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Check Out our Keynote Speakers

Saul Malek is a speaker who discusses self-acceptance, resilience, positive decision making, and gambling harm prevention. Saul developed a gambling addiction as a college sophomore, losing money, time, relationships, and nearly his life. Since finding recovery in 2019, he has made it his mission to help others cope with life, find purpose, and keep away from maladaptive behavior such as compulsive gambling. He has spoken to schools (both high school and college), athlete mental health organizations, suicide prevention groups, parent groups, popular news outlets (including New York Times, National Public Radio, Public Broadcasting Service, and Dallas Morning News), the 2023 Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling annual conference, and was a keynote speaker at  the Wisconsin Council on Problem Gambling annual conference. He has appeared as a guest on Dr Phil Primetime and will be featured as a TedX speaker at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in March 2025.

Jim Wuelfing is owner of the New England Center, a company dedicated to quality training and technical assistance services. Jim has many specialties including; recovery coaching, peer assisted services, community organizing, prevention, curriculum development, peer education, stress management and problem gambling services.  He has also co-written and co-trained the highly praised workshop, “Racism of the Well-Intended, Examining Privilege and Power”. He has trained professionals around the country and in Europe.  Jim has been on the faculty of the New England School of Alcohol Studies for fifteen years.  Jim has also served as a on-line faculty member for the Addictions Transfer of Technology Center – New England at Brown University. Jim was honored to be the recipient of the first prevention award from the National Council on Problem Gambling which has hence been named the Wuelfing Prevention Award.

Mr. Wuelfing received his BA from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA. He spent 13 years serving as an Assistant Dean and Associate Dean at his alma mater.  Jim was also the Director of Prevention Services and Training Manager for ETP, Inc for six years before developing the New England Center.

Zina Rodriguez, MSW, MCAP, CDE is the Membership Director for the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers and the Founder of InclusivityIQ and Co-Founder of Z&D Consulting. Zina’s mission is to collaborate with organizations and individuals to create inviting, intentional, and inclusive healing spaces for individuals to achieve mental wellness while creating pathways for success for individuals from underrepresented communities. Zina is passionate about advocating for health equity, bringing awareness to the vast disparities in mental health and substance use treatment services for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities, and addressing how racial and identity trauma impacts individuals and communities.

Zina has over 25 years of experience in marketing and operations. For the past seventeen years, her career has focused on behavioral health care, where she has held senior leadership positions in national and global behavioral health care companies, serving as Executive Director and in Senior Marketing and Business Development roles.

Her international work has allowed her to develop a specialty in multicultural program development and marketing. As a global speaker, Zina addresses topics related to culture, diversity, equity, and inclusion in behavioral health care.

Zina is a social worker, certified addiction professional, and ARISE-trained interventionist. She is also a Certified Diversity Executive, collaborating with treatment providers to develop transformational DEIB strategies that align with their mission and values. She equips organizations with tools and training to embed DEIB within their organizational plans by developing sustainable, ongoing initiatives that ensure inclusivity in systems, processes, and goals for employees, clients, and communities.

Zina’s passion for mental wellness and recovery is reflected in her board memberships with Young People in Recovery, The Brain Love Foundation, and Black Therapist Rock. Additionally, Zina has served as an adjunct professor at Rutgers University School of Social Work. She holds an MSW with a concentration in Administration from Fordham University and a BSW degree from Rutgers University.


Jon E. Grant, MD is a Professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Chicago where he directs a clinic and research lab on addictive, compulsive and impulsive disorders.  Professor Grant is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Gambling Studies and author of over 500 publications and 15 books.


Harlan Hodge, Certified EnTeam Facilitator, Certified Diversity Manager, is a social health professional with over 30 years of experience counseling youth and adults. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Social Work and is currently pursuing an Ed.D in Higher Education, focusing on Belonging and Social Connection. His extensive career spans community development, family counseling, higher education access, hospital administration, corporate consulting, and leadership development.

As a published author, healthcare podcaster, and belonging advocate, Harlan serves as the Director of The Office of Campus Culture and Community at The University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis. He is passionate about fostering healthy social networks, which he believes are the key to healthier individuals and communities.


Drawing from his personal recovery journey from gambling addiction and 15+ years in strategic leadership in the technology sector, Sam founded Evive to revolutionize problem gambling support. His vision combines authenticity and innovation to deliver stigma-free, accessible help when people need it most.


Carlton Hall is the President and CEO of Carlton Hall Consulting LLC (CHC) , a multi-faceted, full-service consulting firm designed to provide customized solutions and enable measurable change for communities, organizations, families and individuals. Carlton Hall has been providing intensive substance abuse prevention focused and community problem solving services to the nation for the last 25 years. His responsibilities, unique set of skills and experience have made him one of the most highly sought after instructors and guides for community problem solving across the nation and internationally, with successful achievements in South Africa, Ghana, Bermuda, Kenya and others. CHC is honored to be invited to contribute to annual convenings of The Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), the governing body of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). CHC has co-organized, delivered and participated in side-meetings and special events.

Carlton spent twelve years with the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) serving in several leadership positions and including most recently Acting Vice President, Training Operations, and Acting Director for CADCA’s National Coalition Institute.

Currently, Carlton and the CHC team provide executive training and technical assistance support to the Southeast PTTC (Region 4).

Additionally, Carlton sits on several boards of directors, including, the National Alliance for Drug Endangered Children (NA-DEC) and Movendi International.

Learn more about Carlton at http://carltonhallconsulting.com/about.html

2024 Presentations