Sue Bratton, Ph.D., LPC-S, RPT-S is Professor Emeritus, University of North Texas, and Director Emeritus, UNT Center for Play Therapy with 30 years of experience as a practitioner and researcher. Sue is nationally and internationally known speaker and author with over 90 publications and 300 professional presentations in the areas of child and family counseling and play therapy. She is co-author of Child Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT), the CPRT Treatment Manual, and CPRT in Action, a demonstration video illustrating CPRT with adoptive families, as well as three additional contemporary edited texts. Her research agenda focuses on examining the effectiveness of play therapy, CPRT, and school-based counseling services for young children and their families. Sue is a Past President of the Association for Play Therapy (APT), recipient of the 2016 APT Lifetime Achievement Award, 2007 APT Outstanding Research Award, the 2011 Chi Sigma Iota Outstanding Practitioner Supervisor Award, the 2013 ACA Best Practice Award, the 2013 AHC Humanistic Educator/ Supervisor Award, the 2014 ACA Extended Research Award, and several UNT teaching, research and service awards. She is an active social advocate for children at the local, national, and international level, particularly underserved children who have experienced traumatic experiences. Her career long passion and record of service is focused on making the world a safer place for all children, one in which they receive the help and nurturing they need to reach their full capacity and lead productive and fulfilling lives.

Linda E. Homeyer is a professor in Texas State University and play therapist- supervisor, approved continuing education provider registered to Association for Play Therapy. She is also a Certified Child-Parent Relationship Therapist-Supervisor and a Certified Child-Centered Play Therapist Supervisor. She’s been working as a licensed professional counselor and supervisor in private practice since 1994. She has worked as a director and a counselor at New Braunfels Door of Hope Counseling Center since 2013. Dr. Homeyer co-authored Sandtray: A Practical Manual; The Handbook of Group Play Therapy; Play Therapy Interventions with Children’s Problems; and The World of Play Therapy Literature, as well as many book chapters and journal articles. Her work is translated into Chinese, Russian, Korean, and Spanish. She was named an Honorary Professor of International Studies by Texas State University. Dr. Homeyer is the 2013 recipient of APT’s Lifetime Achievement Award and named Director Emerita in 2014. She also received the university’s highest service honor in 2010, the President’s Award for Excellence in Service. Dr. Homeyer also teaches internationally, including India, Malaysia, South Africa, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, Taiwan.

Marshall Lyles, LPC-S, LMFT-S, RPT-S, EMDRIA Approved Consultant, has 15 years of practice in family and play therapy. He has extensive speaking and training experience and has worked in a variety of mental health settings. Most of Marshall’s clinical practice has focused on attachment trauma and its effect on family relationships. Marshall conducts supervision and consultation sessions with counseling professionals and leads training in both parenting and professional settings; much of his consultation and training focuses on the use of sandtray therapy within a trauma-informed context. As Marshall is nearing the completion of his Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy, more writing opportunities are emerging and this has become a passionate point of interest for him.

Dr. Joyce Mills, Ph.D.Known for her warm, playfully dynamic, and inspirational style, Dr. Joyce C. Mills, is a nationally and internationally recognized storyteller, keynote presenter, workshop leader, consultant, trauma specialist, and program developer for health-care, psychological, educational, and community organizations. Founder of The StoryPlay® Center, Dr. Mills is the recipient of the 1997 Play Therapy International Award for outstanding career contributions to the field of Play Therapy and Child Psychology. A Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, and Registered Play Therapy Supervisor, Dr. Mills is the author and co-author of seven books including the award-winning Therapeutic Metaphors for Children and the Child Within, Reconnecting to the Magic of Life, Sammy the Elephant and Mr. Camel, Gentle Willow, and Little Tree.
For close to two decades, Dr. Mills has been on the Board of Directors of the Turtle Island Project, a non-profit organization based in Phoenix, Arizona. Through this project, Dr. Mills co-leads healing retreats for women along with Native American spiritual and educational leaders. Dr. Mills currently provides workshops and consulting nationally and internationally, and is in private practice in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Paris Goodyear-Brown, LCSW, RPT-S, the founder and director of Nurture House, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor with 20 years of experience in treating families in need. While she specializes in treating trauma (sexual abuse, physical abuse, maltreatment and neglect) and attachment disturbances, she often provides help for anxious, angry or depressed children and teens. A child development expert, she frequently provides parent consultation, dyadic assessment and parent coaching to help parents manage and resolve their children’s behavior problems. She is an Adjunct Instructor of Psychiatric Mental Health at Vanderbilt University, guest lecturer for several universities in middle Tennessee, and has an international reputation as a dynamic speaker and innovative clinician. She provides play therapy and licensure supervision and consults with various school districts, agencies and mental health organizations to help develop play therapy programs and create more developmentally sensitive programming. With trainings in Morocco, Australia, and Sweden, as well as frequent domestic presentations, she is best known for developing clinically sound, played-based interventions that are used to treat a variety of childhood problems. She has received the APT award for Play Therapy Promotion and Education. She is the author of multiple books, chapters and articles related to child therapy. Her newest books include Tackling Touchy Subjects, the Handbook of Child Sexual Abuse: Identification, Assessment, and Treatment, Play Therapy with Traumatized Children: A Prescriptive Approach and The Worry Wars: An Anxiety Workbook for Kids and their Helpful Adults. For the whole of her career, she has carried a vision of a place – a home – in which the space itself would help children and parents feel safe, nurtured and ready to do the deep work of healing. Although it looks like a playhouse – and her child clients call it “the kid’s palace” -the fun, highly playful environment helps the hard stuff go down easier.

Paris Goodyear-Brown, LCSW, RPT-S, the founder and director of Nurture House, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor with 20 years of experience in treating families in need. While she specializes in treating trauma (sexual abuse, physical abuse, maltreatment and neglect) and attachment disturbances, she often provides help for anxious, angry or depressed children and teens. A child development expert, she frequently provides parent consultation, dyadic assessment and parent coaching to help parents manage and resolve their children’s behavior problems. She is an Adjunct Instructor of Psychiatric Mental Health at Vanderbilt University, guest lecturer for several universities in middle Tennessee, and has an international reputation as a dynamic speaker and innovative clinician. She provides play therapy and licensure supervision and consults with various school districts, agencies and mental health organizations to help develop play therapy programs and create more developmentally sensitive programming. With trainings in Morocco, Australia, and Sweden, as well as frequent domestic presentations, she is best known for developing clinically sound, played-based interventions that are used to treat a variety of childhood problems. She has received the APT award for Play Therapy Promotion and Education. She is the author of multiple books, chapters and articles related to child therapy. Her newest books include Tackling Touchy Subjects, the Handbook of Child Sexual Abuse: Identification, Assessment, and Treatment, Play Therapy with Traumatized Children: A Prescriptive Approach and The Worry Wars: An Anxiety Workbook for Kids and their Helpful Adults. For the whole of her career, she has carried a vision of a place – a home – in which the space itself would help children and parents feel safe, nurtured and ready to do the deep work of healing. Although it looks like a playhouse – and her child clients call it “the kid’s palace” -the fun, highly playful environment helps the hard stuff go down easier.