Leslie W. Baker, MFT, NCC, RPT-S, has over 27 years of experience as a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, a National Board Certified Counselor and a Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor. She is the CEO/executive director of the Therapy2Thrive® Ruby Hill Marriage & Family Counseling Center in Pleasanton, CA, which provides counseling services to the community. Leslie is a Certified Gottman Therapist and integrates play therapy with all ages.

She is co-owner of Academy for Play Therapy Training, Inc.™ a training program for mental health professionals providing workshops and supervision for clinicians seeking to become registered play therapists. Leslie is a trained Suicide Bereavement Clinician and has volunteered for the past seven years with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in San Francisco Bay Area as a keynote speaker at the Survivors Day conferences in the Tri-Valley Area.

She is also a speaker for the Annual Suicide Prevention Conference for the Tri-Valley NAMI and Family Resource Center in CA. Leslie is the author of Healing Feelings: A Healing Story for Children Coping with a Grownup's Mental Illness and is author of Therapy in the Digital Age as a guest in Integrating Technology into Modern Therapies: A Clinician’s Guide to Developments and Interventions edited by Dr. Jessica Stone. Leslie is an experienced local, national and international speaker on topics including suicide assessment and prevention, technology in therapy, play therapy, trauma and Gottman couples therapy.

Speaker Disclosures:

Financial: Leslie Baker maintains a private practice. She is an author for Yorkshire Publishing and receives a royalty. Ms. Baker receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc.

Non-financial: Leslie Baker is a member of the American Counseling Association; and the Association of Play Therapy

Mary Ruth Cross, MFT, RPT-S, is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Counselor Educator with over 24 years’ experience in the mental health field. Mary Ruth is a dedicated educator and has been on faculty with both University of Phoenix and John F. Kennedy training graduate students in the field of clinical counseling and play therapy. Mary Ruth is a nationally recognized speaker on play therapy and working with children and their families. She works in a private practice counseling center as CEO and Owner of Treehouse Family Counseling Services in San Ramon CA.

Mary Ruth trains and supervises interns and trainees focusing on building a strong therapeutic team. Mary Ruth is a Registered Play Therapist Supervisor as well as past president for the California Association for Play Therapy and a member in good standing with the Association of Play Therapy, California Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Mary Ruth continues to be involved in the play therapy community by participating in leadership on local and statewide events and participation on committees with The Association for Play Therapy.

Mary Ruth is co-owner of Academy for Play Therapy Training, Inc.™ where she plans and implements workshops geared to improving the knowledge and expertise of clinicians in the use of play therapy. Mary Ruth has presented workshops nationally and internationally in support of improving counselor efficacy.

Speaker Disclosures:

Financial: Mary Ruth Cross maintains a private practice. She receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc.

Non-financial: Mary Ruth Cross is a member of the California Association for Marriage and Family Therapy; the Association for Play Therapy; and the American Counseling Association.