Kassie Straker
Adjunct Faculty
Art Therapy
Chicago
“The teacher is, of course, an artist, but being an artist does not mean that he or she can make the profile, can shape the students. What the educator does in teaching is to make it possible for the students to become themselves.”- Paulo Freire
OVERVIEW
Straker specializes in art therapy and substance abuse counseling, with a focus on neurodivergence, trauma, grief and loss, substance use concerns, and the LGBTQIA+/Queer community. A queer, neurodivergent clinician, they have provided therapeutic services since 2011 and have taught in Adler University’s Art Therapy Department since 2019.
Their teaching and practice are grounded in the neurodiversity paradigm, disability justice, trauma-informed care, cultural humility, and a commitment to decolonizing mental health care. Straker also provides outpatient services and clinical supervision through Creative Alchemy Counseling in Chicago.