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About Us
At Moringa Institute, we are committed to advancing neurodiversity-affirming education grounded in lived experience, ethical practice, and meaningful inclusion. Guided by the core principle of the disability and neurodiversity movements—“Nothing about us without us”—we ensure that our continuing education courses are developed with direct input from neurodivergent individuals.
Our programs intentionally integrate the voices of autistic and neurodivergent people as content collaborators, consultants, and instructors, bringing first-hand insight to topics such as assessment, diagnosis, mental health, trauma-informed care, and systems navigation. This approach strengthens clinical relevance, challenges outdated deficit-based models, and supports professionals in delivering care that is respectful, evidence-based, and aligned with contemporary neurodiversity frameworks.
As an organization dedicated to high-quality professional education, Moringa Institute partners with clinicians, educators, self-advocates, and families to offer continuing education for behavioral health professionals that reflects real-world complexity and ethical responsibility. Our mission is to equip professionals with practical tools, critical perspectives, and authentic understanding—so services for neurodivergent and disabled people are not only effective, but genuinely inclusive.
About Spectra Support Services & Moringa Institute
Our Program Goals
Advance Excellence in Dual Diagnosis Practice
The Moringa Institute’s continuing education programs are designed to advance excellence in psychological practice for individuals with co-occurring mental health conditions and developmental disabilities. Our mission is to equip behavioral health professionals—including post-doctoral psychologists—with advanced, evidence-informed knowledge and clinical competencies that address the complex diagnostic, systemic, and ethical dimensions of dual diagnosis care across the lifespan.
Improve Quality of Services for Individuals and Communities
A central goal of The Moringa Institute’s CE mission is to improve the quality, accessibility, and effectiveness of psychological services provided to individuals with developmental disabilities and co-occurring mental health needs. Our programs aim to enhance behavioral health professionals’ ability to deliver services that are ethical, person-centered, culturally responsive, and aligned with evidence-based and research-informed contemporary standards of care—ultimately benefiting individuals, families, and communities.
Strengthen Evidence-Based, Integrated Care
The Institute is committed to providing CE activities that promote the integration of mental health and developmental disability frameworks, grounded in current scientific evidence and best practices. Programs emphasize assessment, intervention, consultation, and systems-level approaches that reflect the evolving research base in dual diagnosis care and support behavioral health professionals in translating science into meaningful practice.
Promote Ethical, Inclusive, and Interdisciplinary Practice
The Institute’s mission emphasizes ethical decision-making and respect for diversity in all CE offerings. Programs address issues such as consent, capacity, risk, systemic inequities, and interdisciplinary collaboration, fostering behavioral health professionals' ability to work effectively within multidisciplinary teams while centering the rights, dignity, and strengths of individuals with dual diagnoses.
Build Specialized Competence Beyond Doctoral Training
Recognizing that dual diagnosis practice requires specialized competencies beyond foundational doctoral education, The Moringa Institute provides continuing education that supports advanced professional development. Programs are designed to deepen clinical judgment, interdisciplinary collaboration skills, and applied expertise for behavioral health professionals working in complex service systems, including healthcare, education, residential, and community-based settings. This approach involves supporting professionals in developing an integrated framework for treating dual diagnosis that includes but is not limited to adapted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), trauma-informed care, behavioral interventions, creative-arts interventions, mindfulness-based interventions, family systems approaches, and skills-based psychosocial rehabilitation models.
Our advisors
Meet our core team
All of our instructors are highly qualified professionals, widely acknowledged in their field.
Robert Naseef, PhD
Gary Champlin, PhD
Raquel Emdur, PsyD
Patricia Gonzalez, LPC,
MT-BC, NADD-CC
Maleita Olson, LCSW
NADD-CC
Robert Schmus, LCSW
Tim Olson, BS
Communication
Do you need any consultation about our courses?