2024 Leadership Academy Mentor of the Year Award
SAFE Project is excited to announce that Zev Keppleman was selected by our 2023-2024 fellows as the Mentor of the Year!
The Mary L. Fleming Memorial Mentor of the Year Award is a recognition that celebrates individuals who exemplify our core leadership principles and demonstrate dedication to the SAFE mission and vision. This award honors those who inspire and guide our Collegiate Recovery Leadership Academy fellows as they join our movement. These exceptional mentors play an essential role in shaping the personal and academic journeys of the fellows, helping them navigate challenges, and achieve their goals.
Keppleman is a graduate of the 2021-2022 Collegiate Recovery Leadership Academy, a Working Group Leader for the 2022-2023 cohort, and a 2023-2024 program mentor. Zev currently works as a team member with the CRLA. Zev is a Hazelden Betty Ford Graduate program graduate and is currently a private practice therapist. Zev has worked in transitional living, as a crisis clinician at a 24/7 walk-in unit, and as a therapist at a substance use residential facility.
When not therapizing, Zev loves to hit the gym, spending time outdoors, and being with friends. Zev lives in Boulder, Colorado, and has a collection of colorful Vans shoes. This is Zev’s fourth year with the CRLA, and students were eager to share that Zev is supportive, authentic, and dedicated to the leadership academy and its fellows.
2024 Leadership Academy Working Group Leader of the Year Award
SAFE Project is excited to announce that Danielle Irwin has been selected as the recipient of the 2023-2024 Working Group Leader of the Year Award!
Working Group Leaders — who are former CRLA students — play an integral role in the CRLA program. Our dedicated Working Group Leaders serve as peers, mentors, and sounding boards for students throughout the year. They provide guidance and support as students work on their impact projects and work through their recovery.
Danielle Irwin is a passionate advocate for recovery and a dedicated leader in the field of substance use support. A person in long-term recovery, Danielle brings her lived experience and a deep commitment to fostering inclusive, compassionate spaces for those on their own recovery journeys.
Danielle is earning her bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Northern Colorado. She plans to expand her involvement in this field by earning her master’s degree and continuing as an LPC or Substance Abuse Counselor. Danielle has served as a Fellow in SAFE Project’s 2022-2023 Collegiate Recovery Leadership Academy, where she developed the Aims Little Book of Recovery to inspire and support students in recovery. Building on this foundation, she took on the role of Working Group Leader in 2023-2024, finishing her project and mentoring students nationwide in advocacy, leadership, and program development.
In addition to her involvement with the SAFE Project, Danielle played an integral role in founding Arty’s Recovery Connection and has played a key role on the recovery steering committee at Aims Community College. Her work as a case manager highlights her talent for connecting individuals to critical resources, a skill she is honing as she pursues her bachelor’s with aspirations of becoming a substance use counselor and a leader in the recovery field.
Beyond academics and advocacy, Danielle values spending quality time with her boyfriend and his son, reading, and enjoying life with her two dogs. Students and colleagues consistently praise Danielle’s ability to inspire hope, build resilience, and lead with empathy, making her a powerful force for change in the recovery community.
