Gene P. Smith, CEO, is a native of Southwestern Virginia. He graduated from Averett College (Danville, Virginia) in 1973 and has lived in the Danville area since.
He has provided clinical supervision for the Virginia Department of Corrections in a maximum-security prison; provided substance-abuse counseling to adults, teens, and families; conducted school programs to help prevent substance abuse; worked in a juvenile detention center; and participated in the design and implementation of treatment programs. He has served as an adjunct faculty member for Southside Community College in Keysville, Virginia; as director of a day-care center; and as a board member and training coordinator for Substance Abuse Certification Alliance of Virginia (SACAVA). He has worked in the counseling field since 1977.
He has participated in a number of conferences, including the Virginia Association of Alcohol and Drug Programs Annual Conference and the Virginia Forum on Substance Abuse Treatment in the Correctional Facilities. He is a member of the Employee Assistance Professionals Association (EAPA) and the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors (NAADAC).
He is the founder and a past president of the Danville Area Substance Abuse Council. In 1991 he won the Governor's Award for Substance Abuse Programs at Nottoway Correctional Center (Nottoway, Virginia).
His professional certifications include the following:
- Licensed Clinical Addictions Specialist (LCAS) (North Carolina & ICRC)
- Certified Clinical Supervisor (CCS) (North Carolina & )
- SAP- National Certified SAP under DOT
- SAE- Substance Abuse Expert under the NRC of DOT
- CEAP-Certified Employee Assistance Professional
- iCAADC-Internationally Certified Advanced Alcohol & Drug Counselor (ICRC)