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Omar González-Valentino, PhD, LMFT, LPCC Candidate for Clinical Director-At-Large, CAMFT Board of Directors (2026–2027)
The work Marriage and Family Therapists do in California is broader and more vital than ever. While the public often pictures MFTs in a private practice office, many of our clinicians begin their careers and build their expertise in places rarely highlighted. The valuable work of MFTs occurs in crisis units, community mental health centers, schools, hospitals, shelters, residential programs, and other integrated care settings. I am running for Clinical Director-At-Large because I believe CAMFT must continue expanding the vision of what it means to be a Marriage and Family Therapist in California to ensure every MFT sees themselves reflected, supported, and valued by this professional association.
I currently serve as a Program Administrator overseeing operations at a crisis residential treatment facility, an Adjunct Professor at a state university, a private practice owner, and a long-standing CAMFT leader at both the Chapter and State levels, including Past Chair of the CAMFT Chapter Advisory Council and multiple leadership roles with the Board of the Inland Empire Chapter. My professional pathway has taken me through nearly every layer of our field from in-home and school-based ABA, inpatient psychiatry, community mental health, and private practice, to administrative leadership in the non-profit and corporate sectors. I understand firsthand how differently MFTs must navigate licensure, supervision, professional development, and compensation depending on where they serve. If elected, I will bring this breadth of experience to the Board to ensure our strategies and advocacy efforts uplift all members, not only those on conventional pathways.
My platform aligns closely with CAMFT’s Strategic Priorities for 2025–2027. I support the development of a comprehensive Resource Hub that helps clinicians grow strong, sustainable careers that are equally accessible to practitioners in private practice, agencies, and integrated healthcare. I will champion CAMFT’s work on ethical, responsible technology integration with artificial intelligence, ensuring that technological progress never replaces human-centered care nor widens inequities among clinicians or the communities we serve. And I am committed to strategic advocacy efforts focused on portability, compensation, and reductions of the financial barriers that limit entry into our profession.
A strong Board must reflect diversity in all its forms, including diversity of expertise, experience, setting, training, and practice. I am committed to bringing a DEI lens that expands beyond identity and heritage to include the practical diversity of where and how MFTs serve throughout California.
It would be an honor to serve as your Clinical Director-At-Large and to continue advocating for a CAMFT that recognizes, celebrates, and supports the full spectrum of Marriage and Family Therapy practice in our state. I respectfully ask for your vote.
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