Faculty

Pat Ogden, Ph.D., is the founder and director of the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute, an internationally recognized school that specializes in training psychotherapists in somatic/cognitive approaches for the treatment of trauma, developmental and attachment issues. She is a co-founder of the Hakomi Institute, served on the faculty of The Naropa University in the Somatic Psychology and Contemplative Psychology departments from 1985 to 2005, and lectures internationally. Dr. Ogden is trained in a wide variety of somatic and psychotherapeutic approaches and has worked with a diversity of populations, including prison inmates, psychiatric inpatients and survivors of trauma. As a pioneer in somatic psychotherapy and the treatment of trauma, she has 34 years experience working with individuals and groups. She is the first author of the groundbreaking book, Trauma and the Body: A Sensorimotor Approach to Psychotherapy, which was published in the fall of 2006 in the interpersonal neurobiology series of W.W.Norton and is in its second printing.


Kekuni Minton, Ph.D., is a founding trainer of SPI and a faculty member at Naropa University. His doctoral thesis in clinical psychology focused on somatic relational therapy and he has special interests in meditation and cultural trauma. He was the resident psychotherapist at the Boulder County AIDS Project, and has presented at a variety of conferences internationally.


Christina Dickinson, CAC II, is a founding trainer of SPI, a certified addictions counselor in Colorado, certified in Hakomi Therapy and Focused Expressive Psychotherapy. Trained in a wide variety of treatment modalities including EMDR, Pia Mellody's model at The Meadows, and hospice, she teaches internationally on the subjects of trauma and addiction and maintains a private practice in Boulder, Colorado.


Janina Fisher, Ph.D., is a licensed Clinical Psychologist and Instructor at the Trauma Center in Boston. She is also past president of the N.E. Society for the Treatment of Trauma and Dissociation, an EMDR Consultant, a faculty member of the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute, and a former Instructor, Harvard Medical School. Dr. Fisher is the author of a number of articles on trauma treatment and lectures nationally and internationally. For more information about Dr. Fisher, see www.janinafisher.com.

Lana Epstein, M.A., LICSW, is an EMDRIA-approved consultant in EMDR, anASCH-approved consultant in Hypnosis, a Consultant and past supervisor at the Trauma Center and was a Member of the NESTTD board for 6 years. Integrating a number of therapeutic models, Lana presents internationally and maintains a private practice in Lexington MA. focusing on adult survivors of childhood trauma.

Joe Gillan, M.A. received his master's in Transpersonal Psychology from Naropa University in 1997, and is a psychiatric consultant at Good- Samaritan hospital in Lafayette, CO. working both in psychiatric emergency triage and with chronically ill patients, serves on the faculty of Naropa University in the graduate department of Somatic Psychology, leads groups for cancer survivors, and maintains a private practice in Boulder Colorado.

Celia Grand, LCSW, BCD is a psychotherapist with a private practice in Portland, Maine, specializing in the treatment of adults and couples. Trained in both EMDR and Psychosynthesis, and certified in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, she is an EMDR facilitator and consultant. Celia is well- known throughout Maine and Southern New Hampshire for her expertise in trauma and the uses of both EMDR and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy. For more information about Celia Grand, see www.celiagrand.com.

Andrew Harkin, M.D. is a registered Medical Doctor (University College Dublin), and Psychotherapist. He has been interested in the relationship between psyche and soma for many years, and has a special fascination with the emerging rapprochement between neuroscience and psychotherapy. Andrew is currently works with the Institute of Psychosocial Medicine in Dublin, Ireland, teaches in the UK, Ireland, and Europe, and maintains a private practice in Dublin.

Jaci Hull, MA, LMFT, is a licensed psychotherapist in private practice for 20 years in Boulder, CO. She is a Certified Hakomi Trainer, serves on the Hakomi Institute Board of Directors, has served as adjunct faculty at Naropa University, and is a co-creator of Experiential Couples Psychotherapy with Rob Fisher. She received her degree in Contemplative Psychotherapy from Naropa University. Her post-graduate training includes Family Systems Therapy, EMDR II, BrainSpotting, Group Leadership, and Somatic Trauma Resolution.

Brigitta Karelis, M.A. holds the degree of Diplom (equivalent to an M.A.) in Paedagogik - a study that combines social work, lifelong learning, and psychology, and an M.A. in Somatic Psychology. She has worked with drug-addicted youth, political refugees, the mentally ill, and hospice clients. She serves on the faculty at Naropa, is an instructor in the Buddhist meditative tradition, and maintains a private practice in Boulder, Colorado.

Justine K. Polevoy, MFT is a licensed Somatic psychotherapist. She currently serves as a trainer for the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institutes and is Core faculty for the Somatic Psychology Program at John F. Kennedy University. Her private practice, Embodied Psychotherapy, in Berkeley, Ca, specializes in treating individuals and assisting them in their recovery from trauma and supporting their development of a somatically resourced sense of self.

Anne Westcott, LICSW, is a psychotherapist with over 20 years experience working with children and families. Her commitment to children and caregivers impacted by trauma has led her to explore new body oriented approaches to enhance arousal regulation in traumatized family systems. Anne provides education and consultation on trauma, dissociation, attachment, and arousal regulation and is a supervisor at the Trauma Center in Boston MA. Anne received her Masters Degree in Social Work from Columbia University in 1987.

Bodywork Faculty

Michael Broas, LMT is an instructor at the Florida School of Massage, in Gainesville, Florida, where he teaches various massage modalities and is also available for one on one counseling with the students. He completed the SPI Bodyworker Training in 2003 and shortly thereafter joined our staff. Michael also maintains a private practice in Gainesville, specializing working with trauma survivors.

In Memory of Dan Thomas