Keynote SpeakersPlease join us in welcoming our keynote speakers for this years conference! Friday KeynoteJoin us for this Keynote Panel featuring the CEO and President-Elect of ACA. More details to follow! |
Shawn Boynes Shawn E. Boynes, FASAE, CAE has over 25 years of association management experience and serves as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the American Counseling Association. He previously served as Executive Director at the American Association for Anatomy (AAA) in Rockville, MD for nine years where he successfully partnered with volunteer leadership to rebrand and transform the 135-year-old organization into a thriving society committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as leading impactful change in the scientific community. Prior to joining AAA, he served as Senior Director of Education for the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC). During his career, he has worked for a broad variety of other associations including the Minority Corporate Counsel Association, Greater Washington Society of Association Executives, American Trucking Associations, and the Association of Corporate Counsel. In this time, he developed a true appreciation for continuous learning and the value that mission-drive associations bring to the world, which has undoubtedly shaped who he is today as a leader. Focused on influencing positive change. Shawn is very active with the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) having served on its Board of Directors in 2014-2017, the Certified Association Executive (CAE) Commission, as well as a variety of other committees. Shawn was named an ASAE Fellow in 2017 and served as Chair of the ASAE Fellows program in 2022. He is also a Diversity Executive Leadership Program (DELP) Scholar. He earned his Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential in 2010. He has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree with a concentration in Marketing from Howard University. |
Elsa Soto Leggett Dr. Elsa Soto Leggett is an Associate Professor and Practicum & Internship Coordinator at Truman State University. She is a licensed professional counselor and board approved supervisor in Texas and a licensed professional counseling in Missouri. She also holds certifications as a registered play therapist supervisor and certified school counselor (TX). Her clinical experience, research, and publications focus on children and adolescent counseling, solution focused counseling & solution focused play therapy, and supervision. Her Ph.D. in Counselor Education is from Texas A&M University Corpus Christi in Corpus Christi, Texas. She has served in higher education for 20 years at various institutions; traditional settings and online institutions. She participated in the development of the Association for Child &Adolescent Counseling (ACAC) as the 20th division of American Counseling Association (ACA) in 2010. She has serviced as the president of ACAC 2015 – 2017 and as ACA Governing Council representative 2017 – 2019. She continues to services on the editorial board for the Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling since 2014. She has authored and co-authored numerous articles and book chapters as well as presented at local, state, regional, national, and international conferences. She has co-edited and co-authored the book Directive play therapy: Theory, technique, and treatment. She is past president of the Texas Counseling Association 2023-2024. And president elect of ACA 2024-2025. |
Saturday Keynote
"Connect to Thrive/Thrive to Connect"
In this keynote address, TEDx speaker, researcher, and professor, Dr. Christine Norton will highlight the importance of building connections with other professionals as protective factors for workplace mental health, well-being, and motivation. She will also discuss how prioritizing our own sense of thriving can serve as a protective factor in our ability to form and maintain meaningful, supportive relationships in our personal and professional lives. This keynote will be fun, engaging, and experiential, and will have participants interacting and connecting in real time!
Christine Norton
Dr. Christine Lynn Norton received her Ph.D. in Social Work from Loyola University Chicago. She has a Master of Arts in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago and a Master of Science in Experiential Education from Minnesota State University-Mankato. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a board-approved supervisor in the State of Texas. She is a Certified Clinical Adventure Therapist, a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, and a Certified Experiential Therapist. She has over 30 years of experience working with youth and young adults in a variety of settings including therapeutic wilderness programs, juvenile justice, schools, mentoring and campus support programs.
She has taught as adjunct faculty at The University of Denver, Prescott College, and Naropa University. Her areas of practice and research interest and expertise are mental health, outdoor therapy, experiential education, foster care support, and international social work. Dr. Norton is a Research Scientist with the Outdoor Behavioral Healthcare Center and she helped launch Foster Care Alumni Creating Educational Success (FACES) at Texas State.
She served as the Foster Care Liaison Officer to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and founded the Foster Care Adventure Therapy Network, an international group of programs and practitioners who utilize adventure therapy with current and former foster care youth and young adults.
Dr. Norton has over 50 peer-reviewed journal articles, has edited three books, and has authored over ten book chapters. She has secured over $3,162,154 in internal and external research funding as PI and co-investigator, is a leading social work scholar who has presented her research nationally and internationally. Dr. Norton is active in study abroad and is also a Fulbright Scholar, having taught adventure therapy in the Department of Civic Education and Leadership at National Taiwan Normal University.
Bonus Keynote"The Interstate Counseling Compact: The Privilege to Practice in Other States" The presentation will cover a brief history of the compact, how the commission operates, the process for applying for privileges to practice, and an update on when privileges will start being issued. Finally, the session will cover ethical considerations for counselors to consider before applying for a privilege to practice.
Greg Searls Greg Searls is the Executive Director of the Counseling Compact Commission. He is a licensed funeral service practitioner in Wyoming, beginning his regulatory career in 2010 when appointed by the Governor to the Board of Funeral Service Practitioners. In 2016, he transitioned to an Executive Director role within the Wyoming Professional Licensing Board office. Interest SessionsComing soon |
Half Day WorkshopsComing soon |
The Idaho Counseling Association is a Branch of the American Counseling Association