The AutPlay Therapy Advisory Board is a body that provides non-binding strategic advice to the management and operations of AutPlay Therapy. The function of the advisory board is to offer assistance with anything from marketing to influencing the direction of programs. The AutPlay Therapy Advisory Board is composed of accomplished professionals in the fields of play therapy, neurodiversity, and mental health care as well as those with lived neurodivergent experience.
AutPlay Advisory Board Members
Dr. Robert Jason Grant is a Licensed Professional Counselor, National Certified Counselor, and Registered Play Therapist Supervisor™. Dr. Grant is the creator of AutPlay® Therapy – developed from his own Neurodivergent lived experience and over two decades of working with neurodivergent children and their families. Dr. Grant owns and operates the AutPlay Therapy Clinic located in Southwest Missouri. He is a multi-published author and international presenter. He is also a Board Member for the Association for Play Therapy.
Sophia Ansari is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, Registered Play Therapist™, international speaker, author, educator, and owner of the Let’s Play Therapy Institute. She is a leader in Positive Education who works with schools and organizations around the world to build safe, inclusive, and strengths-based educational settings. She also coordinates wellness programs for displaced refugees and immigrants in Chicago, IL. Sophia is known for her work in incorporating pop culture and video games in therapy through her numerous publications, Comic-Con panels, media appearances, and play therapy workshops.
Kyle Calderon is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in NY and NJ, a Certified AutPlay® Therapy Provider, and is on track to obtain the Registered Play Therapist™ credential. He currently works at a group practice known as Footprints to Feel Better. He obtained a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Fordham University, during which he completed his internship at YAI, providing advocacy for Autistic adults and education to the support staff. He utilizes his lived experience as an Autistic person along with his education to provide psychotherapy for individuals of all ages and families, with a focus on Neurodivergent and Transgender/Nonbinary individuals.
Audrey Gregan, Dip in Froebel Ed, Dip in Special Ed, Dip Child Development, Postgraduate Dip in Play Therapy, Clinical Supervisor, Cert in Sensory Integration. She is an accredited Play Therapist and Child Psychotherapist and clinical supervisor with 42 years’ experience of working with autistic and neurodivergent children, and their parents. Audrey is a practicing DIR®/Floortime™ practitioner who integrates sensory integration in her work, she is a Baby Bonding Licensed practitioner and Certified AutPlay® Therapy Provider.
Dr. Kevin B. Hull is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Registered Play Therapist™, and Certified Group Psychotherapist. Kevin has worked with neurodivergent children, adolescents, adults, and families for over two decades conducting both individual and group play therapy. Kevin owns and operates Hull and Associates, PA in Lakeland, Florida, is an Associate Faculty for Liberty University, and has authored several books, chapters, and articles on the topic of neurodiversity.
Carmen Jimenez-Pride is the creative mind behind Focus on Feelings® she is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Registered Play Therapist Supervisor™, Certified AutPlay® Therapy Provider, Certified EMDR Therapist, and Internal Family Systems Therapist. She is an international speaker and award-winning best-selling author. She is a visionary in the therapeutic community, working to create and develop a wide range of educational tools to assist the clinician, and the client to reach optimum goals. Carmen is the developer of Diversity in Play Therapy Inc., and the Diversity in Play Therapy Summit.
Jessica Kitchens is an Autistic private practice therapist and consultant in Fayetteville, AR. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Registered Play Therapist™, and Board Certified Cognitive Specialist. She holds a master’s in business administration and advocates for better inclusive practices and neurodiversity in business. She has a passion for providing neurodiversity-affirming therapy and works to train other therapists in her state on this topic.
Sarah Moran is a Neurodivergent therapist who specializes in working with medical trauma and neurodivergent children and their families. She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Registered Play Therapist™, Certified AutPlay® Therapy Provider, AAMFT approved supervisor candidate, and has authored several chapters on the topic of neurodiversity. Sarah is the Assistant Clinical Director at Olympia Therapy and co-creator of Playful Wisdom, a play-based online parenting program. She also holds the position of President-Elect on the WAAPT board.
Patricia Lomando is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified AutPlay® Therapy Provider, and Registered Play Therapist Supervisor™. She is the co-founder of Nurtured Hope, a private practice devoted to honoring neurodivergent-affirming practices across the life span. As a Neurodivergent therapist and mother currently raising an autistic tween, she has used both her lived and professional experiences over the last 20+years to modify mainstream therapeutic approaches into connection-focused practices that validate and empower rather than punish and shame. She has co-authored the “The Autism Compass,” an online parent coaching program in development to support parents in navigating the challenges of raising Autistic children and teens in a society centered around neurotypical standards. It is her lifelong mission to advocate for neurodivergence never being a barrier to celebrating the authentic self.
Dr. Jessica Stone is a licensed psychologist in the state of Colorado. She has served on a number of boards including the World Association for Sand Tray Professionals and the California branch of the Association for Play Therapy. Dr. Stone is an international speaker, clinical supervisor, and registered play therapist. She is the co-creator of The Virtual Sandtray, which has partnered with the Lowenfeld Trust, and is the developer of Digital Play Therapy™. Dr. Stone has been featured for her work throughout the virtual world as an innovator, ambassador of play, and stalwart advocate for the use of digital technology in the field of psychology.
Tyler Tooley is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Certified AutPlay® Therapy Provider, and is pursuing his Registered Play Therapist™ credential. Tyler identifies as Neurodivergent, and is the owner of Tooley Therapy in St. Louis, MO, where he specializes in working with people who are also neurodivergent (Autistic, ADHD, OCD, SPD, gifted, etc.). Tyler integrates AutPlay Therapy with Neurodivergent teenagers, young adults & adults, by utilizing technology including video and computer games, iPads, and virtual reality (VR) into his sessions. Tyler is the developer of Gaming Therapy™ and he is currently conducting research and developing training programs for other clinicians.