Online Individual and Group Supervision | Expressive Arts Therapy

Supervision is open to a variety of students and professionals, including those who are working on the Expressive Arts Therapist-Trauma-Informed [EXAT] and Expressive Arts Coach/Educator [EXA-CE]; Registration as an Expressive Arts Therapist [REAT]; Art Therapists who can use additional hours of supervision; Play Therapists who would like supervision in Expressive Arts Therapy; and related practitioners in mental health and healthcare who are licensed or certified by a professional board and who would like to participate for continuing education or professional development goals to learn more about expressive arts in clinical practice. All participants must show proof of malpractice insurance before the first session of online supervision. Participants should have relevant case material to bring to supervision for discussion and follow ethical principles for confidentiality, informed consent and permission in presentation and discussion of any client information.

If you are interested in supervision, please go to this link to complete a brief questionnaire on your background and interests. If you are interested in starting to accumulate supervised hours toward the EXAT or EXA-CE designations, please go to the EXAT and EXA-CE pages on this menu to verify your credentials and pay the initial application fee.

Supervision | Institute Faculty

Institute Faculty | Supervisor Emily Johnson Welsh

Emily Johnson Welsh, EXAT, REAT, LPAT-S, ATR-BC, LPCC-S, RYT  has over 16 years’ experience providing expressive arts therapy support and developing resources in trauma-informed approaches and integrative wellness. She is a graduate of Lesley University’s Expressive Arts Therapy and Mental Health Counseling program in 2008 and is a licensed and board-certified art therapist, licensed clinical counselor supervisor, registered expressive arts therapist and a Yoga Alliance Registered teacher. As faculty for the Trauma-informed Expressive Arts Therapy Institute for over 10 years, she brings a current knowledge of expressive arts and body-based approaches that focus on building resilience and community. She provides technology-assisted distance supervision for those working towards the EXAT, EXA-CE, REAT (Registered Expressive Art Therapist), ATR (Registered Art Therapist), and LPAT (Licensed Professional Art Therapist in Kentucky).  Emily’s accomplishments in the field include presentations at conferences for the American Art Therapy Association, Buckeye Art Therapy Association, Kentucky Association for Play Therapy, and International Expressive Art Therapy Association;  authoring and co-authoring chapters in the book Art Therapy and Healthcare (Guildford Press, 2013) ; co-designing and co-facilitating the online artmaking workshop  “Art Therapy + Happiness Project;"  being awarded "Cure Champion" by the American Cancer Society for my accomplishments in bringing expressive art therapy and yoga programming to families fighting cancer. Most recently, Emily enjoys balancing her expressive arts therapies private practice, Art Yoga Love, LLC, serving children, families, and adults, with yoga studio ownership and teaching! She is also enamored with being outside, animals of all sorts, the wonders of parenting, and hopes to never stop finding gratitude in these daily adventures.

Supervision | Institute Faculty

Institute Faculty | Supervisor Elizabeth Warson, PhD

Elizabeth Warson, PhD, ATR-BC, LPC, NCC, EMDR III, EXAT, EAP II, is a trailblazing force in the integration of equine-assisted therapy and expressive arts. As the founder of American Indian Art Therapy, her work stems from extensive faculty research at George Washington University and Eastern Virginia Medical School. Currently based in northern Colorado, Elizabeth operates Healing Pathways LLC, where she combines EMDR with art and horses, drawing on her expertise as a certified EMDR practitioner and consultant, Registered Art Therapist-Board Certified, certified Eagala professional and an EquiLateral trained equine-assisted EMDR therapist. As a faculty member at the Trauma-Informed Practices & Expressive Arts Therapy Institute, Elizabeth teaches both in-person and online courses focused on polyvagal-informed, equine-assisted, nature-based, bilateral stimulation, and sensorimotor-informed expressive arts therapy. Her research interests span stress and pain reduction interventions for Native American cancer survivors, culturally responsive practices, and trauma-informed methods. Her significant contributions include receiving a 2010 National Endowment for the Arts grant for her community-driven Coharie Heritage Empowerment Project, emphasizing cultural preservation. Elizabeth’s academic journey includes a BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art, an MA in Art Therapy from Vermont College, and a PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies from Colorado State University. She has presented extensively at regional and national conferences, focusing on medical art therapy and culturally-responsive interventions, and has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Recently, she co-authored E.Qi: Equine & Expressive Arts Inspired Qigong with collaborator Sifu Kurtis Tilley. In addition to her therapeutic work, Elizabeth is a professional artist whose sculptural pieces have been exhibited both nationally and internationally, earning her an Ohio Arts Council fellowship award. Her multifaceted approach bridges art, counseling, and equine therapy, creating impactful experiences for individuals and communities alike.

Supervision | Institute Faculty

Institute Faculty | Supervisor AriAnna Carroll, LMHC, REAT, EXAT

Ari is a licensed mental health counselor, registered expressive arts therapist, and an EMDR certified provider. She is a certified Positive Discipline Parent Educator and is working towards completing all levels of training in the Oaklander Model of Gestalt Play Therapy. Since graduating from the Expressive Arts Therapy Program at the University of Louisville in 2004, she has supported groups and individuals of all ages in a variety of settings including schools, residential care settings, in-patient treatment centers, rehabilitation programs, and out-patient mental health therapy settings. Ari is currently in private practice, the first in Iowa to put expressive arts therapy at the heart of client care. She specializes in providing youth and family-based services, in addition to working with adults that have an interest in resourcing expressive arts. Ari offers technology-assisted supervision for those working towards the EXAT, EXAT-CE, and REAT (registered expressive arts therapist), encouraging growth through supportive dialog, inquiry into theory and approaches, and active practice of expressive arts modalities. As a life-long percussionist, she has a special interest in integrating rhythm and sound oriented approaches into therapy. As parent to a neurodivergent child, she is invested in continued learning relating to neurodiversity affirming practices and advocacy. She enjoys exploring the relationship between expressive arts therapy, neuroscience, and sensory-oriented insights, and how this informs practice that encourages wholistic engagement, integration, and healing. Her accomplishments include creating community-oriented therapeutic expressive arts programming for adults and youth, supporting those with interest in private practice development, certification in Rhythm 2 Recovery, a therapeutic method that integrates rhythm and reflection for social emotional health, and partnering with schools in support of neurodivergent children and families, serving as co-creator and facilitator in presentations and support groups for parents/caregivers of twice-exceptional youth within her community. Ari creates harmony between practice and play with her family, pursuing outdoor adventures and shared creative outlets, appreciating the journey ahead of the destination.

Supervision | Institute Faculty

Supervisor Mindy Cardenas, LPCC (NM), LPC (WI), ATR-BC, EXAT

Mindy Cardenas, LPCC (NM), LPC (WI), ATR-BC, EXAT has been an expressive arts therapist for over 20 years, and recently completed a 2 year meditation and mindfulness teacher training certification. She is currently creating classes, trainings, and community mediation space that integrates expressive arts & mindfulness practices in an on-line format. Mindy is a licensed clinical counselor, board-certified art therapist, a registered expressive arts therapist, and a certified mindfulness and meditation instructor. Since graduating from the art therapy program at Vermont College of Norwich University in 1999, she has worked as an art therapist in a variety of settings that have all added in some way to the clinical skills and application of expressive arts, including, Child Life Specialist, clinical staff at Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center, art therapist/group facilitator at RHOC (community mental health), art therapy faculty at Southwestern College, artist for the Arts in Medicine program at UNMH cancer center, and as a clinical supervisor for both art therapy and clinical counselor candidates. Mindy has been a presenter at Gilda’s Club Madison, at the American Art Therapy Association Conference, has provided professional trainings for the State of Wisconsin and agencies that support developmentally delayed adults, and has presented on art therapy and trauma at agencies in both Wisconsin and New Mexico. Mindy is interested the intersections of expressive arts therapy, neurobiology, trauma theory, mindfulness/meditation, community and connection as they relate to and impact therapy, healing, resilience, growth, relationship and presence. Most recently, Mindy has been working in private practice with individuals dealing with complex and compounded trauma, building a website, meditating, and developing/teaching expressive arts meditation classes. Since completing the mindfulness teacher training, she is convinced that compassion is a necessary component of any relationship, and works to hold herself and others with kindness.

Supervision | Institute Faculty

Supervisor Sarah Newton-Penston

Sarah Newton-Penston, LPC (VA), LMHC (WA), ATR-BC, EXAT, CCTP-II, CIMHP, is a licensed professional counselor in Virginia, licensed mental health counselor in Washington state, and board-certified art therapist. Additional certifications include Expressive Arts Therapy, Clinical Trauma Professional-Level II, Integrative Mental Health Professional, Autism Clinical Specialist, and ADHD-Certified Clinical Services Provider. A graduate of the Art Therapy and Counseling program at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, VA in 2008, she has worked in a variety of settings with over 16 years of clinical experience in residential, community mental health, intensive in-home, dual diagnosis inpatient, therapeutic day treatment, military family life, and private practice. Her private practice, Rising HeArt Studios, opened in 2018. She has many resources for bridging the barriers of bringing the expressive arts into virtual sessions. As a queer, neurodivergent therapist, Sarah’s population centers around the neurodivergent, LGBTQ-PIA+ community, those with alternative lifestyles or belief systems that often feel judged by mainstream health professionals, and complex trauma. Her most recent studies include gender affirming practices, certificates in somatic embodiment, equine-assisted expressive arts therapy, breath work, mindfulness, and energy medicine. Sarah practices from an IFS-informed approach and holds certificates in integrated somatic parts work, IFS: energy, neuroscience, and spirituality, and IFS: Spirituality without Bypassing. Sarah's approach to therapy integrates expressive arts with polyvagal theory, internal family systems, somatic, and nature-based approaches. She is currently working on her certification as a ketamine assisted psychotherapist. Sarah self-published her first book, Elemental Healing: Guided Therapy Journal in 2022 and is actively working on her next publication, Breath of the Elements: Therapeutic Questing. She recently founded Elemental Expressive Arts in Ringgold, VA. She will offer integrative expressive arts therapy, intensives, and retreats on the family farm with hopes of offering equine-assisted expressive arts therapy in the future.

Commonly Asked Questions

  • Do supervision hours count for continuing education with NBCC?

    No, supervision hours are separate from continuing education and professional development hours.

  • Is there a standard fee for supervision?

    Please contact any one of the supervisors on this page to arrange supervision hours. Each supervisor sets fees for individual and group supervision.

  • What types of supervision are offered?

    Supervisors provide supervision for our EXAT and EXA-CE programs, REAT credential, ATR or LPAT credentials, and other specialized areas including Equine-Assisted Expressive Arts Therapy and other approaches to psychotherapy and counseling.