Grace is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker currently living and practicing in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She began her career in social work while enrolled in an accredited social work undergraduate program at Chatham University, where she is now an Adjunct Professor. While working towards her first degree, Grace developed an expressive-art outreach program for children and youth experiencing homelessness in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, her hometown. The program evolved and expanded, partnering with more than a dozen non-profit organizations to provide wrap-around care to gender and sexual minority youth and young adults.
While earning her MSW degree at the University of Pittsburgh, Grace’s social work practice shifted into a clinical setting where she provided mental health services to children enrolled in a school-based partial hospitalization program. It was in this position where Grace began to expand her knowledge of trauma-informed care, child-centered play therapy, attachment-based therapy, and crisis work. Grace developed an animal-assisted program where she used the human-animal bond to help children learn about self-regulation.
After moving to Colorado in 2019, Grace furthered her career while working in public education. As a School Social Worker, Grace was responsible for multiple roles: mental health interventions, special education evaluation and instruction, case management, community organization, and behavior consultation. Grace worked with educators, administrators, and families to support students in their unique environments. It was in this position that Grace deepened her understanding of family systems, grief and loss, and the transformational power of relationships.