Darcie Davis-Gage, PH.D, LMHC
President

Darcie Davis-Gage is a licensed mental health counselor in Iowa and a counselor educator at the University of Northern Iowa. Dr. Davis-Gage has over 20 years experience as a counselor, clinical supervisor, and counselor educator. She graduated from the Northwest Creative and Expressive Art Institute as an Expressive Art Therapist.

Dr. Davis-Gage actively collaborates in numerous interdisciplinary research and service endeavors and frequently publishes and presents nationally and internationally on expressive art therapy, wellness and self-care, and trauma informed design.

She is a member of the International Expressive Art Therapy Association and the Association of Creativity in Counseling. She currently provides expressive art counseling and wellness services in the community.She integrates expressive art into clinical supervision and consultation services at Hero Haven. This non-for-profit serves first responders and firefighters experiencing compassion fatigue and occupational stress. She is also training in Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART-Basic) which is an evidenced based eye movement treatment for trauma and other mental health issues.

She also enjoys an active art practice in dance, movement, drama, and mixed media.

Alison Bartley, LCSW
Treasurer

Alison Bartley, LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker serving in the metro area of the nation’s capital. Alison received her master’s in social work from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia and her bachelor’s degrees in French Language and Literature, English Language Arts Education, and Foreign Language Education from the University of Akron in Akron, Ohio. She is also an alumnus of the Northwest Creative and Expressive Arts Institute’s Expressive Arts Therapy Professional Training Program and has a certificate in Dreamwork.
Alison works in the public schools, providing mental health services and advocating for students and their families to receive appropriate support for their mental health and wellbeing. She has had the pleasure of working with children, adolescents, and their families in clinical and educational settings for over a decade and her work with youth and adults is influenced by her background as an educator.
Alison also works in her own private practice, offering expressive arts therapy to teens and groups in the community. She specializes in helping clients experiencing anxiety, ADHD, trauma, self-harm, and suicidality. Alison is a member of several professional organizations, including IEATA, and keeps up on current research regarding neuroscience that enlightens the therapeutic work of expressive arts therapy in healing the effects of trauma.

Kriya Kaping, BA, ma
member at large

Kriya Kaping is a multimedia creative director and educator with over 15 years of experience supporting organizations and individuals in creating and sharing personal narratives that foster community involvement and interpersonal connection. She has worked with federal, state and local agencies to promote programs centered on civic awareness, cross-cultural competency, and scientific discovery.

Kriya has worked regionally and internationally creating trainings and adult education initiatives, webinars, workshops, panels, and roundtables. Kriya is a seasoned storyteller and facilitator who has collaborated on a number of workshops and courses with Bobbi Kidder for the NW Creative & Expressive Arts Institute and Antioch University in Seattle, WA.

Kriya has performed her personal narrative stories for the stage with Portland Storytellers’ Guild, Portland Story Theater, Speakeasy DC, and Living Stages.

Kriya is a workshop facilitator for NWCEAI.

Sarah Kelley, MA, LMHC
Member at large

Sarah Kelley is a licensed mental health counselor associate with a special interest in expressive arts and anthroposophical art therapy.

Sarah received her Master of Arts in counseling and psychology at The Seattle School. She also received her professional certification training in expressive arts therapy from The Northwest Expressive Arts Institute in 2022. Sarah has also done extensive training in Anthroposophical art therapy both at The Emerald Foundation in The Netherlands and with the Healing Therapeutic Arts in California.

Sarah currently works with adults of all ages and is launching her private practice spring of 2023. Her specialization is offering relational psychodynamic therapy from a narrative-based trauma-informed lens with special interest in holistic forms of therapy for the treatment of religious and spiritual abuse recovery, low self-esteem, identity work, grief, and major life transitions.

Sarah enjoys practicing and researching methods of color and painting therapy, traveling, reading good books, and spending time with her family living in Seattle.

Karla Mancero, Ma, LMFT
Member at large

Karla Mancero is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a Masters of Arts in Couples and Family therapy from Antioch University Seattle. She also earned her Professional Certificate in Expressive Arts Therapy at NWCEAI in 2019-2020.

Karla has a private practice in Seattle serving children, adolescents, and families with a special focus on social and separation anxiety, depression, relational issues, and sensory integration needs in neurodivergent children.

Karla thrives when she is being creative with clients and for her own mental health. Above all though her first love in the expressive arts is poetry. Karla has many interests in the arts and continues to learn and play with hand drumming, dancing, paint pouring, improv, and writing.

Shawn Pham, BS, MSW
member at large

Shawn is a multimedia visual artist with a focus on digital art and ceramics. He is a NWCEAI alum, and graduated with his Bachelor of Social Work at George Mason University and Advanced Standing Master of Social Work at University of Washington.
His experience ranges from being a College and Career Readiness Social Worker at Arlington Housing Corporation, where he worked with first and second-gen students of color to being a Behavioral Health Counselor at Asian Counseling and Referral Services.
Shawn was also the former West Coast Alumni & Family Liaison at Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight Mood & Anxiety Center where he hosted, organized, and collaborated with nonprofits and mental health advocates and leaders to create national events about mental health and eating disorders.
Currently, Shawn resides back home in the D.C. metropolitan area as ERC Pathlight’s East Coast Alumni & Family Liaison and as a private practice therapist. He takes pride in working with immigrant communities of color and incorporating the expressive arts therapies as an integral part of their healing.

Emily Rich, MS, LMFT, MedFT
Co-President, Ex-officio, Member-at-Large

Emily Rich is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a Masters of Science degree in Marriage and Family Therapy and a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Seattle Pacific University.

She presently has a private practice in Seattle, seeing individuals, couples, and families with a special focus on eating disorders, trauma, and relationship issues. Emily is also trained as a Medical Family Therapist, working as part of the holistic healthcare team in a primary care clinic.

With an extensive background as a dancer, choreographer, and instructor, Emily enjoys bringing creativity into her work with clients as a form of expression and an avenue for healing.

Maria Callahan
Co-President, Ex-Offcio

Maria Callahan is currently a full-time Seattle Public Schools Art teacher at Thornton Creek School, K-5. She holds a degree in Studio Arts from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Maria received her K-8 teaching credential, with an early childhood endorsement from Pacific Oaks College. She taught pre-school, Kindergarten and First grade before becoming a visual arts teacher in 2005.

Maria has a total of 19 years with Seattle Public Schools. Her expertise using a model of Expeditionary Learning, allows her to integrate visual arts across the curriculum at all grade levels. Maria says, “In school, art class was my saving grace, my safe place”. She hopes she can pass this grace along to her students. Maria lives in Seattle with her husband, who teaches middle school special education, and a sparkly middle-school son.