It took Tamara some time to figure out what she wanted to be when she grew up and her background reflects that – she taught English overseas in the Czech Republic, spent a decade in advertising and marketing, and then moved into non-profit management and higher education. While working on the Wellbeing Collaborative at Wake Forest, she fell in love with prevention-focused programming and is excited to be supporting families with young children as part of the Child First team in Guilford County. She is a trained facilitator for Circle of Security, a program for parents of children 0-5, which provides the kind of framework for parenting that she wishes she'd had when her own children were younger. Tamara loves to learn both in and out of the classroom. She has her Master in Social Work from UNC Chapel Hill, where she concentrated on working with children and families as well as on supporting individuals and families dealing with problematic substance use. As her children have grown up in bilingual classrooms, she's taken the opportunity to study alongside them, expanding her vocabulary and learning about the cultures of various Spanish-speaking countries. Homestays in Nicaragua and Spain have been her favorite way to learn. Her favorite place locally is the barn, where she enjoys riding and spending time with horses. Tamara also works with Equuvation, a farm in Statesville that provides equine assisted learning and therapy. She and her husband live in Winston Salem with their two teenagers and their dog Violet.