ABOUT KATHA
Two decades of hands-on experience helping people build healthier relationships
I grew up in Chattanooga, Tennessee, watching women in my own family struggle through relationships that hurt them. I decided early on to do something about it. That decision took me through field research at Michigan State, a master's in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago, and two decades working directly with individuals and families navigating relationship struggles as a case manager, domestic violence prevention advocate, and program administrator.
After eleven years at Partnership Against Domestic Violence in Atlanta, including four as President & CEO, I made the decision in 2026 to step away and build this practice on my own. It wasn't an easy call to leave an organization I'd given over a decade to. The work I care most about involves sitting with someone one-on-one, without a case file or an agency between us. That work needed room I couldn't give it from inside a CEO role. Everything I offer here grew directly out of what I built there: shelter and housing programs serving hundreds of families a year, and a $6 million campaign that gave the organization a permanent home.
I'm a Licensed Master Social Worker and the author of two books on building healthier relationships, including one published under the pen name Coach Dean Black. I have been featured on NPR and radio and have spoken at conferences nationwide.
- Former President & CEO, Partnership Against Domestic Violence, leading shelter, housing, and crisis-line programs for hundreds of families a year
- Led a $6 million capital campaign to build a new Atlanta shelter facility
- Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW), State of Georgia
- "Woman of Influence," Atlanta Business League (2019) · Leadership Gwinnett graduate (2024)
- Featured on NPR's Closer Look, the Rickey Smiley Morning Show, and as keynote speaker at Washington State University
