Conference

Ninth Annual Rocky Mountain Humanistic Counseling and Psychological Association Conference “The Power of Possibility: Rethinking Mental Wellness & Social Systems” October 18-19 (Pre-conference October 17) Colorado Springs, CO

The Ninth Annual Rocky Mountain Humanistic Counseling and Psychological Association Conference will be in-person and virtual. The pre-conference will be at the RMHCPA building on October 17, 2025. The main conference will be held at Mt. Carmel Veterans Center in Colorado Springs on October 18-19, 2025. This is a short drive from the RMHPCA building near downtown Colorado Springs.

Conference Theme

Our conference theme is “The Power of Possibility: Rethinking Mental Wellness & Social Systems.” We will consider presentations not directly connected to the conference theme; however, preferential consideration is given to presentations relevant to the conference theme.

Conference Schedule

Preconference: Friday, October 18, 2025

Rocky Mountain Humanistic Counseling and Psychological Association Building

1767 S. 8th Street, 2nd Floor, Colorado Springs

11:00 AM-12:00 PM Registration and Lunch Provided (free with Preconference Registration)
12:00 PM-2:00 PM Creating New Worlds as Clinicians: Developing Strategies for Collective Safety (CE) Darius Green
2:00 PM-4:00 PM Attachment-Based Supervision: A Humanistic Approach to the Clinical Development of Supervisees (CE) Jose Tapia, Jr.

Conference Opening: Friday Evening, October 18, 2025 Mt. Carmel Veterans Center 530 Communication Cir., Colorado Springs, CO

6:00-7:00 PM Keynote Address Creating Meaning and Becoming in Psychotherapy: Self-Definition as a Personal and Sociopolitical Imperative (CE) Alfredo Palacios
7:00-8:30 PM Poster Session & Social Posters: ·      Feeling His Way to Himself: Expanding Possibility and Cultivating Experiential Attunement in Young Men by Mariah Menaker ·      Organized Existential Resistance: Philosophy, Force, and Art by Benjamin Taft ·      Dreams Through the Decade by Lucy Redlich ·      Eco-Martyrdom: The Fight for Environmental Accountability by Elysha York ·      History Repeats Itself: Analyzing Rain Ceremonies to Anticipate Client Reactions to the Climate Crisis by Kaitlin Leahy  

Main Conference: Saturday, October 19, 2025 Mt. Carmel Veterans Center 530 Communication Cir., Colorado Springs, CO

8:30-9:00 AM Registration & Donuts
9:00-10:00 AM Possibility: Therapeutic Photography as Embodied Mental Wellness Sarah Byrd 2Pac, Bruce Springsteen, and Existential Therapy: Lessons for Social Justice and Clinical Practice L. Xochitl Vallejos, Eden Vallejos, & Louis Hoffman (CE)
10:00-11:00 AM Storying Survival: Cultivating Healing from Racial Trauma After Experiencing Police Violence (CE) Darius Green When the Ground Shifts: A Cross-Cultural Exploration of Awe and Boundary Experiences Jeff Singer & Tyler Gamlen  
11:00-11:30 AM Coffee & Tea Break
11:30-12:30 PM Multicultural Considerations in Adapting Therapeutic Presence (CE) Louis Hoffman   Program Evaluation of a Self-Defense Group Therapy Program and Considerations for Rethinking PTSD Treatment and Care (CE) K. P. Hartman & Dan Hugill
12:30 PM-2:00 PM Lunch on your own
2:00-3:00 PM The Existential Psychology of Star Trek: Lessons for Therapy (CE) Jason Dias   Understanding the Glass Child: Sibling roles in families with chronic illness Eden Vallejos
3:00-4:00 PM A Pragmatic Shift in Consciousness: A Psychology of Mindfulness Ven. Sucandra (Alena Gripass) TBD
4:00-5:00 PM Awards & Recognition Ceremony   Honoring Board Members ·      Brittany Varisco ·      Lindsay Edwards ·      H. Luis Vargas   Center for Humanistic & Interpersonal Psychotherapy Practicum Completion ·      Jeff Singer   Awards ·      Undergraduate Student Poster Award (TBD) ·      Graduate Student Poster Award (TBD) ·      Lifetime Achievement Award: Brent Dean Robbins ·      Sandy Sela-Smith Humanistic Exemplar Award: Matt Thelen ·      Humanistic Exemplar Award (Student): Edbury Enegren ·      Humanistic Exemplar Award (Student): Olivia Michael  
5:00-6:30 PM Social Hour

Main Conference: Sunday, October 20, 2025 Mt. Carmel Veterans Center 530 Communication Cir., Colorado Springs, CO

8:30-9:00 AM Donuts & Networking
9:00-10:00 AM Our Search for Meaning: Finding Solace Amid the Chaos (CE) Nathaniel Granger, Jr.
10:00-11:00 AM You Don’t Own Me: Existential-Humanistic Perspectives on Relationship Anarchy and Liberation (CE) L. Xochitl Vallejos
11:00-11:30 Coffee & Tea Break
11:30-12:30 Reclaiming the Empathy and Resilience of Dissociation Ian Wickramasekera, II
12:30-1:00 Conference Photo & Conference Closing

Registration

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