AFTNC Council

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California (LMFT #49616), and was previously licensed in Colorado. I am a Clinical Fellow of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and an AAMFT Approved Supervisor. My other professional affiliations include membership in the American Family Therapy Academy, an invitation-only professional association focused on systemic therapy and social justice; Gaylesta, the Bay Area association of GLBTQ professionals; and Bay Area Open Minds, a group of local psychotherapists affirming sexual & gender diversity. I have a private practice near Downtown Berkeley BART where I see individuals, couples, and families. I also supervise pre-licensure interns in my private practice.

After growing up in Berkeley, I went to Smith College and earned an MSW in 1988. I completed a Post-Masters Fellowship and a two year training in Marriage & Family Therapy at The Menninger Clinic, in Topeka Kansas; I worked on several in-patient and out-patient clinics at Menninger. I taught graduate level courses at the University of Kansas in Clinical Social Work. After returning to the Bay Area in 1997, I joined AFTNC because of my passion for family therapy. I enjoy working with children and families, and working in school and in-home settings. I currently have a private practice in Berkeley and focus on a range of problems using mostly Narrative Therapy and EMDR. I'm married and have a teenage daughter.

This position is currently available! If you have an interest in becoming part of the AFTNC Council, and experience in leadership roles, please contact president@aftnc.com.

Leticia Manzanares, MFT received her Masters in counseling with the emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of San Francisco. She joined AFTNC as a student member in 2009 and has served on the council as Co-Conference Coordinator. She has 14 years of non-profit work experience in the field of Chemical Dependency, Adult Trauma and mental heath. She specializes in addictions, adult trauma, life transition issues with depression and anxiety dirorders. She has recently transitioned out of non-profit agency work and currently maintains a private practice office in North Beach.

Multi-talented Jay Smith is currently filling the positions of Past President and Treasurer.

Sarah is a Psychologist in private practice in Berkeley and San Francisco. She specializes in alternative family systems, and work within the LGBT and multicultural communities. She is a senior consultant with Visions, Inc., a firm that offers services facilitating multicultural/diversity training, providing intervention/mediation around cross-cultural issues, and helping provide multicultural lenses for strategic planning. She was most recently the Coordinator of Senior Services for the Women's Therapy Center in Berkeley.

Bio coming soon.

Dr. Giammattei received his PhD from CSPP with a focus on family systems and LGBT populations. He joined AFTNC as a student member several years ago and has served on several committees over the years. He is currently the Coordinator of Training for the Rockway Institute and adjunct faculty at the California School of Professional Psychology. He specializes in affirmative therapy with sexual & gender minorities and the treatment of couples and families dealing with anxiety disorders, trauma, eating disorders, addictions, and infidelity. He maintains private practice offices in San Francisco and Santa Rosa.

As a lead counselor for a nationally recognized substance abuse treatment center, I developed an intense passion and strong alignment with family systems theory. I witnessed families heal together from a disease that causes significant relational damage. After I began my doctoral training, it only made sense that I accept an invitation to join the AFTNC. I have served as a board member since 2014, first as a student representative and now as a Member-at-Large. I coordinated a workshop for the association “Careers in Family Therapy,” where a panel of masters and doctoral level clinicians shared about their professional experience. It’s been a privilege to work with a diverse and impassioned group of dedicated people that appreciate the importance of social justice and multiculturalism. I am excited about my future as a licensed Doctor of Psychology and specializing in substance abuse treatment for individuals, couples, and families.

Golda Michelson, MFT has been treating adults, children, adolescents, couples and families for the past thirty-three years. She has a private practice in both San Rafael and San Francisco. With a background of training in bodywork, EMDR for trauma , and more traditional psychodynamic therapies, she utilizes an integrative approach providing brief and long-term therapy. Golda’s areas of specialty include family/couples therapy, supervision, ADHD with children and adults, trauma, child abuse, anxiety, depression, relationship problems, trauma (using EMDR), drug and/or alcohol abuse, grief and loss for adults and children.

Bio coming soon.

This position is available! For more information contact president@aftnc.com.

This position is available! Past President Jay Smith is currently handling all library requests.