Stephanie Turco

President & Chief Executive Officer

Stephanie joined the agency in 2011 as the Clinical Director for PROS. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, who previously served as a Court Appointed Special Child Advocate for Ulster County. Prior to her Human Services career, she was a New York Stock Exchange Specialist and Managing Partner of Webco Securities, Inc. in New York, NY.

Brian Schneider

Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

Brian brings to Gateway over twenty-eight years of experience working in organizations serving individuals with disabilities.  Brian began his career in the field as a direct service professional and subsequently moved on to various management and administrative roles including Operations Officer, Director of Finance, Chief Financial Officer, Vice President-Contract Administration and Assistant Executive Director with responsibility for Business Services and Residential Operations.   He attended the State University of New York in Albany to pursue both his undergraduate and graduate degrees.  Brian is involved in civic organizations including participating as a board member of a regional wellness and care program that provides counseling, child care, health and fitness services.  In addition, he is active with the local Boy Scout organization and serves as their treasurer.  Brian resides outside of Albany with his wife and two children.

Courtney Beaupre

Chief Quality and Compliance Officer

Courtney has been working in the Human Services field for over 14 years providing education, counseling and support to individuals living with mental health diagnoses. Courtney began her career in case management, providing support and short-term crisis counseling to adults with serious mental illness (SMI). She transitioned to a clinical role on the Ulster County ACT (Assertive Community Treatment) team providing in-home/community counseling to individuals that have difficulty managing a traditional treatment environment. Courtney subsequently moved into a managerial role and served as the Hudson Valley Regional Director for Care Management at the Institute for Family Health, a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC). Courtney designed and implemented a variety of care management programs which included maternal/infant services, hospital transitions, cancer screening navigation, diabetes care management and more.
Courtney began her role as Chief Quality and Compliance Officer with Gateway Hudson Valley in the summer of 2019. As the Chief Quality and Compliance Officer, she is responsible for the monitoring and oversight of the agency’s compliance activities as well as developing program quality measures to evaluate to program efficacy.

Courtney is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor as well as holds a Master’s in Public Administration through Marist College.

Ralph Smith

Chief Information Officer

Ralph has managed computers and computer networks for the past twenty years. He graduated from Hofstra University with a B.A. degree in Social Sciences and Humanities, and also has a two year degree from S.U.N.Y. Farmingdale in Computer Science. Ralph has a Certificate in Network Administration from Ulster BOCES and has completed Cisco Certified Network Associate training and attained Cisco CCNA and CompTia A-Plus certifications.

The Chief Information Officer’s job is to ensure that all of Gateway’s computing, networking and electronic communication systems are operating efficiently, and to ensure the integrity, availability and security of Gateway’s electronic information.

Before coming to Gateway in 2001, Ralph held a variety of positions including managing computer controlled manufacturing machines in the printed circuit board industry, working as a Process Engineer and also as a Quality Assurance Manager for IBM subcontractors, and running a graphics and screen printing department for a local sporting goods distributer.

Jennifer Sass

Vice President of Vocational & Therapeutic Services

Jennifer has been working in the human services field for the last twenty years. Jennifer began her career as an adult psychotherapist working for a community mental health center in Hudson, New York serving the residents of Columbia County.  She transitioned to a supervisory role at Columbia County mental health center working for the Child and Family therapy team. During her tenure at Columbia County Department of Human Services, Jennifer worked on several different mental health initiatives related to substance abuse, trauma, severe and persistent mental illness, as well as children’s and infant mental health.  Jennifer transitioned to her role as Practice Supervisor for Apti Health in 2021. Jennifer served as the supervisor and program creator for a remote ACT team serving adults with severe and persistent mental illness. She was also instrumental in the development and creation of a kids and teens therapy program during her tenure at Apti health. Jennifer began her role as Vice President of Vocation and Therapeutic Services at Gateway Hudson Valley in April of 2023.  As the Vice President of Vocational and Therapeutic services, she is responsible for the monitoring and oversight of several programs at Gateway such as PROS, Day Hab, and CORE along with other programs and initiatives. In addition to the roles listed above, Jennifer has presented for various groups in the community and for her employers during teambuilding and development. Jennifer is committed to serving the residents of her community and helping to advance mental health and recovery initiatives for all people.

Jennifer is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker as well as holds a Master’s in Social Welfare from the State University of New York at Albany.

Vicky Gore

Vice President of Business Services

Vicky began her career with Gateway Community Industries in 2009 as Manager of Vocational Counseling and Training and Chief Quality and Compliance Officer. Vicky has advanced to her present role in the agency as Vice President of Business Services. A native Kingstonian, Vicky holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and has a diverse employment background, having worked in both the public and private sectors in Ulster and Greene Counties. It was in her prior role as Director and instructor at a small local business school where Vicky first began working with individuals with disabilities by combining her teaching skills with vocational training and employment services. She has worked in this field for over 15 years.

Vicky has a special interest in ensuring that students who are transitioning from school to adult life have access to vocational and employment services they need in order to successfully make that transition. She has been a member of the Ulster County Youth Council and a past member of the Ulster County Transition Coordinating Council.

Janine Shepard-Stivers

Vice President of Human Resources

Janine joined Gateway Hudson Valley in June of 2020.   Before working in human resources, Janine worked as a case manager, community liaison, team leader and program coordinator for an agency that provides support to seniors in the community.  She has over 10 years of experience in human resources working in various roles including generalist, benefits administrator, team leader and director.

She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Ithaca College and a Master’s Degree in Human Resources Management from Rivier College in Nashua, New Hampshire.  Janine is dedicated to providing guidance and support to develop an engaged workforce through performance, team building and retention strategies.

Branden Gibson

Vice President of Residential Services

Branden joined Gateway in August of 2020. He has been working in Human Services for over 15 years in the areas of residential and administrative supports. A Newburgh native, Branden obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Social Services from Dominican College and his Master’s Degree of Administration and Public Affairs from Metropolitan College in New York.  Branden has dedicated his career to finding solutions to homelessness and housing shortages and inequities as these relate to mental illness. Branden brings an extensive understanding of, and networking within, the government oversite agencies and other not-for-profit organizations that seek to provide community-based supports and services for some of our most vulnerable populations. His success stories lie within the ability to bring medical, community, and government organizations together to produce viable housing plans for the development of long-term residential sites for the Intellectually and Developmentally Disabled (I/DD) population and those in recovery.