Steve Otero
Steve Otero is a Certified Workplace Mindfulness Facilitator, National Outdoor Leadership
School (NOLS) outdoor educator, and holds bachelor's degrees in Exercise Science,
Experimental Psychology, and Recreation and Outdoor education from Western Colorado
University. His passion is connecting others with the power of the natural world. He serves as a
Veteran Services Officer in Gunnison County, CO and as part of the federal "Task Force on
Outdoor Recreation for Veterans", which is investigating the use of outdoor recreation for the
health and wellness of veterans. Steve is also a US Air Force military veteran with combat
deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan as a combat cameraman and forensic investigator.
Cheyenne Chee
I am in the first year of my Master of Public Health program at Utah State University. I am a
first-generation, Navajo student. During my undergraduate degree, I majored in human biology
at Utah State University. It was during my undergraduate degree journey that my love for public
health grew. In August 2022, I applied to the Mountain Plains PTTC fellowship program. I got
accepted in October 2022. My mentor is Heidi Dutson from the Utah Department of Health and
Human Services. I am excited to learn more skills and strengthen my career and preparation in
prevention.
Morgan Neavill
I am currently a student at Montana State University working on my Ph.D. in Psychological
Science. My research is on substance use disorders in American Indian and Alaska Native
communities. My ultimate career goal is to bring culturally adapted mental health resources to
underserved communities in rural Alaska. This prevention fellowship will aid me in attaining the
education necessary to do so. I am excited to be working with Youth Connections on creating
content to educate policymakers on how current legislation affects substance use in Montana
communities.
The purpose of the Prevention Fellowship Program (PFP) administered by the Mountain Plains Prevention Technology Transfer Center (MP-PTTC) for Region 8 is to develop a knowledgeable and well-trained cadre of prevention fellows in the area of substance use/misuse prevention and prepare them to achieve certification from the International Certificate & Reciprocity Consortium (IC&RC) Certified Prevention Specialist (CPS) exam. Learn more about our program here.
To see the PTTC Prevention Fellows: 2022 - 2023 Cohort, click here
