Dr. Dee C. Ray is a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor, Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor^TM, Certified Child-Centered Play Therapy Trainer/Supervisor, Certified Child-Parent Relationship Therapy Trainer/Supervisor, and National Certified Counselor. Dee teaches at University of North Texas as a Distinguished Teaching Professor, Elaine Millikan Mathes Professor in Early Childhood Education, and Director of the Center for Play Therapy. Dee has been a counselor for over 30 years and play therapist for over 25 years. In her role at UNT, Dee served as a counseling clinic director for 16 years and now oversees the play therapy school outreach program.

She has been fortunate to have been professionally recognized as American Counseling Association Fellow, recipient of the American Counseling Association Don Dinkmeyer Social Interest Award, Association for Humanistic Counseling Educator Award, Association for Play Therapy Outstanding Research Award, Top 25 Women Professors in Texas Award, and many others.

Dee is author of over 120 peer-reviewed publications and multiple books including A Therapist’s Guide to Development: The Extraordinarily Normal Years, Advanced Play Therapy: Essential Conditions, Knowledge, and Skills for Child Practice, and co-author of Multicultural Play Therapy: Making the Most of Cultural Opportunities, Group Play Therapy and Child Centered Play Therapy Research. She is a founding board member and past president of the Association for Child and Adolescent Counseling, as well as current board member of the Association for Play Therapy. She is founding editor of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling and former editor of the International Journal of Play Therapy.

Because of her love for play therapy, Dee has worked throughout her career to study and explore the effectiveness and change components of play therapy. She believes in a strength-based approach to working with children. She is also a proponent of evidence-based practice and authored the protocol for evidence-based Child Centered Play Therapy.

On the personal side, Dee and her husband have lived in Highland Village for close to 20 years. She raised her two sons who attended schools in Lewisville Independent School District and are now busy pursuing their professional interests across the country. When not in Texas, you will find her hiking in the mountains of New Mexico, her favorite place outside of home.

Dee’s Counseling Approach

I practice from a person-centered, developmentally-informed counseling approach across the lifespan. I believe that humans strive to do their best for themselves and others, yet sometimes get lost along the way. Often, we get confused by the complications and events of living life. Often, we struggle to access the skills we need to make decisions that benefit ourselves and others. And often, it is through our relationships that we find our way. Counseling provides an opportunity for a person to work through these complex questions and tough times within a relationship of safety, nurturance, and understanding. I seek to facilitate development of clients, young and old, by providing a deep understanding of clients, communicating empathy, and providing conditions for insight and action.