Dr. Frank Trovato
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Dr. Trovato has extensive background in policing. From 1975 to 2003 Dr. Trovato worked in all areas of uniform, investigations and later administration retiring as a senior officer with the Toronto Police Service. Post retirement, in 2004, Dr. Trovato pursued his equal passion as an educator at the college and university levels. As the Program Head at the University of Guelph Humber/Humber College, Dr. Trovato spearheaded the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Justice Studies that has seen more than 30 Agencies and over 800 justice professionals attend from the Military, Private Security Sector, Government Ministries, and Police Services across the Province. He also spearheaded the Graduate Program in Justice Studies partnership with Humber College and the University of Niagara. From 2005 to 2010, Dr. Trovato served as Program Head for the Justice Studies Degree Program at the University of Guelph-Humber, Program Coordinator for the Police Foundations Program, at Humber College, Program Coordinator for the Police Foundations Leadership Program at Humber College (i.e. for police professionals transitioning to university studies), and now teaches at Centennial College since 2014. In 2017, Dr. Trovato joined the faculty at Wilfrid Laurier University as an online tutor in the policing degree programs as well as consults with police services in Ontario to enhance higher education pathways for degree and graduate degrees available online at Laurier.
Dr. Trovato completed his PhD in Philosophy, University of Toronto (2008), M.Sc. in Criminal Justice Administration from Niagara University (2000), a BA in Criminology and Sociology from the University of Toronto (1996), Human Resource Management Certificate in (2000) from University of Toronto, and a Law Enforcement Administration Certificate from University of Toronto in (1987).
Dr. Trovato has been recognized for his dedication to teaching as the recipient of the President’s Spirit Award (2017), Nominated for Teaching Excellence (Wicken Award, 2016), Dean’s Leadership and Community Award (2015), The Online Learning Award (2011), President’s Community Service Award (2009), National Teaching and Leadership Excellence Award (2007), Distinguish Faculty of the Year Award (2006), and the Innovation of the Year Award (2005).
Collaborate research projects have involved creating a Leadership program for Toronto Police Service called “Increasing Bench Strength" in order to identify and develop great leaders through a curriculum that emphasizes a competency model involving the three concepts of, Knowledge, Commitment, and Action.
Dr. Trovato was also the lead researcher in a joint project with the Toronto Police involving a longitudinal study measuring selected at risk communities and how the effects of having a Neighborhood Officer assigned to those areas would impact crime rates, community trust, and public safety.
CEO TNT JUSTICE CONSULTANTS
Letizia Trovato
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT -CORPORATE AFFAIRS
Letizia Trovato has over 11 years experience working in the Justice System specializing in managing complex sexual offenders and those deemed to be affiliated with Organized Criminal Groups. Her work also included a long-term assignment as an Intelligence Analyst with the Correctional Services Criminal intelligence Unit assisting in creating a relational data base to assist correctional facilities across Ontario how to record, properly identify and enter data to better share and manage the population of gang members in custody. At TNT, Ms. Trovato is a senior advisor to the executive team and assists to research, manage and develop curriculum for training and to write policy papers and final reports to clients.
In addition to working in the Correction sector, Ms Trovato is also an Educator with 8 years of online and in-class teaching experience in the Police Foundation Program at Humber College, Centennial College, and teaching as well in the Community Justice Degree Programs at both colleges.
Her education focus and expertise is in research, policy development, and curriculum development. Ms Trovato holds a BA in Sociology and Linguistics, from University of Toronto, a Graduate degree in Human Resource Management, York University, a Graduate Diploma in Human Resources, University of Toronto, and currently is a PhD (c) in Criminal Justice, Online Higher Education and Curriculum Development at Walden University.
Theodore Parassakis
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
Theodore Parassakis is a highly regarded and efficient member at TNT incorporated. Mr. Parassakis prior to joining the TNT executive team was a Correctional officer in Toronto for 6 years. Additionally, Mr. Parassakis held a number of high-level security and administrative positions prior to his current position at TNT. Mr. Parassakis is passionate about giving back to the communities in need by volunteering in Downtown Toronto at various shelter locations.
Theodore has attained an Honour Roll diploma in Police Foundations, this in addition to holding a highly esteemed certificate in entrepreneurship from Harvard Business School. He is also currently attending the University of Toronto for Business. As a result of his educational and professional background, Theodore has provided TNT with expansive ideas, spanning from the technical aspect of the business to the frontline experience and rudimentary knowledge of the criminal justice system. Theodore offers a balance in understanding the dynamic nature between governmental needs and the progressive mindset of the business world. Theodore’s friendly demeanor and knowledge has enabled him to communicate effectively with members of law enforcement and fellow entrepreneurs with the consistent desire to drive TNT into the future.
Professor Howard Page
CHIEF INSTRUCTOR
Police/Special Constable Education
Professor Howie Page has taught in College settings since 1999. Prior to joining the educational field, Professor Page enjoyed a distinguished policing career retiring as a senior officer with the Toronto Police Service. From 1999 to 2010 Professor Page served as a part-time instructor at the Toronto Police College, from 2009 to 2015 as a Contract Professor for the Police Foundations Program at Humber College, and most recently at Centennial College as a professor with tenure for the Police Foundations Program.
Professor Page is a co-author of a national bestselling textbook, Police Powers (2015). This textbook is used by colleges across Canada in the Police Foundation and Law and Security programs. Professor Page is currently in the early stages of co-authoring a second college textbook in the field of Emergency Management. Professor Page`s interests include the development of current serving police officers supporting their commitment to continuous education within a rapidly shifting Canadian legal environment. He continues to mentor and lecture police officers from across Ontario at various seminars and training sessions.
Professor Page has been recognized for his dedication to teaching and innovative contribution to the Centennial College annual mock disaster and is the recipient of the Centennial College Learning-Centered College Award (2017), the Dean's Apple Award (2018) for outstanding community innovation and the Dean's Apple Award (2019) for outstanding community innovation and scholarship teaching. He is also recipient of the Centennial College Individual President's Spirit Award (2019) for innovated teaching and creative problem solving in the classroom.
Judy Hermann
TRAINING MANAGER
Professor Hermann has worked in youth justice services for over 25 years. After graduating from Centennial College’s Correctional Worker Program in 1991, she began her career with Operation Springboard as a residential front- line counselor, senior counselor (primary worker) and assistant supervisor in various open custody/open detention facilities. Before leaving Springboard in 2000, Judy was instrumental in implementing the Alternatives Project at 311 Jarvis Street youth court, known today as YCAPP. Judy joined Encourage Youth Corporation in 2000 and ran the Aftercare Support Program for youth being released from Project Turnaround until its closure in 2004.
During this time, Judy was also working on her bachelor’s degree in Psychology at York University and was working as a part time instructor and field placement supervisor at Centennial College. Today she is also working on completing her Master’s in Criminology. In 2005, Judy was hired as a full-time professor in the Correctional Worker Program and once again took the lead in implementing a newly reinvented program which was re-branded as the Community & Justice Services Program. In 2006, Judy became, and remains to this day, the program’s coordinator for the Community and Justice Services Program at Centennial Colleg
John Margetson
SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT- CRIMINAL LAW, INVESTIGATIONS, PROCEDURES
John Margetson is a 30 year veteran of the Toronto Police presently serving as a Detective with the Organized Crime Enforcement-Drug Squad. John is presently a recognized drug expert providing expert testimony, at all levels of court, on major drug investigation and organized crime groups. Prior to becoming a police officer, John served in the Canadian Armed Forces as a section commander in the infantry. John has served as an investigator with the Homicide Squad, Major Crime Unit, Vice Section and Criminal Investigation Bureau. He has also served in the Community Response Unit and the Public Safety Unit.
John is presently a part-time professor at Humber College and Centennial College in their respective Police Foundations Programs as well as a part-time instructor at the Toronto Police College. John has also provided numerous educational lectures on policing to various community and police organizations. While employed with the Canadian Armed Forces, John provided training and instruction in various areas such as the infantry leadership course and basic infantry training.
John has completed his Baccalaureate of Applied Arts in Criminal Justice Studies, at the University of Guelph-Humber (2017) and received a college diploma in Police Foundations Leadership with Honors at Humber College (2015).
Elisa Reid
Training Staff (Mental Health Expert)
Elisa Reid has worked in youth sector for over 26 years. After graduating from McMaster University in 1991 with a Degree in Political Science. Elisa began her career with SylApps as a correctional officer and a child and youth worker. She moved on to manage an open custody facility and a treatment home for Turning Point Youth Services. Elisa has had the opportunity to manage youth facilities from working in the child welfare system, to shelters, mental health facilities and youth justice.
Elisa Reid has been a part time professor/ field placement supervisor at Centennial College in the Community and Justice Services Program since 2010. She has also been a part time professor at Niagara College in the continuing education program for counselling skills since 2003.
Elisa Reid currently works for Peel Children’s Aid Society, (PCAS) for 10 years in different capacities. She has held the leadership role of a Residential Supervisor responsible for managing the program to meet the needs of clients between the ages 11 and 17 years of age. The clients Elisa deals with come from diverse back grounds, struggling with emotional regulation, self-harming behaviours, attachment trauma and developmental trauma as well as mental health issues. Elisa’s present role at PCAS is CYW Crisis Support Worker. This job entails visits to family homes in the community, making connection to support families staying together while coping with issues ranging from domestic violence, parent teen conflict, human trafficking, addictions and mental health issues. Elisa works hard at being an ally with the clients she engages as well as with her peers and community partners. Elisa also has extensive training in Trauma, Mental Health, Diversity and Anti-Oppressive Practice (AOP). Elisa is diligent in being reflective to growing her work to becoming a better ally.
Elisa continues to increase her knowledge base to remain current within the scope of her work. Elisa has completed her Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Certificate Level 1 and Level 2 from Wilfrid Laurier University. Presently she is working on her Trauma Certification from Wilfrid Laurier University. Elisa is also trained in Effective Use of Self, CBT, DBT and DDP. She is a trainer Healthy Sexuality, UMAB and UMMH and a Facilitator of Restorative Justice.
Dr. Dan Lang
SENIOR POLICY ADVISER: Former Vice President and Vice-Provost University of Toronto
Professor Lang has long been active in a wide variety of professional activities. This includes professional associations such as the Association for Institutional Research (1975-2000), the Operations Planning and Analysis Group (1979-1991), the Center for Research Libraries (1993-1999), and the Ontario Universities Council on Admissions (1998-2005) where he chaired various committees and/or on the boards. He was a member of the Associate Graduate Faculty, Central Michigan University, from 1998 to 2005, and has served in various board capacities at the University of Toronto Schools (1986-1996), St. Augustine’s Seminary (2001-2007), Seneca College (2006, 2007), Algoma University College (1998-), University of Calgary (2006-) and the Toronto School of Theology (2008-).
The single greatest beneficiary of his expertise has been the Council of Ontario Universities, where he has served on many committees and task forces, beginning in 1982. He has also done work for the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities/Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, especially its Task Force on Accountability (1991-1993), its Graduate Survey of 1997 with the COU, and Steering Committee / Working Group on Transfers (2008-2011). From 2016-2018, he served as Special Advisor to the Deputy Minister and served on the planning committee for a French-language university in Ontario. Professor Lang has also long promoted scholarly discussion by editing, sitting on the editorial boards of, or acting as editorial consultant to numerous academic journals, including Interchange: A Journal of Educational Studies (1974-1975), Canadian Journal of Higher Education (1973-1996), Ontario Journal of Higher Education (1994-1997), Canadian Society for the Study of Higher Education Professional File (1997-), and Higher Education Perspectives (1998-2001). He was also a manuscript reviewer for the University of Toronto Press from 1997 to 1999 and for the years 2001, 2004, 2007, and 2009. Professor Lang has also written three books, numerous chapters in books, and a substantial number of refereed journal articles and review essays, along with other articles and letters to the editor. He has presented papers at many refereed conference proceedings (some of which have been published), given a good number of other papers, public lectures and presentations at invitational panels.
Professor Lang has been the recipient of a number of honours including International Association of Universities Palgrave Prize (2003) and the Beijing Forum (2004). In 2005 he was made an honorary member of the Senate of Algoma University College, Laurentian University, and was named to the Papal Order of Saint Gregory in 2006. That year he also received the Arbor Award for outstanding personal service to the University of Toronto. His passion for baseball was recognized when he was named OUA Coach of the Year in 2004 for his many years of service to the University of Toronto Blues baseball team. In 2010 he was inducted into the University of Toronto Sports Hall of Fame. He stepped down from coaching in 2011. Professor Lang retired in 2013 and subsequently received the title of Emeritus Professor. He continues to work and live in Toronto.
Dr. Dorothy Cotton
SENIOR POLICY ADVISER: MENTAL HEALTH & POLICE TRAINING PSYCHOLOGIST
For more than 30 years, Dr. Dorothy Cotton has been working with police organizations to help them change the way they respond to people with mental health challenges. As a Queen’s University adjunct professor and mental health advocate Dorothy Cotton has been awarded the Order of Ontario, the highest citizen honour in the province.
Working as a clinical and correctional psychologist with a primary interest in police psychology Dorothy Cotton provides a variety of services to police organizations including pre-employment and fitness for duty assessments, program development, and research consultation. Dr. Cotton is also well known for her work in the area of police interactions with people with mental illnesses.
Dr. Cotton says one of her proudest accomplishments is developing the TEMPO model (Training and Education about Mental Illness for Police Organizations). It provides a blueprint for Canadian law enforcement officers to help them interact with people with mental health challenges in the field. She is also proud of her work in early 2000 that brought together law enforcement and mental health professionals into one room. She is quoted as saying: “We convinced the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police to get involved and we hosted our first conference that featured half police officers and half mental health workers. It resulted in new programs and strategies for working with people with mental health challenges.”
Dr. Terry G. Coleman
SENIOR POLICY AND GOVERNMENTAL ADVISER: MENTAL HEALTH & POLICE TRAINING
Dr. Terry Coleman has enjoyed a highly successful policing career spanning over 40 years. He worked as Chief of Police for Moose Jaw Police Service from 1997 to 2004, and at the Calgary Police Service after 27+ years as the Inspector-Professional Standards and Director of Human Resources. As the Chief of Police, Dr. Coleman was the Chair of the Criminal Intelligence Service-Saskatchewan and President of the Saskatchewan Chiefs of Police from 2004-2007. He has also served as the former Director of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP) and since 1998 has been a member of the CACP-Human Resource and Learning Committee. Post policing, Dr. Coleman from 2007 became Deputy Minister of Public Safety, Corrections and Policing for Saskatchewan and then Deputy Minister of Municipal Affairs. Subsequently, in politics, he was a Councilor for the City of Moose Jaw and a member of the Moose Jaw Board of Police Commissioners. He is currently the Chair of the High River Policing Committee and Vice Chair of the Alberta Association of Police Governance.
As a public safety consultant, Dr. Coleman's work has focused on the interactions of police personnel with persons with mental health issues along with Dr. Dorothy Cotton. His recent work has included reviews of police agencies and colleges/academies regarding their curricula for preparing police personnel for their interactions with people with mental health issues. In this regard, since 2007, he has worked with the Mental Health Commission of Canada on various projects such as learning developed for police personnel to de-escalate difficult situations. He is co-author of the Mental Health Commission’s 2014 ‘TEMPO’ study conducted with Dr. Dorothy Cotton. Additional consulting has included the review of police agencies, police colleges, and correctional facilities to identify workplace performance issues and make recommendations.
Dr. Coleman holds a Doctorate in Police Studies from the University of Alberta, a Masters of Human Resource Management, and a Masters of Police Studies, from the University of Regina. His research focus was the measurement of the organizational performance of police organizations. He was also a sessional instructor in the Department of Justice Studies and is currently an online tutor for Athabasca University as well as an instructor for the Dalhousie University College of Continuing Education. In 2003, he was awarded the Order of Merit for Police Forces.
Joe Elkerton
INDIGENOUS POLICY ADVISER
Joe Elkerton is an aboriginal Torontonian who was abandoned by his parents and adopted by a white couple. He tells of his struggle to find his aboriginal identity and acceptance which led him into life on the streets. His life changed when someone reached out to him and told him about Jesus. He now is back on the streets as a youth worker and native pastor through "Project 417", reaching out to those in the sex trade. Joe holds a Bachelor of Religious Education from Tyndale University, Toronto (1985), holds a Certificate in Recreational Leadership (1990) from Sheridan college, and Certificate from the London School of Business (1978).
In his extensive community work, Joe has been on the Governance Committee for the Ontario Association of Children’s Aids Society, has served as a Training Officer with the Canadian Forces Ontario from 1978 to 1992, a certified instructor at the National Native Bible College, Deseronto, Ontario, and has served as a Pastor, Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship, Youth Minister at the Eden United Church, and a Director of Community Ministries from 2004-2007.
His passion is to develop outreach programs and education workshops for aboriginal communities on and off reserves. He cares deeply about helping the homeless, victims of human trafficking, people with addictions, and mental health.
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Joe Elkerton
Chris Lussow
Use of Force Expert
Christopher Lussow is a 32-year veteran law enforcement professional with twenty years dedicated to the Emergency Task Force (ETF) as a Tactical Operator (SWAT), Team Leader, and Senior Training Instructor for the six teams in the unit. His role as senior instructor included major projects planning, organizational interoperability, and the implementation of resources for Joint Forces Operations.
Christopher’s largest operation engaged 44 tactical team warrants simultaneously. Christopher’s experiences identified a gap in practice, so he implemented a peer-support program for officer-involved shootings. The program, available across Canada, provides a direct officer to officer connection, focusing on mental well-being, post-incident investigation processes, and inquest expectations.
In Canada and the United States, Christopher has extensive experience as an instructor and keynote speaker in both the classroom and larger conference venues, providing education and insight on a variety of tactical subjects and in-depth incident debriefings.
Currently, in his role as a provincially certified Use of Force Instructor for the largest municipal police academy in Canada, Christopher educates frontline officers in de-escalation, critical thinking, tactical warrant entries, firearms, and dynamic simulation training.
Christopher’s educational certifications include: Teaching Effectiveness, Guelphhumber University, Law and Security Administration and Police Science at Loyalist College, Force Science Institute, Chicago, USA.
Professional certifications include: Emergency Management, Incident Management systems (100-200), Realistic De-escalation Instructor (2019), Certified Analyst Lethal Force in use and assessing use of force incidents, Use of Force Instructor, Ontario Police College, MCSCS, Firearms Instructor, Provincially certified C8 Carbine Instructor (OPC), Glock Armorer, Pistol, Shotgun, Submachinegun, ITLS Certified (International Trauma Life Support Medic, Tactical Medicine, Combat casualty care, Crisis negotiator, Explosive Force Entry Instructor, Raid Planning, Dynamic Entry, Ballistic shield instructor, Executive and Dignitary Protection instructor. Less Lethal Instructor includes: Defense technologies, AMTEC ALS-less lethal instructor, Chemical Munitions instructor, ASP instructor, CEW (conducted Energy Weapon) Instructor, Taser Instructor, Specialty Impact Instructor (i.e. Sock Round, ARWEN)
Christopher’s accomplishments have been recognized in him receiving the Police Exemplary Service Medal, 1st bar 30 years exemplary service, Police Exemplary Service Medal 20 years of exemplary service, Queens Jubilee Medal-Actions during hostage rescue (2005), Teamwork Commendation-Actions during hostage rescue (2005), National Police Award-Actions during hostage rescue (2005)