2025 Mental Health Professionals Conference

Join us for our 2025 Mental Health Professionals Conference in Denver, Colorado!

Our 2025 Mental Health and Professionals Conference will be held October 2-4 in Denver, Colorado! If you are a licensed counselor or other mental health professional or chaplain working in the field of mental health or completing a graduate degree in a mental health-related area, you are invited to join us an opportunity for care, rest, education, and connection amongst those who understand your work at the intersection of faith and mental health!  

Registration is now closed. 

Attendance: The 2025 Mental Health Professionals Conference will be held at the at The Westin Denver Downtown. The conference will begin on Thursday, October 2nd with our opening keynote dinner at 6:30pm and continue with a full day of conference programming on Friday, October 3rd focused on Navigating Change and including our annual Dinner Open Mic and Candlelight Yoga session. The conference will conclude at 2:00pm on Saturday October, 4th after a morning workshop, our Deep Care session, closing lunch and reflection session.  

Registration Investment: In-Person registration is $240 (tax deductible) and NBA covers your lodging and all meals in the conference space Thursday through Saturday. Virtual registration is $70 (tax deductible), which includes live access to keynote and workshop speakers as well as virtual breakout sessions. Limited scholarships are available for the conference. To inquire please email jspence@nbacares.org. 

Eligibility: This conference is open to all individuals who are:

• Credentialed mental health professionals (e.g., licensed therapists, psychologists, social workers),
• Chaplains, or
• Graduate students—including seminarians—pursuing degrees in mental health-related fields.

While priority will be given to Disciples of Christ-affiliated participants, all others who meet the above professional or academic criteria are also warmly welcomed to attend.

The 2025 Mental Health Professionals Conference has been approved by the National Board for Certified Counselors for NBCC credit. The National Benevolent Association is solely responsible for all aspects of the program.
NBCC Approval No. SP-5064.

Sessions

Navigating Grief, Spiritual Awareness, and Care (Rev. Joselyn Spence, LPC, ATR, RYT-500)
Maximum # of NBCC Hours: 1.0

Equity Workshop on Affinity and Collective Joy (Rev. Joselyn Spence, LPC, ATR, RYT-500; Rev. Whittney-Marie Murphy, M.Div.; and Joi McCreary, MA, MFT, CLC, CCHW)
Maximum # of NBCC Hours: 1.25

The Self-Care Sanctuary (Rev. Joselyn Spence, LPC, ATR, RYT-500)
Maximun # of NBCC Hours: 1.50

Counselors Roundtable I: Centering the Clinician (Rev. Joselyn Spence, LPC, ATR, RYT-500)
Maximum # of NBCC Hours: 1.25

Collective Healing and Justice (Hakim Asadi, LCSW)
Maximum # of NBCC Hours: 1.25

Integrating Trauma Informed Theologies and Practice (Rev. Dr. Boyung Lee)
Maximum # of NBCC Hours: 1.25

Counselors Roundtable 2: Centering the Client (Rev. Joselyn Spence, LPC, ATR, RYT-500)
Maximum # of NBCC Hours: .75

We look forward to seeing you this fall! 

Keynote Speakers:

Hakim Asadi, LMSW

For over a decade, Hakim Asadi has been a dedicated voice for emotional and mental well-being, blending clinical insight with lived experience. As a licensed social worker and founder of Beyond Living, Hakim brings a unique blend of professional expertise and deep personal understanding as a Black man navigating intersecting systems of race, identity, and healing. Grounded in a social justice framework and enriched by a spiritual lens, his approach empowers individuals and communities to show up with authenticity, compassion, and courage. A proud alumnus of the University at Albany with a Master of Social Work, Hakim facilitates transformative spaces—from classrooms to community workshops—that center healing, liberation, and wholehearted living. 

Session: Collective Healing and Justice

Rev. Dr. Boyung Lee

Rev. Boyung Lee, Ph.D., is a Korean diaspora and Asian/American feminist scholar-activist and an ordained United Methodist clergy. She serves as Professor of Practical Theology at Iliff School of Theology in Denver, Colorado, where she previously held the position of Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty (2017–2022). Dr. Lee is a past president of the Religious Education Association (2021–2022) and of the Pacific, Asian, and North American Asian Women in Theology and Ministry (2023–2025), and she recently concluded her co-chairship of the Women and Religion Unit of the American Academy of Religion (2025). She is the author of Transforming Congregations through Community, co-editor of Embodying Antiracist Christianity: Asian American Theological Resources for Just Racial Relations, and editor of the forthcoming anthology Crossing Shores & Horizons: Asian and Asian American Transnational Feminist Theologies, among other works. Her research and teaching focus on gender, sexuality, and trauma-informed religious pedagogy; reproductive justice and Christianity; postcolonial feminist theologies; Christian spirituality from the Global South; Asian/American feminist theology; and theologies of vulnerability and solidarity building. 

Session: Integrating Trauma Informed Theologies and Practice

Rev. Joselyn Spence, LPC, ATR, RYT-500

Rev. Joselyn Spence serves as the Director of the NBA’s Mental Health and Wellness Program. In this role, Joselyn works to design and implement programs that promote holistic wellness across all NBA programs. This work is done through the creation of learning resources for clergy and community leaders, addressing the needs of pastors in a variety of ministry settings, sharing the stories that help to eliminate stigmas related to mental health and wellness. She is passionate about mental health care, holistic wellness, communal care ethics, and spirituality. As a holistic wellness specialist, she has worked at the intersection of these passions to develop research and provide empathic care to all she is called to serve.

Sessions: 

• Navigating Grief, Spiritual Awareness, and Care
• Equity Workshop on Affinity and Collective Joy
• The Counselor Roundtables I and II
• The Self-Care Sanctuary 

Panel and Workshop Speakers:

Rev. Whittney-Marie Murphy, M.Div. 

Rev. Whittney-Marie Murphy, MDiv., is a certified Spiritual Director and interfaith hospice chaplain dedicated to curating spaces of healing for those often unseen. As a Black queer woman of faith, her life’s work is rooted in radical welcome, sacred truth-telling, and audacious authenticity. She is the Founder and Executive Director of Come As You Are Collective (CAYA), a nonprofit providing accessible, affirming mental health and spiritual care to LGBTQ+ people of color.

Session: Equity Workshop on Affinity and Collective Joy 

 

Joi McCreary, MA, MFT, CLC, CCHW 

Joí McCreary is a visionary leader, therapist, and advocate dedicated to empowering individuals and communities, particularly Black women. As a master’s level Couples, Marriage, and Family Therapy (CMFT) Resident Therapist, she specializes in mental health therapy for adults, couples, families, and groups. She is also the Founder and CEO of JoiOlogy 5155 Center of Joy and Transformative Growth, an organization dedicated to health, wellness, sex education, mental health, capacity building, training, and development with an intentional focus on BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities.

Session: Equity Workshop on Affinity and Collective Joy 

Rev. Lee Ivey III, LMHCA 

Rev. Lee Ivey is a licensed mental health counselor associate, board-certified sexologist, and ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). With a multidisciplinary background spanning clinical counseling, pastoral care, and higher education, Ivey integrates faith, and mental health to support individuals and couples navigating complex emotional and relational challenges. Rev. Lee’s professional roles have included professor, family advocate, hospital chaplain, and workshop facilitator. His clinical interests include trauma, grief and loss, church-related harm, generational healing, microaggressions, and sexual wellness. Through counseling, consultation, and conference engagement, Ivey is committed to fostering spaces where individuals can explore their experiences with honesty and dignity. Rev. Lee holds a Master of Clinical Mental Health Counseling and a Master of Divinity.

Panelist during Navigating Grief, Spiritual Awareness, and Care