ATRA SoCal : 2026 Session Description

Betsy Kemeny, PhD, CTRS, FDRT is the chair of ATRA's Social Prescribing Task-Force, formed January 2026 by the ATRA BOD. She has been involved Social Prescribing USA leadership meetings for more than two years, with special involvement with the health professions meetings, as the RT representative. Betsy is the Program Director of the Recreational Therapy program at Slippery Rock University. She sees wide applicability of social prescribing to all areas of recreational therapy practice. Over the last 35 years as a CTRS, her work experiences have included outpatient rehabilitation, adult day, assisted living, hospice, and long-term care. Her scholarship includes more than 30 publications and 70 presentations. As Professor and Program Director of Recreational Therapy at Slippery Rock University, she is also a Fellow, Distinguished in Recreational Therapy. She currently serves as co-chair of the Scientific Advisory Council for Horses and Humans Research Foundation. Dr. Kemeny received her bachelor’s degree in Sociology at Wake Forest University, her master’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and her Ph.D. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. From 2014 to 2022, Dr. Kemeny has served on the board of directors for the American Therapeutic Recreation Association as Member at Large, Secretary, and President. She was the President of the National Academy of Recreational Therapists from 2022-2025.

DHA, CTRS, FDRT

Dr. Dawn De Vries is a Professor and Program Director of Recreational Therapy at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Dawn has over 30 years of experience as a clinician, director, advocate, and educator. Her background is in geriatrics, memory care and rehabilitation. She also serves as the Advocacy and Legislative Affairs Director for the American Therapeutic Recreation Association.

MS, CTRS, C-IAYT

Liz Creasman, MS, CTRS, C-IAYT is the Therapeutic Recreation Advisor at Sheltering Arms Institute in Richmond, Virginia. She is also Certified Yoga Therapist. As a member of the clinical science team at SAI, she provides guidance to the Therapeutic Recreation Specialists to implement evidenced based practices, program development, and knowledge translation. Her professional experience also includes the community setting and trauma informed care. She has held volunteer leadership roles at the YWCA of Richmond and The Visual Arts Center of Richmond. Liz holds a Master of Science from Maryland University of Integrative Health and a Bachelor of Science from Old Dominion University.

Kaitlin has practiced Recreational Therapy for 18 years in a variety of settings for both pediatrics and adults, including inpatient rehabilitation, acute care, inpatient mental health, outpatient specialty clinics, with experience in adaptive leisureCTRS

Kaitlin has practiced Recreational Therapy for 18 years in a variety of settings for both pediatrics and adults, including inpatient rehabilitation, acute care, inpatient mental health, outpatient specialty clinics, with experience in adaptive leisure skill training, aquatic therapy, adaptive fitness and adaptive leisure equipment. Kaitlin attended the University of North Carolina at Wilmington for her degree in Therapeutic Recreation. She remained at Shepherd Center following her internship and worked on the brain injury units before moving to Minnesota. For the past 14 years, she has worked in both inpatient and outpatient at Gillette Children’s and with the lifespan of ages. Kaitlin’s commitment to professional advancement is demonstrated with her 3-year service in the Presidency circuit of the Minnesota Therapeutic Recreation Association, as well as chair positions and task force leads, locally and nationally. Advocacy, professional promotion and patient success efforts through education have centered around a variety of topics ranging from state licensure, health care transition-to-adulthood and community reintegration strategies to name a few. She currently serves on the ATRA Social Prescribing Task Force.