Laura Ann Howard announced as Clinical Director of TLC Maryville

PRESS CONTACT INFORMATION:

Talbott Legacy Centers

Connie Huffman, Corporate Director of Engagement

connie.huffman@talbottlegacy.org

RELEASE DATE:

MONDAY, JULY 21, 2025

Talbott Legacy Centers (TLC) announces Laura Ann Howard as Clinical Director of TLC Maryville

Laura Ann Howard, LADAC, CADC-II, QCS, has been named Clinical Director of TLC Maryville, bringing over 35 years of experience in substance use disorder treatment. In this role, she will oversee the program’s counseling, therapy, and peer recovery services.

MARYVILLE, TENNESSEE — Talbott Legacy Centers (TLC) President Zachary Talbott today announced the promotion of Laura Ann Howard, LADAC, CADC-II, QCS as Clinical Director of TLC Maryville. Howard came to Talbott Legacy Centers (TLC) as a Senior Alcohol and Drug Counselor and Qualified Clinical Supervisor on June 27th, 2022. Howard was promoted to Clinical Director of TLC Maryville on January 21st, 2025, for a six-month introductory period. With the conclusion of her introductory period, Howard is now recognized as the facility’s Clinical Director.

Each non-residential opioid treatment program (OTP) is led by a triad of seasoned professionals who ensure the delivery of high-quality, efficient, and evidence-based care. The Program Director oversees all administrative and operational functions; the Medical Director—a licensed physician, board-certified or eligible in Addiction Medicine or Psychiatry—leads all biomedical services; and the Clinical Director, an independently licensed behavioral health professional, ensures the provision of psychosocial and therapeutic services grounded in best practices. Together, they form the Program Leadership team at each facility.

Howard has been in the substance use disorder treatment field for over 35 years. She began working as an Alcohol and Drug Counselor in 1991, and she was one of the first Licensed Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors (LADAC's) in the State of Tennessee. Her licensure was issued on January 1st, 1997, the first day LADAC's were issued in Tennessee's history. Additionally, Howard is a Qualified Clinical Supervisor (QCS) with the Tennessee Board of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors, which authorizes her to provide and document the clinical supervision that is required for unlicensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor trainees seeking licensure. Howard also holds the Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor, Level II (CADC-II) credential from the Tennessee Certification Board.

“There is no one more qualified to lead our behavioral health team,” said TLC President Zachary Talbott. “Laura has worked in a variety of inpatient and outpatient levels of care, including office based opioid treatment (OBOT) programs, opioid treatment programs (OTPs), intensive outpatient programs, child & adolescent programs, criminal justice treatment programs, and residential rehabilitation programs. Our company is very privileged that Laura accepted our offer to become Clinical Director.”

The VISION of Talbott Legacy Centers is to bring holistic healing and total body wellness to Eastern Tennessee and surrounding areas by providing opportunities for spiritual, emotional, and physical growth. More specifically, the MISSION of Talbott Legacy Centers it to address the substance use and overdose epidemic through a holistic approach to evidence-based healing. 

Executive Vice President Dr. Leslie Talbott Tummel praised the promotion of Howard to TLC Maryville’s leadership team: “The appointment of Laura to this leadership role will help us move closer towards fulfilling our mission, and it will ensure our behavioral health team has the full-time support and supervision those team members deserve.”

“We will now have the capacity to recruit, train, and provide oversight for additional behavioral health team members necessary to sustain and further the decline in both fatal and non-fatal overdoses in Blount County – a trend that has been evident since the initiation of services at TLC Maryville in April 2021,” explained Vice President of Operations Chip Fuller.

Howard received the Lea Acuff Lifetime Achievement Award from the East Tennessee Association of Alcohol and Drug Counselors (ETAADAC) in 2022.

“With over 35 years in the field of substance use disorder treatment, I’ve seen firsthand the difference it makes when an organization is committed to both evidence-based practices and uncompromising ethical standards,” said TLC Maryville Clinical Director Laura Howard. “Leading a team that prioritizes science, integrity, and compassion is both refreshing and deeply meaningful. I’m honored to contribute to this mission-driven work.”

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Talbott Legacy Centers (l/b/n The Patricia Hall Talbott Legacy Centers, LLC) is a Tennessee company founded in 2019 and awarded a Certificate of Need from the Tennessee Health Services & Development Agency (HSDA) on June 24, 2020, for the establishment of a nonresidential opioid treatment program (OTP) and the initiation of comprehensive medication assisted treatment for opioid use disorder in Maryville, Blount County, Tennessee.

Talbott Legacy Centers operates the only facility in Blount County – and one of only four in the Knoxville Metropolitan Statistical Area – that is licensed to utilize all three (3) FDA-approved medications for opioid use disorder within a comprehensive, outpatient treatment environment that prioritizes individual and group counseling and other psychosocial and recovery support services.