South Carolina Association of Art Therapists
Chapter of the American Art Therapy Association
Mission StatementSouth Carolina Association of Art Therapists (SCAAT) is an inclusive professional community for art therapists, students, and supporters who are working to promote diversity and the advancement of art therapy as a profession. SCAAT pledges to pursue the highest ethical practice, advocate for legislature, and create ongoing professional development and educational opportunities across the state of South Carolina.
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"During our HeArts Mend Hearts project spearheaded by Diane Vincent [SC Art Therapist] I witnessed folks from all walks of life sharing their hearts, tears, and love with strangers - it was a beautiful canvas in real life!"
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“Art therapy has given me peace of mind. I love our Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday sessions. Sometimes I could be in a really bad mood then I’ll realize I have art therapy with Katie [SC Art Therapist] and my whole mood changes. When I do color, I put my all into those paintings.”
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SC Art Therapist Spotlight
Dianne Vincent, MAT, ATR-BC
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Dianne has been creating art since the age of twelve. She graduated with a degree in nursing at age nineteen, and while working working at Medical University of South Carolina, she quickly realized nursing was not for her. She went to the College of Charleston to receive her degree in art and then to University of South Carolina for a masters in art education. She fulfilled her requirements to become a registered art therapist through the American Art Therapy Association by completing graduate art therapy work through the University of Oklahoma and later became Board Certified. She worked two years at Fenwick Hall Hospital (a psychiatric substance abuse hospital) and has sixteen years in private practice. While working with The ArtReach Foundation, an organization that treats trauma from natural disaster or war, she served twice both in Bosnia and Haiti. She is the director of HeArts Mend Hearts, a non profit created after the Mother Emanuel Church shooting to provide free art therapy for the Charleston community for six months after the massacre. She promotes art therapy through workshops given to the public and to mental health professionals for CEU’s throughout the Southeastern US and Australia. She focuses on how the arts help heal those who have suffered trauma. She is a certified art teacher and has been teaching art since age nineteen privately and in public schools . She has owned and operated Art Connects Art School for over twenty years. Her oil and pastel paintings have been in galleries and one person shows.
“I am still surprised and delighted every time I see new images from my clients. The unconscious, using the power of metaphor, allows my clients to speak no matter what their age or ethnicity. I love working with anyone, but especially like working with depression, anxiety and the victims of trauma anxiety. I continue to learn from each and every one of them!” “I am excited about the new leadership for our state organization. These dedicated professionals are working tirelessly for our state licensure. I am proud to be a member of this movement! As one of the first art therapists in Charleston, I can say how gratifying it is that word is finally getting out about our profession. With licensure, everyone who needs help can have access to art therapy.” |
SCAAT Board Members
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PresidentMia Ulmer, MS, LPC, ATR-BC is Licensed Professional Counselor and Board-Certified Art Therapist from Orangeburg, SC. Mia works as a Clinical Therapist at LifeStance Health, Inc. and Adjunct Professor in Claflin University’s Art Department. Before joining LifeStance, Mia spent six months in Burlington, VT working in adult inpatient psychiatry as a Travel Art Therapist at The University of Vermont Medical Center. Mia earned her MS in Art Therapy from The Florida State University August 2017, and BA in studio art and psychology from Claflin University May 2015. Mia has extensive experience counseling youth, adolescents, adults, geriatrics, veterans, and homeless individuals with a variety of mental health disorders in PHP and IOP level of care, outpatient private practice, residential facilities, shelters and temporary housing, and community development centers.
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President-Elect and Community DirectorCourtney Chandler, ATR-BC, LPC, AADC, E-RYT is a Board-Certified Registered Art Therapist, Licensed Professional Counselor, Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor, and trauma-informed Yoga Teacher. She earned her Master of Arts in Art Therapy with an emphasis in Clinical Counseling from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College. She has worked in a variety of mental health and community-based settings over the past 10 years, including substance use treatment centers, Children’s hospitals, foster care, and juvenile detention facilities. Courtney is the founder of HeARTS for Hope Therapy in Greenville, SC, where she currently works in private practice supporting teens and women. She integrates art therapy with mindfulness and somatic therapy techniques to offer a mind-body approach to support her clients’ growth through anxiety, depression, trauma, and grief.
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SecretaryAshton Sullivan, MS, ATR, LPC is a licensed professional counselor and registered art therapist from Beaufort, SC. She received her Master’s degree in art therapy and counseling from Eastern Virginia Medical school in 2012. Ashton is the owner of Emerge Counseling & Art Therapy in Beaufort, SC where she specializes in treating adults who have experienced trauma or life transitions. She enjoys integrating art therapy with evidence-based treatments including EMDR and DBT to help her clients process difficult emotions while developing coping skills to decrease self-destructive behaviors and build a life worth living. She is most passionate about working with first responders and helping them to overcome the challenges they experience as a result of serving the community at large. She is a provisional member of the Junior Service League of Beaufort and looks forward to creating additional opportunities for connection and healing across the state of South Carolina.
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TreasurerKatie Hinson, MPS, LCAT, ATR-BC is a board-certified art therapist and founder of the Arts in Healing Department at MUSC Health. She holds an undergraduate degree in art and psychology from the College of Charleston and her Master’s from the School of Visuals Arts’ MPS Art Therapy Program in New York. She has over 12 years of experience working with a variety of populations in diverse settings including schools, outpatient clinics, hospitals and various non-profits serving adults and children who have experienced trauma. Before returning to her hometown in Charleston, Katie spent three years working at Rikers Island utilizing art as a healing tool with the incarcerated.
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