Jennifer Berry, M.A., LPC-S, currently serves as Alsana’s Director of Alumni & Family Programs. She received a BS in Public Relations, Marketing, and Communications in 1993 and a MA in Community Mental Health in 2006 both from the University of North Alabama. She received an Alabama license as an LPC in 2009 and the added a supervisory certification, LPC-S, in 2016. In 2013, she became a Senior Mental Health Counselor focusing on eating disorder treatment including co-occurring disorders, assessment, body image and self-concept, and support groups. She also provided eating disorder specific psychoeducation programming and presentations for the University of North Alabama and the local community. Before joining Alsana in December 2021, she maintained a practice as an outpatient therapist also providing eating disorder treatment.

Leslee Marcom grew up in the Dallas area and attended Texas State University for her undergraduate degree. After obtaining her Bachelor’s, she entered directly into a doctoral program at the University of North Texas. She graduated from the University of North Texas with her PhD in Counseling Psychology in 2014. Leslee completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Children’s Medical Center, where she specialized in eating disorders and worked with patients and their families to effect change at the individual level as well as within the family system. She started working with Eating Recovery Center (ERC) in 2015 and has held many positions throughout her time there, both in direct care and leadership. Leslee became CEDS certified in 2018 and obtained her CEDS consultant certification in 2022. Currently, she is the Regional Clinical Director of the South Region at ERC and is involved with training within a multidisciplinary team, upholding clinical quality across the sites in Texas, and community education at both a local and national level.

Kirsten Nielsen is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) and Licensed Dietitian in Minnesota. She has worked in eating disorders since 2000 and at The Emily Program since 2003. She currently is the Director of Dietetic Internships and Recovery Support Services Director for Accanto Health. In these roles, she coordinates training experiences for dietetics interns across Accanto Health brands, Veritas Collaborative and The Emily Program and works to build and strengthen services within our organization to support clients and families as they move through treatment and recovery.

Kirsten received her bachelor’s degrees in Biology and Food, Nutrition and Dietetics at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota and graduated from the St. Mary’s/Mayo Clinic Dietetic Internship in Rochester, Minnesota. She has extensive experience working with clients of all ages, eating disorder diagnoses, and team management. She is particularly interested in partnering with her clients as they navigate their relationship with food and recovery and the role of yoga and embodiment as a part of the recovery journey.

Beth Ayn Stansfield, M.Ed. brings a unique skill set to her role as the National Family Advocate. She has worked with educators, students and families for over thirty-five years as an educator, behavioral specialist, counselor and administrator in education. In addition, she served as an adjunct faculty at Virginia Commonwealth University in their Department of Education. 

 

While supporting her daughter through recovery, Beth Ayn began on-going training in the field of eating disorders and mental health first aid. Attending national conferences, completing certifications, and receiving praise for her extensive knowledge of resources. Beth Ayn has accepted engagements: podcasts, radio, newspaper/periodical contributions, and in-person community events. 

 

Beth Ayn is the Founder/Director of Stay Strong Virginia, 501(c) providing resources across the Commonwealth of Virginia. On a national level, Beth Ayn holds the title of National Family Advocate for the Eating Recovery Center | Pathlight Mood & Anxiety Centers. In addition, she serves as the Educational Chair for the Richmond International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals Chapter, and she serves on the Advisory Council's Friends Group for the Virginia Treatment Center for Children.

Krista is The Director of Clinical Outreach Education and Brain-Based Therapy at Accanto Health. Clinically, she draws from a variety of methods including TBT-S, EMDR, cognitive behavioral therapy, FBT, and acceptance and commitment therapy and often incorporates the use of the creative process in conjunction with the more traditional therapeutic process. She earned her Master of Science from Fuller Theological Seminary, School of Psychology and her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in family and pediatrics from Azusa Pacific University. She trained at Harbor UCLA medical center and Loma Linda Children's Hospital in neuropsych. Away from work, Krista loves being a mom to her three boys, playing outside, going on adventures with her family, skiing, hiking, biking, and camping.

Dr. Nitsch completed medical school at Texas A&M School of Medicine and Residency and Chief Residency in internal medicine at The University of Colorado. She is board certified in internal medicine and works as a hospitalist at ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders at Denver Health.

Three-time Olympic medalist (bronze, silver and gold), 2023 World Champion, 21x World Cup winner (60 podiums), and 2021 and 2024 World Cup overall winner Jessie Diggins of Afton, Minnesota is one of the most dominant and successful cross country skiers in the world. Cementing herself as the most decorated American cross country skier in history, Jessie has taken the sport to a entirely new level.

Timing has always been a strength for the 2018 Olympic gold medalist—the upstart racer kicked off an international career in 2011 by snagging a spot on the World Championship team in Holmenkollen, then in 2013 she and teammate Kikkan Randall won the team sprint at the World Championships. It only went up from there, winning another World Champs medal in 2015, then the iconic Olympic gold at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic Winter Games. When asked what her "Top Memories" are, Jessie puts winning the Olympic gold medal with Kikkan Randall at the top, next to winning Olympic silver in the "toughest 30k skate of my life" and winning a bronze medal with Julia Kern at the 2023 World Championships, then winning the U.S.'s first-ever individual gold medal just days later in the 10k individual skate.

In a season marked with historic results, moments and victories, Diggins won the last race of the season in Falun, Sweden to take home the overall and distance FIS Cross Country World Cup Crystal Globes, cementing herself as the world’s most dominant cross country skier in the world in the 2023-24 season. Diggins has won the FIS Crystal Globe twice in her career, along with the distance globe - the only American to do so.

When she's not skiing, Jessie loves to be active in other ways like hiking, camping, running, swimming, gardening and cooking food from her tiny little garden - you can also always find her and her teammates making TikTok dances. She is heavily involved within the ski community and beyond and gives much of her spare time to causes she cares about. Jessie is a spokesperson for the Emily Program, and works with Protect Our Winters (POW) and Share Winter. "I want to leave the sport better than I found it by speaking up about mental health and eating disorders to de-stigmatize them, meaningfully engage in climate advocacy and give back to the sport through supporting the work of Share Winter.

Dr. Maryrose Bauschka completed medical school at Case Western Reserve University and Residency in Psychiatry at University of Utah. She is board certified in psychiatry. She previously worked at ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders at Denver Health but now works at ERC Chicago.

Dr. Manwaring completed her PhD in psychology from Washington University in St. Louis. She is an avid researcher of eating disorders with 15 publications and several ongoing projects. She works as a psychologist at ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders at Denver Health.