A well-traveled teacher and consultant, Terra Thomas was chief executive of a non-profit agency that provides a host of services, including mental health and substance abuse programs.
Dr. Thomas, 59, and her 16-year-old daughter, Nia, were killed Friday, Oct. 12, when their car crashed into a truck that was stopped at a toll plaza on the Indiana Toll Road, according to the Indiana State Police. Her two sons, Brooks and Rheaves, also 16, survived the crash. The three children were triplets and the family lived in Streeterville.
Dr. Thomas had been a consultant with the Human Resources Development Institute since 1978 and was named president and chief executive officer in January 2004, a company spokeswoman said.
As a consultant, Dr. Thomas worked with developmentally and emotionally challenged children and their families and was affiliated with Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia from 1995 to 1999, according to the institute. She did consulting work on substance abuse, and worked in HIV/AIDS outreach and prevention programs.
From 1983 to 1994, Dr. Thomas taught at Northwestern University.
“She was analytical but she was also very creative and very in tune with people,” said her cousin Tonie Leatherberry.
Dr. Thomas was born in Easton, Md. She received a bachelor’s degree in experimental psychology from Morgan State University in Maryland; a master’s degree in guidance and counseling from New York University; a master’s in business from Northwestern; and a master’s and doctorate in clinical and school psychology from Adelphi University in New York, according to the institute.
Nia Thomas was a student at the Cove School in Northbrook.
Dr. Thomas also is survived by two brothers, Ronald and Dwayne.
Services have been held.
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ttjensen@tribune.com
