LUBBOCK, TX, December 16, 2022- With nominations coming from across the nation and following an election by the membership of the organization, the National Alliance for Children’s Grief (NACG) are pleased to announce that its membership and Board of Directors has elected Michaeleen (Micki) R. Burns, Michael Millward, Brianne (Brie) Overton, FT, LPC, NCC and Adam D-F. Stevens, MA, RDT, as members of the Board of Directors for the National Alliance for Children’s Grief. Their term of service begins on January 1, 2023.
Michaeleen (Micki) R. Burns, Ph.D., Chief Clinical Officer at Judi’s House/JAG Institute and adjunct faculty at the University of Colorado
Michaeleen (Micki) Burns, PhD, is the Chief Clinical Officer at Judi’s House/JAG Institute and adjunct faculty at the University of Colorado. JH/JAG is a comprehensive family bereavement center in Denver. A Licensed Psychologist with two decades of experience providing therapeutic assessment and support to families facing adversity, Micki has witnessed the lasting impact of unaddressed grief. She is dedicated to ensuring appropriate care is available for all and raising childhood bereavement to a level of critical public importance. At JH/JAG she oversees the direct service, research, and training departments working towards a vision where no child is alone in grief.
Michael Millward
Michael Milward has been an attorney since 1981 and has worked in the end of life care and bereavement field since 1997. He did his legal studies at Santa Clara University and his graduate work in Theology and Spirituality at the Graduate Theological Union at UC Berkeley. He has worked with and been committed to grieving children and teens his entire career. He has also been a hospice chaplain since 2000. In 2012 he became the CEO at Hospice of Santa Cruz County on the central coast of California and served in that role until 2020. He currently serves as the CEO of the California Hospice Network and as a senior advisor to the National Partnership for Hospice and Healthcare Innovation (NPHI), a national collective of almost 100 nonprofit community based hospices, all of whom have robust community grief support programs for children, teens and adults. He sees a necessary and natural intersection with and between these hospice programs and the collective mission of NACG.
Brianne (Brie) Overton, FT, LPC, NCC, Chief Clinical Officer at Experience Camps
Brianne “Brie” Overton is the Chief Clinical Officer of Experience Camps, a national nonprofit that provides no-fee, clinically informed programs for kids who have experienced the death of a parent, sibling or primary caregiver – as well as resources and advocacy so all grieving children can live a life rich with possibility. Brie received her MA in Thanatology from Hood College, her M.Ed in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from University of Missouri – St. Louis, and is a doctoral candidate in counseling at the University of Missouri – St. Louis. She has spent 13 years in the field of thanatology providing grief education, support, counseling, death education, suicide prevention and intervention, and consultation.
Adam D-F. Stevens, MA, RDT, Registered Drama Therapist (RDT) who works at the Hetrick-Martin Institute and adjunct faculty member in the Creative Arts Therapy Programs at Antioch University in Seattle, and New York University and Marymount Manhattan College in NYC.
Adam D-F. Stevens (they|them), MA, RDT. They are a Registered Drama Therapist (RDT) who works at the Hetrick-Martin Institute, a non-profit organization that serves LGBTQAI+ youth in NYC. Their role includes supporting queer youth in transforming their loss and grief into unapologetic, abundant joy and empowerment. Previously, Adam worked at the Cooke School & Institute, NYC, guiding young people with developmental an intellectual differences. They are alumni of Marymount Manhattan College and New York University where their areas of study included Theatre Arts and Drama Therapy respectively. Adam serves as an adjunct faculty member in the Creative Arts Therapy Programs at Antioch University in Seattle, and New York University and Marymount Manhattan College in NYC. They have sat on the Board of Directors for the North American Drama Therapy Association (NADTA) as Chair of the Cultural Humility, Equity, and Diversity Committee. Adam is a political and social justice theatre practitioner who has performed, directed, and choreographed throughout North America. In 2020, the were named Artistic Director for the Collideoscope Repertory Theatre Company (CRTC) whose mission is to advance racial justice and healing through artful affinity and performance. Adam works as a diversity, equity, and inclusion specialist supporting organizations and schools worldwide. In 2021, they were invited to be Drama Therapist-in-Residence with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Adam has more recently connected with several Off-Broadway and university theatre companies as an actor’s advocate and emotional wellness consultant. Inspired by Robert Landy’s Role Method and Role Theory in drama therapy, Adam has presented on and is developing the Black American Role Taxonomy, or BART, offering space for Black clients to reclaim racialized roles and deconstruct stereotypes appropriated by privileged others. Adam’s superpowers are rooted in the fantastical forces of creativity and love.
The National Alliance for Children’s Grief is honored to have Micki, Michael, Brie and Adam join our mission of serving bereaved children and their families and help ensure that no child grieves alone.
About The National Alliance for Children’s Grief (NACG)
The National Alliance for Children’s Grief (NACG) is a nonprofit organization that raises awareness about the needs of children and teens who are grieving a death and provides education and resources for anyone who supports them. Through the collective voice of our members and partners we educate, advocate and raise awareness about childhood bereavement.
The NACG is a nationwide network comprised of professionals, institutions and volunteers who promote best practices, educational programming and critical resources to facilitate the mental, emotional and physical health of grieving children and their families. For more information, visit: www.ChildrenGrieve.org.