AKRON, Ohio, April 15, 2025 – Among the new staff members welcomed into the ranks at Community Support Services this month are two people with longtime ties to the agency and deep connections in the community and the mental health field.
Leslie Powlette Stoyer has joined Community Support Services in the newly created post of Chief Operating Officer. In this new role, she will oversee all CSS operations, including the primary care clinic.
Stoyer has had a long relationship with CSS. She served on the CSS Board of Directors from 2014 to 2023 and rejoined the board in the fall of 2024. During her time as a board member, she served on several committees and chaired the Board Development Committee.
Stoyer has been a staunch advocate for mental health education and service to the community throughout her career. In 2021, she was named executive director of NAMI Summit County, a post she rose to after serving as co-executive director for more than 10 years. She retired from NAMI in December of 2024.
In 2023, Stoyer was presented with the County of Summit ADM Board’s Trailblazer Drs. Fred and Penny Frese Education Award for her dedication to supporting families and easing the stigma associated with mental health disorders and treatment. She also has served the community through a number of mental health advisory committees, including the Summit County Maternal Depression Network, Summit County Suicide Prevention Coalition, Summit County Mental Health Courts (municipal and common pleas) and New Day Court (probate division).
Stoyer has a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration with a concentration in management from Cedar Crest College. She earned a Doctor of Law degree from Seton Hall University School of Law and previously practiced law with a concentration in corporate and real estate litigation.
Michael Bullock has returned to CSS as an intake specialist after retiring as executive director of Tarry House, a post he held for more than 20 years.
Bullock joined CSS as a case manager in 1990 and held several positions over his 13 years with CSS, including case management supervisor, residential supervisor and clients’ rights officer. He also did internship work with CSS’s Homeless Outreach Department while earning his master’s degree in social administration from Case Western Reserve University. He earned his Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW) license in 2000.
Bullock became the director of Choices community social center when it transitioned from a state-run entity to a consumer-run not-for-profit organization. From there, Bullock became the first CSS behavioral health supervisor at the Summit County Jail. Prior to leaving CSS at the end of 2003, he had been the outpatient and residential treatment services manager for more than three years.
In January of 2004, Bullock became the executive director of Tarry House, Inc., which he led until retiring in December of 2024.
Bullock has been an administrative and clinical surveyor with CARF since 2006 and has worked in private practice providing individual and couples therapy since 2023. He has served on numerous nonprofit boards, is the current vice chair of the Akron Marathon board and is on the County of Summit ADM Board's levy committee. He is a graduate of Leadership Akron's Signature Program and has earned numerous local awards, including the Peg’s Foundation “Award for Making a Difference” Impact Award and ADM's Maggie Carroll Smith Advocacy Award.
CSS President and CEO Robert Stokes is eager to have Stoyer and Bullock joining the staff.
“We are absolutely delighted to welcome back both Leslie and Michael to CSS,” he said. “To be able to get such talented and genuinely caring individuals on our team represents a big win to not only our agency but the overall community as well. Their vast experience and expertise in the behavioral health field will definitely strengthen our resolve to reach the goal of helping all our clients achieve a healthy mind and body.”
