Meet Our Keynote Speakers

Dr. Leslie Sokol, a licensed psychologist with over 40 years of experience, is an internationally recognized leader in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). She has trained thousands of professionals worldwide, including leading major CBT dissemination projects in the U.S. and internationally. A founding fellow and past president of the Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies, Dr. Sokol has authored numerous books, including *Think Confident, Be Confident* and *The Ultimate CBT Workbook*.

Dr. Brinen is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, specializing in Recovery-Oriented Cognitive Therapy for Psychosis (CT-R). He is a co-originator and co-author of the CT-R manual and directs psychotherapy training for Vanderbilt’s psychiatry residency program. Dr. Brinen has led international presentations on cognitive therapy for schizophrenia-spectrum disorders and played a key role in disseminating CT-R across large health systems.

Professor Riskind is a specialist in cognitive-behavioral research and treatment for anxiety, mood, and related disorders, with notable books such as *Cognitive Vulnerability to Emotional Disorders* and upcoming works on anxiety and depression co-morbidity. He has published extensively in academic journals and chapters, and has served as editor of the *International Journal of Cognitive Therapy*. Riskind is a Founding Fellow of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy and has held leadership roles in both the Academy and the International Association for Cognitive Psychotherapy.

Dr. Lata K. McGinn is a clinical psychologist, Co-Founder and Co-Director of Cognitive & Behavioral Consultants (CBC), and a tenured Professor of Psychology at Yeshiva University. She is an expert in cognitive and behavioral therapies (CBT) for anxiety, trauma, OCD, depression, and related conditions, and has developed several interventions, including the Mind-Action-Mood Program to prevent anxiety and depression in schools. Dr. McGinn is a leader in the global CBT community, serving as president of the World Confederation of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies (WCCBT), and has received numerous awards for her contributions to the field, including being named a Beck Scholar and a Fellow of the Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies.

Steven D. Hollon, Ph.D. is the Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of Psychology at Vanderbilt University. His research focuses on the nature and treatment of depression with an emphasis on the enduring effects of psychosocial interventions. He is a former editor of Cognitive Therapy and Research, past president of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) and the Society for a Science of Clinical Psychology (SSCP), and the former chair of the steering committee advising the American Psychological Association (APA) on the development of clinical practice guidelines. He is the recipient of the Distinguished Scientific Award for the Application of Psychology from the APA as well as awards for Distinguished Scientific and Distinguished Professional Contributions to Clinical Psychology from the Society of Clinical Psychology (Division 12 of APA). He has over 350 publications and has mentored over 20 doctoral and post-doctoral advisees. He and his colleagues established that both cognitive therapy and behavioral activation are as efficacious as and more enduring than antidepressant medications. His studies also have suggested that specificity of treatment response is heavily moderated (medications only separate from pill-placebo and psychotherapy from nonspecific controls among patients with more severe depressions) and that change in diathetic core beliefs mediates the enduring effects found for cognitive therapy. Recent work with colleagues has extended the efficacy of behavioral activation to low and middle-income countries and he has become interested in the possibility that depression is less a disorder than an adaptation that evolved to serve a function. If so, then antidepressant medications may suppress symptoms at the expense of prolonging the underlying episode and cognitive therapy may more directly facilitate the function that depression evolved to serve (resolving complex problems).

Mehmet Sungur is professor of psychiatry at Istanbul Kent University. He received training in cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), sexual and marital therapies at the Institute of Psychiatry (King’s College), London. He is accredited as a ‘cognitive behaviour therapist’ by the Europoean Association of Behaviour and Cognitive Therapy (EABCT). He is a founding fellow member, certified cognitive therapist/supervisor of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy (ACT) and International Advisory Board member of the Beck Institute (BI). He is the immediate past president of the International Association for Cognitive Psychotherapy (IACP) and has been one of the past presidents of the EABCT. Dr Sungur is now the president of the European Federation of Sexology (EFS) and also a board member of the recently established World Confederation of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies (WCCBT).He is also a board member of the World Assocition of Sexual Heath(WAS) His clinical practice covers a wide range of clinical syndromes with a special emphasis on cognitive behavioural treatment of anxiety disorders and sexual and marital problems. He has presented workshops and keynotes in many international congresses. He played a leading role in the dissemination of the practice of CBT and sex-couple therapy. He is the president of Turkish Association of Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy (TACBT) since its establishment. He has received some national and international awards, including “Schizophrenia Reintegration Award”, “Gold Medal from European Federation of Sexology”, “Julia Heiman Honorary Award” for his contributions in the area of couple and sex therapy. He has published more than 100 papers mainly about CBT and sexual disorders and written many books and book chapters on CBT.His books on “ Making Peace with Uncertainty” and “Love-Marriage and Infidelity” are published in Russian and being translated to English. He is on the advisory and/or editorial board of many national and international journals and has currently committed himself to the training of mental health professionals in clinical applications of CBT and couple-sex therapy. He has been the president of 8 international and many national congresses.

Emory University

Dr. W. Edward Craighead is a distinguished clinical psychologist and educator with a career spanning several decades, having served as a professor and director of clinical training at institutions like Penn State University, Duke University, and the University of Colorado-Boulder. He has co-authored 13 books, including the widely used *Psychopathology*, and has held leadership roles in major professional organizations, including as Past-President of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) and the Society of Clinical Psychology. In addition to his academic and scholarly work, Dr. Craighead established a clinical center serving over 1,500 patients annually and co-founded an APA-accredited Child and Adolescent Internship program with his wife, Dr. Linda Wilcoxon Craighead.

Janeé M. Steele, PhD is a licensed professional counselor, counselor educator, and diplomate of the Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies. She owns Kalamazoo Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy, PLLC, where she provides therapy, supervision, and training in CBT. Dr. Steele is also author of the book, Racism and African American Mental Health: Using Cognitive Behavior Therapy to Empower Healing with a foreword by Dr. Judith S. Beck, co-author of the book, Black Lives Are Beautiful: 50 Tools to Heal from Trauma and Promote Positive Racial Identity, and author and co-author of many peer-reviewed journal publications. She additionally serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, Secretary for the Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies, and is an appointed member of the Research and Knowledge Committee of the American Counseling Association. As an educator and trainer, Dr. Steele is appreciated for her practical expertise and her direct yet nonjudgmental approach to instruction. Her presentations are well-organized and engaging, blending theoretical insights, empirical research, skill building, and interactive audience participation.

David M. Clark is an Emeritus Professor of Experimental Psychology at Oxford and a leading expert on anxiety disorders. His research focuses on cognitive approaches to understanding and treating conditions like panic disorder, social phobia, and PTSD. Clark developed effective cognitive therapies for these disorders, which are now recommended by NICE. He has also led efforts to train clinicians through initiatives like the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) program, which has trained over 10,000 therapists and improved access to mental health care. His work extends to developing internet-based treatments for broader reach.

Robyn D. Walser, PhD, works as a consultant, workshop presenter, and therapist in her private business, TLConsultation Services. She received her doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Nevada, Reno. During her graduate studies, she developed expertise in traumatic stress, substance abuse, and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). She has been doing ACT workshop trainings, both nationally and internationally, since 1998, training in multiple formats and for multiple client problems.