Carla Spence, M.A.

Carla Spence received a Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology with emphasis in Marriage and Family Studies from the University of Colorado at Denver in 1995. From 1995 to 1997, she worked as a Home Based Intervention Specialist with at-risk youth and their families at The Community Network in Greene County, OH. She also provided services through the Emergency Services Unit to walk-in clients as well as mental health assessments at the local hospital and jail.

From 1998 to 2001, she worked for Adams County Department of Social Services on the Sexual Abuse Assessment and Treatment program as an intake worker. She conducted hundreds of forensic interviews with children regarding allegations of sexual abuse and interviewed alleged perpetrators and the parents of the children. In cases where sexual abuse was substantiated, she completed the work necessary for intervention by the court and was qualified as an expert witness in some of these cases.

After leaving Adams County Department of Social Services, she provided contract services to the Platte Valley Child Advocacy Center as a forensic interviewer and expert witness. She also briefly worked as a Colorado Child and Family Investigator.

In 2001, she began working with Dr. Brake conducting sex offense specific evaluations of adult and adolescent offenders. She is listed with the Colorado Sex Offender Management Board as an approved evaluator and treatment provider for juvenile and adult offenders.   In addition to working in Dr. Brake’s practice, she has conducted sex offense specific evaluations for the Colorado Department of Corrections Sex Offender Treatment and Monitoring Program (SOTMP).  She has provided training on the Sexually Violent Predator Assessment Screening Instrument to the SOTMP team.

From 2002 to 2005, Ms. Spence worked as a treatment provider at Teaching Humane Existence working with adult male sex offenders.

From 2005 to 2008, Ms. Spence was the Coordinator for the Circles of Accountability and Support program. The Circles program was a restorative justice initiative of the Colorado Department of Corrections.  The Circles program’s mission was to recruit volunteers from the community to provide circles for sex offenders returning to the community after treatment at Arrowhead Correctional Center in Canon City, CO.  Ms. Spence was responsible for recruiting, training, and supervising all volunteers in the Circles program.

In addition to working with Dr. Brake, Ms. Spence is currently the Clinical Team Director for Griffith Centers for Children in Larkspur, CO, a residential treatment center for adolescent boys who have committed sexual offenses. 

To view Ms. Spence’s complete vita,  click here (Adobe Acrobat required)