Educator Biographies
Meet the collaborators who help make our trainings so useful.
Steffani Brandenburg, LCSW, LICSW, CST
Steffani Brandenburg is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker/Psychotherapist with a full-time private practice in Mt. Kisco, New York. She is a Certified Emotionally Focused Therapist and Approved Supervisor through The International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy and AASECT Certified Sex Therapist, with advanced training in psychoanalytic psychodynamic psychotherapy, attachment and trauma-informed therapy including EMDR. Ms. Brandenburg has over 30 years of experience working with individuals and couples and specializes in working with LGBTQ identified individuals and mixed and same-gender couples. As a leading professional in the field of human relationships, Ms. Brandenburg has extensive experience providing clinical consultation, advanced clinical training and professional and community education throughout the New York Tristate area.
Nalini Calamur, LMFT
Nalini is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who has extensive experience working in Community Mental Health. She has a strong commitment to empowerment and healing in and for both multiply-stressed communities of color and queer communities. She also serves on the Diversity Committee for the International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT). Ms. Calamur is interested in helping couples and families support one another more effectively in the face of systemic and internalized oppression. She sees clients in her private practice and primarily works with Black, Brown, and multicultural individuals and/or cross-cultural relationships and families that are struggling with high conflict, trauma, substance use, and/or suicide.
I. Scott Cohen, LICSW, LMFT
Mr. Cohen is both a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker. Since 1978, he has provided couples, family, individual and group therapy. He specializes in working with victims of violent crime and post-traumatic stress disorder, adolescents and their families, and substance abuse and addictions. He received his Masters Degree in Social Work from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. He is the current Treasurer of The Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards, a national association which serves the MFT regulatory board of every state in the US. He served as the President of the Massachusetts Association of Marriage and Family Therapy in 1994/1995. He served at total of fourteen years as one of the two marriage and family therapy representatives to the Massachusetts Board of Registration for Allied Mental Health. He is an AAMFT Approved Supervisor and a Board Certified Diplomat in Clinical Social Work. He has taught marriage and family therapy at several training institutes and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Divorce Center, Inc. for eight years. He is also a founding member of the Greater Marlboro Sexual Abuse Hotline.
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Mr. Cohen has held membership in The International Society For Traumatic Stress Studies and in the National Association of Social Workers and maintains membership in the American Association For Marriage and Family Therapy. Twice, he was awarded the Significant Contribution to the Association Award by the Massachusetts Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and in 2000, he was given a Divisional Contribution Award by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Mr. Cohen serves as a Red Cross volunteer as a Disaster Mental Health Specialist. Prior to his retirement from practice last year, he maintained and managed a private practice of four clinicians in Framingham, MA. A nationally known trainer and presenter, he has given presentations at international, national and state conferences as well as conducted numerous trainings on both a local and national level.
Jane Fleishman, PhD, MS, MEd, CSE
Dr. Fleishman is a Certified Sexuality Educator, researcher, and writer with more than 40 years’ experience. After retiring as the Director of Medical Education and Staff Development at a large psychiatric hospital, Jane pursued her PhD and began her successful encore career in human sexuality. In her recent TEDx talk “Is it OK for Grandma to have sex?” she articulates her mission to promote the sexual well-being of older adults. Her recently published research assessing the sexual satisfaction of aging adults in same-sex relationships is available here. Dr. Fleishman’s focus on changing the ways older adults’ sexuality is perceived allows her to bring together decades of experience in organizing, educating, researching, and implementing lasting change across a wide variety of disciplines. In 2000, she received Governor’s Service Award in Healing of Racism; in 2015, a Graduate Scholar Award from the Aging and Society Knowledge Community; and in 2016, the William R. Stayton Award for Leadership in the field of human sexuality. In 2020 her book on sexuality aging will be released by Skinner House Press. Visit her website at www.janefleishman.com.
Paul Guillory, PhD
Dr. Paul Guillory is an Associate Professor at the University of California, Berkeley in the Clinical Science Program, Psychology Department. He has taught courses on Emotionally Focused Therapies at U.C. Berkeley. He is certified trainer, supervisor, and therapist of Emotionally Focused Therapy. He is the author of “Emotionally Focused Therapy with African American Couples: Love Heals” Routledge, August 2021. Dr. Guillory has presented at a number of recent workshops including “Emotionally Focused Therapy in a time of Racial Reckoning” with the Couple & Family Institute of New England; “Race and Couples Therapy Conference” with the Eikenberg Academy For Social Justice; and “Deep Roots: Attachment & Culture” with the LA Center of EFT. He has recently produced two EFT training videos that dynamically integrate Emotionally Focused Therapy with a cultural lens for working with race-matters in couple’s therapy. He is the former chairperson of the Northern California Community of Emotionally Focused Therapy. Dr. Guillory was the psychological consultant to the Oakland Raiders professional football team and the National Football League for 14 years. He has also been a consultant to the Sacramento Kings professional basketball team, and is a selected provider for the National Basketball Players Association. He served as Director of the Center for Family Counseling in Oakland California for ten years. He is a life-time member of the Association of Black Psychologist. And he is a life-time member of the USA Masters Track & Field Association. He has been in private practice in Oakland California for over 30 years. For more info about Paul, visit www.paultguilloryphd.com.
MaryAnna Domokos-Cheng Ham, Ed.D., LMFT
Dr. Ham is a Professor Emerita at the University of Massachusetts Boston. From 1985-2005 she was a tenured faculty in the Department of Counseling and School Psychology. While at UMass Boston she founded and developed the Family Therapy Program, and was its director. After 18 years of institutional development, FTP was awarded full certification from COAMFTE, (Commission On Accreditation of Marriage and Family Therapy Education) the accrediting body of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. The UMass Boston FTP became the first academic program to be accredited in Massachusetts. This achievement was a milestone because, unlike many other states in the U.S. with several COAMFTE accredited programs, no marriage and family program in Massachusetts had ever been accredited by COAMFTE. Dr. Ham has also been a former president of the Massachusetts Division of AAMFT and a national board member of AAMFT. Her scholarship has been focused on issues of diversity, biracial coupleships, and ethics. For over 30 years she has provided family, couple, and individual therapy to diverse racial, cultural, gender identified populations. Although well versed in many modalities of therapy, her clinical focus is systemic therapies, in particular post-modern and social construction approaches including narrative therapy. Currently, Dr. Ham maintains a private practice in Northampton, MA. She is also a Master Therapist for Couples Therapy Inc, an online therapy practice that treats couples located internationally and throughout the United States. She continues to be affiliated with UMass Boston by teaching online advanced family therapy courses. Throughout her work, MaryAnna maintains her commitment to social justice and respectful communication.
James L. Hawkins II, PhD
Dr. James Hawkins, ‘Doc Hawk’, is a Licensed Counsellor with 11 years of experience and an ICEEFT certified trainer, supervisor, and therapist. He obtained a Master’s in Marriage and Family Counseling and a PhD in Psychology and Counseling. He currently serves as a Clinical Coordinator at a non-profit counseling practice in Northwest Arkansas. James is the founder of Healing Conversations, a training program developed to equip organizations and communities to have productive conversations about race. He is the co-host of two podcasts, The Leading Edge in Emotionally Focused Therapy, and The Leading Edge: Transforming Leadership Through Attachment Science. James is a part of the online training program, successinvulnerability.com developed to help EFT therapists and supervisors gain more focus in their clinical work. Doc Hawk brings a passion for helping individuals, couples, families, and communities in relational distress. James is married to his wife, Nicola, and together they have five daughters.
Nancy Knudsen, LMFT
Jack LaForte, PhD, LMFT
Julie Mencher LICSW
Julie Mencher is a therapist, clinical consultant, and educator in Northampton MA who specializes in working with the LGBTQ community. Her organizational consulting work focuses on helping pre-K through college educational institutions and health care organizations in several countries to work toward trans inclusion and trans-competency. Formerly, Julie was the Transgender Specialist at Smith College (2001-2004), adjunct professor at Smith College School for Social Work, and Visiting Scholar at the Stone Center and Jean Baker Miller Training Institute at Wellesley College. She has published book chapters and articles in clinical journals and the media on LGBTQ topics, and is the co-author of the chapter, “Two Middle-Aged, White, Jewish, Cisgender Lesbians Sitting Around Talking About Trans Sex,” in Sex, Sexualities, and Trans Identities (2019, forthcoming from Jessica Kingsley Publishing). Her general psychotherapy and clinical consultation practice includes a focus on working with LGBT clients, particularly with the parents of gender-nonconforming and trans youth. Visit her website at www.juliemencher.net.
Acey A. Mercer, LMSW
Acey A. Mercer is a graduate of the University at Albany School of Social Welfare where he obtained his Master’s in Social Work. Prior to graduate school Acey studied at Radboud Universiteit in the Netherlands where his academic focus was in Gender and Sexuality Studies. These foci ignited Acey’s passion to further explore and examine human behavior, relationships and the dynamics of class, race, ability, gender and sexuality. These motivating factors drew Acey to pursue social work and ultimately to become a licensed psychotherapist and educator. Acey is currently Practice Manager at Choices Counseling & Consulting in Albany, NY where he oversees clinical referrals and is responsible for the overall daily operations. He is also a Clinician at Choices and counsels clients exploring gender identity and expression. He works with adults, youth, and their families as they navigate questions and challenges related to the social, legal and medical aspects of gender transition. Acey’s clinical lens gives a strong compliment to the professional education services he delivers as Senior Consultant of the Training Institute for Gender, Relationships, Identity, and Sexuality (TIGRIS). Acey specializes in providing clinical training and policy development as it relates to best serving transgender and nonbinary populations in medical, mental health and educational institutions.
Marjorie Nightingale, PhD, JD, LMFT
Dr. Nightingale is in private practice in Washington, D.C. where she specializes in couple and sex therapy. She received her master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy from LaSalle University. She received her doctorate in Couple and Family Therapy at Drexel University where her research focused on racially sensitive interventions for African American couples. Additionally, she teaches in Marriage and Family Therapy programs at University of Maryland, College Park. She has extensive clinical experience working with diverse couples. In addition, Ms. Nightingale spent several years as a family law and child welfare attorney in Baltimore where she worked with marginalized populations. As a scholar-practitioner, she has a special interest in addressing the intersection of sex and race in therapy for people of color. She recently received the 2020 AAMFT Foundation’s Outstanding Research Publication Award for her first academic article: Emotionally Focused Therapy: A culturally Sensitive Approach for African American Heterosexual Couples.
Sidney M. Trantham, PhD
Dr. Trantham is an Associate Professor & Division Director for the Division of Counseling & Psychology at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He received his Ph.D. in 1999 from the University of Florida (Gainesville). His doctoral work focused on exploring the impact of early childhood sexual experiences on the psychological functioning of adult males. He was a Harvard Clinical Fellow (1996-2000) at the Cambridge Health Alliance in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he completed his clinical psychology internship and neuropsychological post-doctoral fellowships, as well as engaged in research identifying early cognitive markers of HIV-related dementia. His work at Fenway Health (1999-2006) in Boston, Massachusetts included working with adults to address a variety of issues related to sexual identity development. Dr. Trantham maintains a private practice where he provides integrative psychological, neuropsychological, and gender assessment as well as mental health counseling with children, adolescents, adults, and families. Areas of clinical interest and expertise include working with transgender and non-binary children and adolescents, sexual and racial identity development, and mood disorders.
Joseph Winn LICSW, CST-S
Joseph Winn received his MSW from The Boston University School of Social Work in 1995. Joe has completed extensive post-graduate training in domestic violence, and family and couples therapy with a particular interest in structural, strategic, Bowenian, collaborative language systems and post-modern models of intervention. Joe is also an AASECT certified sex therapist, and AASECT certified supervisor of sex therapy. Joe has been self-employed in private practice since 2006 has a thriving supervisory practice and maintains an office in West Concord, Massachusetts. Joe works primarily with mixed gender, LGBTQQIA + individuals, couples in open and consensual non-monogamy, polyamory and kink and has a particular interest in high conflict couples, and couples looking to regain pleasure and trust-based sexuality after sexual assault and abuse. While drawing from a variety of couples therapy models including EFT, experiential, and object relations, Joe resonates most strongly with Bader and Pearson’s Development Model of couples therapy. Joe is also a member of the training faculty with The South Shore Sexual Health Center, in Quincy, Massachusetts. SSSHC is an AASECT approved training program for clinicians looking to become AASECT Certified Sex Therapists. Visit his website at www.josephwinnlicsw.net.