Our Staff

Jenny Lee, MSN, NP-C, SANE-A – Founder & Executive Director

Jenny comes to us after 23 years of care at Eskenazi Health. She has an extensive healthcare background in women’s health as well as forensic health in the hospital and Emergency Room. She is a certified Nurse Practitioner in Adult-Gerontology who came to Johnson Memorial Health when they were kicking off their mental health initiative. She is also trained in Neurofeedback. Her passion and focus for victims of violence created ASSIST Indiana to help and serve high-risk populations in Johnson and surrounding. Jenny graduated with her undergraduate from Indiana University in 1998. She completed her graduate work at Purdue University in 2015.

jenny@assistindiana.org

Cindy McAtee, LCSW, LCAC – Trauma Counselor

Cindy has been a social worker for the last 24 years. Her experience as a therapist has been in foster care, residential treatment, and community-based treatment settings. She has served youth at different points and in the more recent years, has worked with adults in an outpatient setting. She is certified to use Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT) and Rapid Resolution Therapy (RRT) which are clinical hypnotherapy interventions designed to support clients who are struggling with anxiety, depression, grief and addictive behaviors. These treatment modalities are designed to provide significant relief to clients as they manage the impact of traumatic experiences on their thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Cindy received her BA from Purdue University and MSW from IUPUI. She is a credentialed LCSW and LCAC.

cindy@assistindiana.org

Laura DeMougin, LSW – Trauma Counselor

Laura comes to Assist with a diverse background. While working in the field of Corrections and Law Enforcement, Laura found her passion for Social Work and Therapeutic Interventions to help those in difficult social environments. Laura is a certified Rapid Transformational Therapist in Hypnotherapy (RTT), trained in Exposure and Ritual Prevention Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (EXRP-CBT) for certain obsessive compulsive disorders and trained in Solution-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (SF-CBT). These evidence-based interventions assist those experiencing symptoms of anxiety, depression, grief, and trauma related behaviors. Utilizing these interventions to process trauma provides mental, physical, and emotional relief for clients and allows clients to move forward in a positive and safe way. Laura has a BS in Criminal Justice from 2012 and a MS in Criminal Justice and Public Safety in 2015 from IUPUI.  She completed her MSW in May 2022 from IUPUI and is a LSW in the state of Indiana. 

laura@assistindiana.org

Michelle Hendrix-Swords, BS – Victim Advocate

Michelle has worked in mental health for over 20 years.  She started her career as a line staff in an adolescent residential treatment setting.  She has also taught skills to adults with serious mental illness in community-based treatment.  She worked with local pre-schools as a behavior specialist.  She has a passion for using creativity to help heal, is skilled in facilitating support groups, and has much experience with Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).  DBT is an evidence-based psychotherapy designed to help people suffering from borderline personality disorder, and more recently has been proven to help with mood disorders, such as depression.  In her free time, Michelle volunteers as a member of the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Johnson County, and is on the ATLAS (Assisting Through Loss After Suicide) Team.  Michelle received her BS from Grace College in 2004.

michelle@assistindiana.org

Abby Joyner, BSW – Victim Advocate

Abby began her work in social services in 2018, working within a residential youth facility while completing her undergraduate degree in Social Work. She has worked with persons living with HIV/AIDS during her undergrad internship and most recently has worked within a licensed child placing agency, working with foster children and parents in a case management role. She has developed a passion for working with children and families during her time with her LCPA and has carried this passion into her role as a Victim Advocate. Abby graduated in 2021 with her BSW from IUPUI and is continuing her education to pursue her MSW from IUPUI.

abby@assistindiana.org

Tracy McQueen, MSW – Outreach Coordinator

Tracy comes to us after 25 years of experience in the field of child welfare.  She served 10 years with the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team in Marion County. She has dedicated her career to working with underserved and diverse families during times of crisis and traumatic events. Her passion is educating families, communities, schools, and law enforcement as to violence and the traumatic effects on children, while working collaboratively with community partners to provide accessible services, to those in need, within one’s own community. She is also an Authorized Facilitator for Stewards Of Children. She is also a member of the Johnson County Human Trafficking Task Force and serves on the SART team in Johnson and Bartholomew counties. Tracy was named the 2021 Pinwheels for Prevention ‘Voice of the Child’ by the Johnson County Prevent Child Abuse. From 2019 to 2024 she served as a Victim Advocate for ASSIST. Tracy has a BS from Union College (KY) and received her MSW from IUPUI.

tracy@assistindiana.org