Staff

Ed Markowski, MA, LPC, CTM, is the Director of Threat Assessment and chair of the violence prevention committee and threat assessment team (TAT). Ed directs the TAT assessment, management, and intervention process; determines a strategic direction for University Policy HRM-028’s implementation; coordinates annual training for members of the TAT; and oversees University and Medical Center training on various behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM) topics including warning behaviors, early intervention, and reporting responsibilities.

Over his 16 year threat assessment career within higher education and healthcare industries Ed has assessed, managed, and consulted on thousands of cases involving communicated threats of violence, weapons, intimate partner violence, and stalking. Ed holds professional certification in the field which requires a rigorous examination and continuing education process. Ed is part of a collaborative network of threat assessment professionals across the U.S. working within education, healthcare, government, and private sectors to research and prevent incidents of targeted violence.

Prior to joining the University of Virginia, Ed worked at North Carolina State University as the Associate Director of Violence Prevention and Threat Management and at Johns Hopkins Hospital and University in the Faculty, Staff, and Student Assistance Program where he served as a member of the Risk Assessment Team.  Ed obtained his master’s degree in counseling from the University of Maryland College Park, is a licensed professional counselor, a member of the Association of Threat Assessment Professionals, Certified Threat Manager (CTM), and Certified Master Trainer through the Department of Homeland Security.  

Anna Grace Burnette, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist and serves as the Associate Director of Threat Assessment at the University of Virginia (UVA). Within this role, she assists in assessing and managing threats of violence within the University and Medical System. She provides subject matter expertise and, in collaboration with Threat Assessment Team members, oversees prevention strategies regarding potential acts of violence. She has authored peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, including a feature in the International Handbook of Threat Assessment and Management. Her published research has primarily focused on distinguishing between serious and non-serious threats of violence, as well as establishing threat assessment as an evidence-based violence prevention practice in K-12 grade schools and universities. She has presented as a guest speaker with the Association of Threat Assessment Professionals and at training seminars for state hospitals.  

Prior to joining the Threat Assessment Team, Dr. Burnette earned her doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology from UVA and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at UVA’s Institute of Law, Psychiatry, and Public Policy. She has worked across inpatient and outpatient settings in Virginia and Washington, D.C. Specifically, she conducted court-ordered and private forensic evaluations for a range of legal issues, including competency to stand trial, legal sanity, violence risk assessment, pre-employment evaluations, and other forensic questions. She also worked as a unit psychologist on an all-male forensic unit at a state psychiatric hospital. 

Joanna Yost, PhD, ABPP, is a licensed clinical psychologist, a board certified in clinical health psychology, and serves as the Assistant Director of Threat Assessment. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. She is currently the director of the UVA Behavioral Emergency Response Team at UVA Health and has served in this role since 2018. She also developed and serves as the co-director of the UVA Behavioral Medicine Consultation-Liaison service at UVA Health since 2017. Her work has primarily focused on evidence-based prevention and management of disruptive behaviors in medical settings. She regularly provides trainings and presentations at UVA and nationally on prevention and response to disruptive behavior exhibited by patients. Her clinical work in this area has been recognized both locally and nationally with the 2020 UVA Interprofessional Collaboration Award and the 2022 American Psychological Association Society of Health Psychology (Division 38) Excellence in Clinical Health Psychology by an Early Career Professional Award.

Prior to joining the Threat Assessment Team, Dr. Yost earned her doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology from Ohio University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Behavioral Medicine at UVA School of Medicine.

Anthony Hall, MA, is a former police officer and Case Manager in the Office of Threat Assessment with nine years of university and municipal experience. At University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), he served on the Crisis Response Team, the Systemwide Response Team, and the Dignitary Protection Team. He continued his law enforcement experience in North Carolina in 2020. Anthony has a bachelor’s in criminal justice and a master’s degree in political science from California State University, Los Angeles. 

Kendall Britt, MS, LCSW, is a licensed clinical social worker and Case Manager in the Office of Threat Assessment. Kendall spent nine years working for Region Ten Community Services Board where she was instrumental in developing the School Crisis Counseling program for Louisa County Public Schools. In this role, Kendall completed suicide risk assessments and school threat assessments and provided outpatient counseling to students and staff. Kendall also worked for Region Ten Emergency Services, where she was a certified pre-screener, conducting Temporary Detainment Order (TDO) evaluations at the UVA Medical Center and Martha Jefferson Hospital. She received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Mary Washington and a Master of Social Work degree from Saint Leo University.