Justice Management, Investigations, and Educational Consultants

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS & BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

Theodore (Theo) Parassakis is a highly regarded and efficient leader at the TNT.  As the Director of business operations, Mr. Parassakis leads a team of highly skilled members who ensure customer service 24/365 to our clients.  In addition, Mr. Parassakis specializes in web design and web development for TNT.  Mr. Parassakis is known nationally as someone who understands  clients web needs, but more importantly,  understands that their business needs go beyond customer satisfaction to loyalty.  Over the past year, Mr. Parassakis has delivered on mission critical, technically challenging projects under tight timelines while also providing exceptional operational support to our clientele.  

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 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 attending the University of Toronto for Business studies.  As a result of his educational and professional background, Mr. Parassakis 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. 

Mr. Parassakis offers a balance in understanding the dynamic nature between governmental needs and the progressive mindset of the business world. Mr. Parassakis ’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. 

GENERAL MANAGER - TNT TRAINING 

John Margetson has recently joined the TNT team effective September 01, 2020 after serving as a subject matter expert with the company for the past four years.  John Margetson will assume a leadership role at TNT guiding a very dynamic team and assisting the company expand across Canada and the U.S with a specialization in training.  

In policing, John has had a distinguished career serving over 30 years with the Toronto Police Service.  Within the service, John has held many positions such as a  lead detective with the Organized Crime Enforcement-Drug Squad, as an investigator with the Homicide Squad, Major Crime Unit-Vice Section, and served at the Criminal Investigation Bureau. In a uniform capacity, John served in the Community Response Unit and the Public Safety Unit.  A very proud achievement prior to joining the Toronto Police Service, John served in the Canadian Armed Forces as a Section Commander in the Infantry. 

In the education field, John has taught at Humber College and Centennial College in their respective Police Foundations Programs for over 6 years 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). 

Howard Sapers’ experience includes work in the justice, corrections, and political sectors. He currently consults domestically and internationally on oversight, ombudsmanship and correctional policy and practice. Engagements have included work for provincial, territorial, and national governments, human rights organizations, NGOS, and professional associations. Recently Mr. Sapers completed two years as the Independent Advisor on Corrections Reform for the province of Ontario. Between January 2017 and December 2018, he released three reports: Segregation in Ontario; Corrections in Ontario: Directions for Reform; and Institutional Violence: A Case Study. In total, the three reports contained 167 recommendations.  Based upon Mr. Sapers’ work, a new principle-based correctional law for the province was drafted and has received Royal Assent. 

Between 2004 and 2016 Howard Sapers was the Correctional Investigator of Canada. Mr. Sapers served as the Executive Director of the John Howard Society of Alberta, an elected member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Director of Canada’s National Crime Prevention Centre Investment Fund and Vice Chairperson (Prairie Region) of the Parole Board Canada.  Mr. Sapers is a Past President of the Canadian Criminal Justice Association, has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Forum of Canadian Ombudsman and between 2012 and 2016 was a North American Regional representative to the International Ombudsman Institute. Mr. Sapers represented the community of small federal departments and agencies on the Government of Canada Small Department Audit Committee and was Chairman of the Department of National Defence/Canadian Forces Ombudsman Advisory Committee. 

Mr. Sapers has investigated systemic bias in corrections, the intersection between mental health and criminal justice, prisoner self-harm, and the use of force. His publications have addressed the relationship between prison health and public health, the future of ombudsman in Canada and the challenges of meetings the needs of an aging prison population.  

Mr. Sapers work as Correctional Investigator was recognized in the cover story of the Fall 2016 edition of Power & Influence magazine. Mr. Sapers is an Adjunct Professor at Simon Fraser University’s School of Criminology and a Visiting Professor at the University of Ottawa Department of Criminology. In 2016, he was awarded a Honourary Doctor of Laws from the University of Ottawa. Mr. Sapers is currently a member of the Ryerson University Department of Criminology Advisory Council, on the Board of Trustees of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and a member of the Legal Aid Ontario Prison Law Advisory Committee. 

Brooke Chambers is a mental health consultant, speaker, and trainer. Raised in Durham Region she lives in Whitby, Ontario Canada and is the co-founder and President of Bernice Carnegie and Associates Inc. a consulting firm specializing in Black Anti-Racism and Mental Health Promotion and Training. 

She was appointed to the Canadian Ministerial Advisory Council on Mental Health for the Government of Canada in 2018 as an advisor to the Federal Minister of Health. She is also a consulting member of Promoting Health Equity: The Mental Health of Black Canadians Working Group for The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and is a board member for the Ontario Peer Development Initiative (OPDI). 

Brooke is a Wellness Recovery Facilitator WRAP and is a Speaker for Voices against Stigma Everywhere (VASE) a Peer Support Speakers Bureau for Durham Mental Health Services. Her newest consultancy role is as an Anti-racism trainer for TC Online an international organization dedicated to stopping Human Trafficking. 

In 1989 Brooke was the youngest police officer ever hired by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) at the age of nineteen and the only black female at the time.  In this role Ms. Chambers served in traffic enforcement, accident investigation, coach officer, community engagement, strategic policy and planning and fraud investigation. 

Brooke left policing to pursue a career as a financial planner managing $60 million in assets and is a Professional Financial Planner (PFP). Brooke is currently continuing her studies at Ryerson University as a third year student in Disability Studies. She is also, the granddaughter of Canadian Hockey Icon, Dr. Herbert H. Carnegie, the daughter of Bernice Carnegie, authors of the book, “A Fly in a Pail of Milk, The Herbert H. Carnegie Story.”

Superintendent Keith Merith (Ret)  is a talented, multi-dimensional law enforcement professional with a unique blend of police operations, administration, and leadership experience. Well-rounded individual, with proven resourcefulness in delivery of day-to-day operations, and triaging emergent situations that are inherent in policing. Excels at cultivating partnerships, effectively managing cross-functional teams, and implementing organizational strategies. A versatile, results driven leader known for building bridges within the community and for championing change in organizations that are transitioning to perform optimally in an ever-evolving landscape. 

Keith has completed his studies at the University of Guelph Humber earning a Justice Studies Degree, Rotman School of Management Police Leadership, at University of Toronto, A Law enforcement, and Security Administration Diploma, from Humber Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. Certified Municipal Manager Level III and Police Professional Designations Ontario Management. His Police experience is vast with the York Regional Police Service. He has been a unit commander in the Court Services, Professional Development Services, Organized Crime, and Intelligence Services, and the Training and Education Bureau.

In the area of community involvement and diversity, Keith Merith is the immediate past president of the Association of Black Law Enforcers (A.B.L.E.) serving two terms to address the needs and concerns of racialized groups across North America in the Justice Field and Policing. He has also represented other Justice Agencies such as Corrections, Canadian Border Services, as well as the legal community providing advice to lawyers and judges. His main goal was to provide outreach, support, scholarships for post secondary education, always promoting harmony, cultural pride and diversity.

In addition to his formal role at (A.B.L.E.) Keith is the Co-Founder of the Citizenship Initiative Group (CIG) whose mission is to assist individuals with permanent resident status through the process to become Canadian citizens. The group promotes the benefits of Canadian citizenship, provides educational presentations about the citizenship process, assist individuals and families in completing the necessary application forms, and facilitates Citizenship ceremonies.

 Yvette Blackburn, BA, MA, is an educator, advocate, public speaker, and much sought after, diversity consultant in education and government settings. She teaches at the elementary and college levels. Yvette has an extensive background in counselling, equity/diversity, policy and program training, fiscal responsibility, and fiduciary rights. Yvette is a long-standing community advocate and leader, sitting on various Boards of Directors, task forces, and committees. She has been a counsellor for at-risk and underserved students, as well as an employment counsellor assisting racialized and new Canadian women having difficulty attaining and retaining employment. In addition, she has been an instructor with TriOS College teaching Canadian Government and Criminology in the Police Foundations Program.

Yvette is a trained facilitator and considered a subject matter expert on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion with specific emphasis in Anti-Black Racism, anti-racism, and oppression. Her expansive working knowledge of Human Rights, race relations, gender bias and neutrality, LGBTQI, Transphobia, feminism, and inter-sectionality shapes fulsome dialogue, analysis, and comprehension. She has facilitated and managed multiple projects, including Risk in Non-Profit Organizations, leading Boards effectively and strategically. Her focus on counselling and mediation involves guidance, liaison, conflict resolution, health promotion and wellness, interviewing, negotiation skills, advising, investigation, anger management, participative management style, advocate of team concepts, tact, innovation, flexibility, service oriented, sound reasoning, assertive, customer service focused, results oriented.

She possesses certification in Human Rights, Guidance Part 1, 2, Specialist, Equity, Inclusion & Diversity (EDI) Restorative Justice Part 1 & 2, Fair & Impartial Policing (FIP) Differentiated Instruction, Multiple Intelligences, Conflict Resolution 1 & 2, Conflict Management Skills, Strengthening Achievements, Motivation & Responsibility of At-risk/underserved students, Anti-Racism and Oppression, FNMI-Aboriginal and Indigenous Awareness, Microaggressions, Ableism, Attachment Disorder, Labour and Immigration Law, Collective Bargaining & Negotiations, Leading Boards Effectively & Strategically, WHMIS, WHSC level 1 & 2, Suicide Protocol, Creative Strategies for working with ODD (Oppositional Defiance Disorder).

Her demonstrative competencies include being involved with the Global Jamaica Diaspora Council–Government of Jamaica, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade (Canada representative), ETFO Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario -Provincial Executive Board, TDSB Black Students Achievement Community Advisory Committee( BSACAC), PACER-EAC-Toronto Police Services External Advisory Committee, Toronto Police Services-Vice Chair, Black Community Consultative  Committee (BCCPC), President-A-Supreme Foundation, Chair/Co-chair Elementary Teachers of Toronto-ETT Anti-Racism, Equity and Social Justice, Political Action, Professional Development, Governance, Budget and Status of Women committees.

INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS  

Joe Elkerton is an Indigenous Torontonian and intergenerational survivor of the Indian Residential School System. Abandoned by his parents and adopted by a white couple, his story of reconnection with his Indigenous identity and it’s challenges which led him to life on the streets, is one all too familiar for many Indigenous people in Canada. Elkerton offers moving and impactful instruction about Indigeneity, community work, mental health and addiction.
 

Elkerton’s life on the streets was forever changed when someone reached out to him and told him about Jesus. Finding new meaning, he went on to become a youth-worker and pastor, now working through “Project 417,” where he is back on the street- paying it forward. Joe hosts volunteer groups from all over the world, educating them about the circumstances that lead to people ending up on the streets and how to reach out to them even if just for a moment to provide a meal or a prayer.
 

Joe speaks to the impacts of residential school on his family and how these experiences led him to become well-versed in an array of issues that impact Indigenous people. Elkerton has worked with survivors of human trafficking, notably starting a safe house for women in need of shelter and protection from their traffickers. He also has a vested interest in the well-being of Indigenous families going through the child welfare system and was the president of Toronto’s Native Child and Family Services for many years.  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 and was a Certified Instructor at the National Native Bible College in Deseronto, Ontario. He holds a Bachelor of Religious Education from Tyndale University, Toronto, a Certificate in Recreational Leadership from Sheridan College and a Certificate from the London School of Business.

 

Joe has a passion for developing outreach programs and educational workshops for Indigenous communities on and off reserve. He cares deeply for vulnerable populations and is trained in Emergency response. Committed to supporting his community, he is the Coordinator of the Addiction Support Housing Program at Fife House, overseeing 37 sites where homeless people are placed in transition from street life to sustainable housing.

SENIOR POLICY ADVISER- POLICE PSYCHOLOGIST SPECIALIST  

Dr. Pete Jones is a specialist in implicit bias, intervention evaluation, psychometrics in diversity and inclusion. Dr. Jones was a police officer between 1979 and 2001, and his final three years of service were spent in the Police Research Group in the Research and Statistics Directorate at the UK Home Office. While a serving officer he obtained a Degree in Psychology (1993), a Master’s Degree in Psychometric Assessment in Organisations (1995) and a PhD in Psychometric Personality Assessment (2000). He is a Chartered Psychologist and Chartered Scientist, identified in the Runnymede 360 as an emerging leader in race equality.

Dr. Jones is the Founder of the Shire Professional Chartered Psychologists Group since 2001, specializing in  psychometric testing and development.  As part of his work Dr. Jones developed the Competency-Based Constable and Police Community Support Officer  for all 43 police services in England and Wales. Between 2003 and 2005 he led the longitudinal evaluation of the fast stream for teachers to leadership (fast track). He also designed the exams for the Police High Potential Development systems and developed assessment materials for the Senior Investigating Officers development programme. Further, Dr. Jones designed the final constable interview systems for British Transport Police, West Yorkshire Police, and Dyfed Powys Police. 

In 2009, after 6 years of intensive research, Dr. Jones launched Implicitly®, the first commercial test of our implicit biases, and since then, over 300,000 tests have been administered.  His policing clients have included College of Policing, The UK Home Office, almost all of the 43 Police forces in England and Wales, Police Scotland, MOD Police, and British Transport Police.

In the corporate sector, Dr. Jones continues to work with a variety of industries including:

Regulators: Financial Ombudsman Service, OFGEM, OFCOM, Planning Service Inspectorate, Advertising Standards Agency

Financial Services: Bank of America, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Coutts, Lloyds, Allianz Insurance, Zurich Insurance, Cabot Financial, Miller Insurance, Baillie Gifford, Walter Scott

Health: NHS Digital, University of Sheffield Medical School

Science and Technology: European Research Council Executive Agency, BAE Systems, Sanger Wellcome Genome Research Laboratory, Diamond Light Source national synchrotron science facility, Roslin Animal Research Institute, Pirbright Animal Research Institute,  CA Technology, Cairn Energy, BP, Fujitsu, Babcock Marine

Academia: Universities of; Cambridge Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, Edinburgh, York, University College London, Imperial College London, National Institute of Biology Slovenia, Institute of Physics, Society of Microbiology.

Law: Law society of Ireland, Uk Bar Society, Allen and Overy, Hogan Lovells, Pinsett Masons, HSF, Clyde & Co. 

Retail: ASDA, adidas, DFS, 

Professional Services: PWC, Boston Consulting Group, EY

Others: England and Wales Cricket Board, South Gloucestershire Council, DHL, Church of England, SSRO, Teach First

Dr. Jones current interests continue to be in implicit bias testing, debiasing assessment processes, focusing on issues around fairness in police recruiting and training. As such, he has joined with TNT Justice Consultants to carry out his work into the Canadian law enforcement landscape, corporate Canada, and diverse Communities and agencies across Canada.

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.

SENIOR POLICY ADVISER

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.