Dear Colleagues,

I am honored to serve as the incoming President of the DC Mental Health Counselors Association (2025-2026). My name is Glen Bradley (they/Glen) and I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in DC and have been living in the district since 2016. I now live with my loving husband, two rambunctious dogs, and innumerable plants. 

Some of you may know me from the CE courses I’ve taught here at DCMHCA on queer cultural competency and decolonizing gender and sexuality in mental health counseling. As a member of this community, I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to support our shared mission during this pivotal year. I wanted to share some of myself, where I come from, and a brief look into my life to help you get to know me as I am.

Before I entered this field, I worked in: government program management consulting, queer student advocacy and intersectional social justice leadership, and food and beverage service. I was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. I moved to California for college, where I studied marketing, English, and queer theory at Santa Clara University. My journey into mental health counseling began later, but it is rooted in the same passion: building community and creating affirming spaces for those who are marginalized or misunderstood. 

I look forward to getting to know each other more in the coming year and getting to better know you as you are. We all bring such diverse and essential perspectives and a wealth of lived experience to our field in a time and place where our work and our personhood is vital. 

As we step into this pivotal year, I want to take a moment to honor the legacy of leadership that has carried us to this point. Angele Moss-Baker and Laurie Persh have led DCMHCA for many years with immense dedication, resilience, and vision—especially during times of political, systemic, and professional uncertainty. Under their leadership, DCMHCA achieved major wins—most notably, moving forward legislation that enables DC LPCs to join the interstate Counseling Compact. These kinds of victories don’t happen without tireless behind-the-scenes work. Angele’s leadership has been foundational to our growth as an association and our impact as a voice for DC’s LPCs. I am deeply grateful that she will continue to serve as Immediate Past President and Interim Treasurer, offering mentorship, institutional knowledge, and the grounded guidance we need to thrive. I am also thrilled to be joined by Mirna Amaya as our President-Elect, whose energy and insight I know will strengthen our work this year. Cynthia Crockett will continue as Interim Secretary while we seek nominations to fill these important roles. The collaboration, support, and wisdom of Angele, Mirna, and Cynthia are invaluable as we step into this next chapter together.

I feel deeply that it is important for me to acknowledge I am starting my term in a time of great turmoil for our community and our profession. The emergence of AI and its growing impact on our profession and our clients has brought with it new fears, questions, and uncertainty. We are at a perilous moment in which deep wounds in our national history and culture are being laid bare and exploited for political gain. Many of us in this field and many of our clients credibly fear for our safety. We live in a time when those in power actively demonize the most vulnerable among us. We are witnessing a rise in institutionalized violence and public policy targeting people based on skin color, ethnicity, ancestry, nationality, sexuality, gender identity and expression, documentation type and status, disability, medical history and needs, age, religion, education, political dissent, veteran status, and income. As mental health counselors, we are not immune to these attacks. We are forced to confront the limits of our abilities; we cannot quickly change the outcome of elections in the therapy room. The very soul of our nation is being tested and the soul of our profession is being strained. 

My hope is that we respond not with isolation but with connection—through mutual support, professional development, and advocacy. We cannot do everything alone, but we can do much together.

As counselors, we are called to meet this moment with conscience and courage. When we numb ourselves to the world's pain, we lose contact with our vitality. When we stay silent in the face of authoritarianism, we cut off possibilities. We are ethically bound to advocate for those who are most at risk, and uniquely qualified to do so. 

As president, I will meet these challenging times with a focus on community, connection, social justice competency, and professional development. I believe our greatest strength comes when we show up authentically—rooted in presence, bravery, and resilience. To respond to this moment and raise the profile of DCMHCA within our community, I plan to focus on the following goals during my term: 

• Monthly CE courses following membership meetings
• Monthly social gatherings for connection & fun
• Bimonthly networking events with DC referral sources
• Spring and Fall conferences for professional development 
• Online membership directory for referrals & marketing
• Peer consultation group
• Career & supervision fairs for new graduates
• Mentorship roundtables
• A speaker’s bureau with training to build your own CE course

These goals are more than initiatives—they’re invitations to root ourselves in shared values and take meaningful action. But I cannot do this alone; they require your support, presence, and passion. I invite you to join me—not just as members, but as co-creators of a vibrant, values-driven professional community.

Come to a meeting. Teach a CE course. Join a roundtable. Start a peer consultation group. Mentor a new grad. Speak out when you see harm. Together, let’s use this chapter to stay awake, stay brave, and stay connected. Students, LGPCs, and LPCs are all welcome to get involved! Please reach out if any of these initiatives call to you—you can reach the DCMHCA Board at contact.dcmhca@gmail.com. 

This moment asks our profession to show up—to look deeply, to speak with conviction. We must stay present. We must stay in contact—with each other, with our values, and with those who need us most. Our power lies in connection, not compliance.

Your insights and passions are essential to our collective work. I warmly invite you to attend our next membership meeting on Sept 20, 2025, 10 am-12 pm, where I’ll be offering a 1-hour CE course:

Move From Soothing to Somatic Harnessing: Encountering Deep Emotional Content as Fuel

This workshop will explore self-supervision practices for therapists that go beyond common mindfulness tools—supporting us to stay present, resourced, and responsive in emotionally charged times. Noticing a lot of “freeze” after sessions? Come learn ways to shift out of shutdown and into embodied action—harnessing what you feel rather than fighting it.

Whether you’re hoping to deepen your connection to your work or renew your inner resilience, I hope you’ll join us.

Thank you for the vital work you do and for being part of this vibrant community. I look forward to what we’ll create together in the year ahead.

With warmth and appreciation,

Glen Bradley, MA, LPC (DC), NCC
President, DC Mental Health Counselors Association 

contact.dcmhca@gmail.com | www.dcmhca.org

Image Credit: mural background credit: "The LOVE Mural" by Lisa Marie Thalhammer