabolism, digestion, and balance through individualized counseling and group education. She stays current in the field with continuing education, webinars, and supervision groups.

Lead Registered Dietitian

Brianna Ballard, MS, RDN

Brianna Ballard, MS, RDN, is a Registered Dietitian who earned her Bachelor of Science in Food and Nutrition from University of North Florida and a Master of Science in Nutrition and Health Promotion from Simmons University. Brianna completed her dietetic internship with Wellness Workdays with a Health Promotion Concentration. She has worked in the dietetics field for over five years in a variety of positions working with clients in universities, hospitals, and retail settings. She is very passionate about nutrition and loves connecting with people over food. Brianna integrates Intuitive Eating and Health at Every Size philosophy into her daily practice.

Primary Therapist

Taylor Pyle, AMFT, APCC

Taylor is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist and Associate Professional Clinical Counselor. She earned her Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from Pepperdine University. She has experience working with clients with substance use and addiction disorders, domestic violence and sexual assault survivors and perpetrators, depression, anxiety, BPD, and PTSD. She uses a family systems and trauma informed approach, as she believes addiction is not involving just the client but also involves the family system. She also integrates CBT, DBT, ACT, attachment, experiential, and mindfulness to tailor to what the client needs. She also has training in CPT and is certified in EMDR. Taylor values having a strong therapeutic alliance and rapport with clients to allow clients to explore their authentic sense of self without any judgement. Her goal with clients is to empower clients to make the changes they want to make and to provide hope to clients that change is possible if they are ready to challenge themselves in the discomfort.”

Therapist

Heidi Pena, AMFT

Heidi is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist. She obtained her MA in Clinical Psychology: Marriage and Family Therapy. She has a range of experience working with Adults with a dual diagnosis within mental health, treating adolescents with substance abuse and dual diagnosis within residential treatment, and adolescents with eating disorders. Heidi’s approach uses person-centered therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Her goal is to assist her client in understanding themselves better and learning that they are not their diagnosis. She uses an empathetic approach to build rapport with her client. Her most crucial phrase is always to stay curious about her clients.

Director of Nursing

La Keiia R. Penson, BSN, RN, MPH

La Keiia received her Bachelor of Science from California State University, Dominguez Hills and obtained her Master of Public Health from the University of Southern California. What started out as a career in public health quickly pivoted as she found herself gravitating towards mental health initiatives.

La Keiia has been working in the mental health field for 3 years. Her passion for the field stems from her belief that mental health is the foundation which allows everyone to be the best person that they can be. Through her work as a mental health nurse, La Keiia has worked tirelessly to destigmatize mental health in underserved communities. She hopes to continue bridging the mental health gap through expanding her knowledge and expertise to better serve individuals living with mental health disorders.”

Operations Manager

Lauren Greenage

As the business manager for over 8 years, Lauren has been an integral part of the expansion and inner workings of Shoreline. After acquiring a degree in criminal justice while living in Arizona, Lauren moved back to California to pursue a career in Healthcare Administration. She brings over 20 years of administrative expertise and business management experience to Shoreline. Over the past few years, she has had a hand in many different aspects of administration including but not limited to network contracting and negotiation, human resources, payroll, accounts payable, collections, and a myriad of other duties. Her goal is to make sure that the wheels of the Shoreline bus keep turning and that everything runs as smoothly as possible for both staff and clients. Everyone at Shoreline knows that if they have a problem, they can come to her for support and or a resolution to their issue. In Lauren’s time off, she enjoys baking, playing fetch with her dog, and battling all her friends in trivia games.

Milieu Manager & Activity Program Leader

Ethan Pearson

As the Milieu Manager and Activity Program Leader, Ethan brings his passion for helping others, creative problem-solving skills, and empathy for clients and staff to the team at Shoreline. He received his Bachelor of Psychology from California State University Los Angeles and is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University specializing in LGBTQ+ Affirmative Care. Ethan has spent the last six years in mental health and education. His most recent professional experience involved overseeing the milieu of a 166-bed acute inpatient psychiatric facility. Before that, he worked as an advocate for survivors of sexual assault as a certified sexual assault counselor. His current role focuses on staff development and education and spearheading the activity program at our RTC locations. Ethan is an avid food lover and hopes to help our clients reframe their perspective and relationship with food towards a more positive one. In his free time, Ethan loves spending time with his family and two cats, going to the theater, and creating culinary masterpieces in the kitchen.

Lead Therapist

Joshua Levitt

Joshua is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who has been practicing for the last eight years. He has received two Masters in Psychology, a MA in Mediation and Conflict Resolution from the University of the Rockies, and a MS in Marriage, Family, and Child Counseling from the University of Phoenix. Joshua has a wide range of experiences, including working with the LGBTQ+ community, working with youth in a Wraparound program, and working with substance use programs. As a therapist, Joshua is adaptive in his approach, using therapy styles that best fit the client and their needs, often using approaches that include Narrative Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Family-Based Therapy models. He prioritizes developing a therapeutic relationship with clients and their families by finding solutions to current issues, and helping them work through past traumas, to help a client achieve their goals and become the person they want to be.