MaMHCA

05/09/2025

MaMHCA is excited to recognize our next Supervisor of the Month: Rob Lima, LMHC, PhD, RPT-S, MACCS

"I have been a professional counselor for over 20 years, and have experience working in schools, community behavioral health centers, universities, and group practice settings. As a supervisor, I meet you where you are to support your growth and development as a mental health counselor. I provide a safe, lively, and playful space for you to learn new skills and develop familiar ones, and to explore creative and playful approaches to counseling to meet the diverse needs of your clients.

I specialize in working with children, adolescents, and young adults who have experienced trauma, Play Therapy, and Expressive Arts Therapies. In addition to providing supervision for LMHC candidates, I am a Registered Play Therapist Supervisor and can supervise those who wish to become Registered Play Therapists through the Association for Play Therapy. I love counseling, supervision, play therapy, and teaching, and look forward to working with you!" -- Rob Lima

04/30/2025

MaMHCA is so excited to partner with the Red Sox again for the 2025 Mental Health Providers Night Out! This year will be bigger and better than ever as helpers from multiple fields will all join together at Fenway for a Celebration of Mental Health Providers! We invite you to network with other counselors, therapists, and social workers as well as graduate students in those programs to enjoy a well-deserved evening of fun as we raise money for our scholarship funds! We hope to see you there! MaMHCA has 100 tickets available until May 28th. NASW - MA Chapter, New England Association for Family and Systemic Therapy, and the Massachusetts School Counselors Association will all be selling tickets as well! Buy your tickets today:

7/7/25 @ 7:10 PM - Massachusetts Mental Health Counselors Association

04/16/2025

The legislative session is now in full swing. Committee assignments have been finalized, and hearings are already underway on key issues affecting our communities. As bills are introduced and begin moving through the legislative process, it’s more important than ever to stay informed and engaged.

We will be posting updates on our website, www.mamhca.org as they become available, including bill summaries, hearing schedules, and calls to action. Be sure to check back regularly to stay in the loop.

In the meantime, here are a few ways you can stay engaged:

Contact Your Legislators: Reach out to your state representatives and senators to share your perspective. Personal stories and thoughtful messages can have a real impact.

If you need assistance finding your legislator, please visit here: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator
Track Legislation: Use your state legislature’s official website to follow bills and committee agendas.

Register for MyLegislature by going here: https://malegislature.gov for more information, follow our guide on our website
Watch or Attend Hearings: Many hearings are streamed online or open to the public. Observing these sessions can give you valuable insight into the process and priorities.

Join Our Alerts List: Become a member and get access to our full newsletter or advocacy alerts to receive timely updates and opportunities to take action.

Your voice matters. Whether you're new to advocacy or a seasoned policy watcher, now is the time to stay involved and speak up.

For more resources and to follow legislative developments, visit www.mamhca.org

04/10/2025

MaMHCA is proud of the dedication many of our members have made to give more to the profession. In recognition of this dedication, MaMHCA is pleased to recognize our first Supervisor of the Month: B. Quinn Hayes, LMHC, NCC, MACCS.

"My supervision style is similar to my clinical style: flexible, direct, challenging yet supportive. My nature is to generally be a bit more casual and informal in my presentation. Luckily, I’ve found that it helps clients and supervisees feel safe to explore as the roles are set a little further to the side. I encourage my supervisees to trust their guts, “say the thing”, and practice self-compassion. I want them to carve their clinical niche but challenge them to remain open to clinical populations and experiences outside of their identified lane.

Ten years into my career and I still don’t know that I have a specific specialization. I kind of like being a bit of a “Jack of All Trades.” That said, I have significant experience working with trauma and I am EMDR trained. I’ve also grown to enjoy grief work over the last few years. Lastly, my own experience with ADHD has helped me to assist others with their own ADHD and executive functioning journeys." -- B. Quinn Hayes

03/19/2025

In honor of Women’s History Month, MaMHCA recognizes the contributions of two significant members to our organizational history and the field of mental health counseling in Massachusetts. Berna Haberman, founder and LMHC 1, and Midge Williams, our first executive director.

Berna Haberman, founder of MaMHCA and holder of the first license LMHC 1, still works with MaMHCA in a consultant capacity. She is pictured pictured with Governor Dukakis signing the LMHC license bill into law in 1987. She will receive her license LMHC 1 in 1991.

Midge Williams, MaMHCA’s first Executive Director, served in this role for over 30 years. She is still actively working with MaMHCA as Emeritus Executive Director. Midge Williams is pictured at the Vendorship victory party, mandated 3rd party payment, on Beacon Hill following the passage of S1940 in 1996.

03/05/2025

Join MaMHCA on April 8th as we fundraise with Panera! Use code FUND4U for mobile or kiosk in-cafe or show this poster to your cashier. Participating location is 120 Highland Avenue in Needham.

02/26/2025

Come join us on Friday, March 14nd from 9:00AM to 2:00PM for networking, LMHC news, community, and education! This year's sessions include a focus on a student hour, with internship FAQs and scholarship program highlights, legislation and advocacy updates, and the diversity, equity, and inclusion committee. Bring questions for your MaMHCA team! Registration is free:

10:00am-10:30am: Advocacy and MaMHCA Hosted by Midge Williams, LMHC, MACCS and with Joe Weeks, LMHC, MACCS Outgoing and Incoming Executive Directors

02/06/2025

Legislative update:

MaMHCA has filed 3 pieces of legislation.

SD2089 An Act Establishing a Board of Registration of Licensed Mental Health Counselors (https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/SD2089). This is also being worked to get a late filing from a representative. As of now we have freshman representatives Badger and Sweezey working on getting a late filing done.

Rep. LaNatra and Sen. Brady both sponsored 2 additional pieces of legislation. HD1465/SD471 An Act to Further Advance Behavioral Workforce Development (https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/HD1465) and HD1470/SD472 An Act Expanding Access to Mental Health Services and Strengthening Risk Assessment Protocols.

In addition, our Public Policy and Legislative Director, Joe Weeks, is working with Rep. LaNatra's office to ensure the board moves forward with it's mandates to rollout the LSMHC, MaCCS, and to appoint the additional LMHC board members as directed in the 2022 legislation.

The docket numbers will change to bill numbers in the coming weeks. Sometimes this can be confusing as the numbers will change in their entirety once committees have been assigned and bills moved accordingly to those committees. The committee assignments and bill distributions will be happening within the next two weeks so stay tuned.

For now, you can contact your legislators and ask them to cosponsor the bills above.

12/03/2024

It's Giving Tuesday, help MaMHCA raise funds for the Haberman-Williams Scholarship Fund with pals socks! https://palssocks.rallyup.com/mamhcascholarship
We have raised 125% of our original $1,150 goal towards scholarship funds! With this momentum, let's work towards funding a full Haberman-Williams Scholarship ($2,000) for one deserving graduate student next year.
Please share this fundraiser with friends and family. For every pair sold we raise $5 towards the Haberman-Williams Scholarship. Every order helps!

10/23/2024

Help us raise money for the MaMHCA Scholarship Fund with pals socks! https://palssocks.rallyup.com/mamhcascholarship/Campaign/Details

These funds will reward a MaMHCA member currently in graduate school who exemplifies the ideal mental health counseling graduate student as demonstrated by academic performance and commitment to the counseling field.

In this season so many of us are purchasing gifts for our loved ones. Pals Socks make a fantastic gift! When you purchase a pair of Pals for someone, not only will you be sure you've gotten a gift that they'll love, you can also feel great about giving back to support the counselors of the future!

Please share this fundraiser with friends and family. For every pair sold we raise $5 towards the Haberman-Williams Scholarship. Every order helps!

10/05/2024

The 2024 38th MaMHCA Conference is a big success.