Jessica Champion, LMFT

Jess has always been a curious observer, especially regarding people and relationships. At the age of 12, she knew she wanted to be someone who helped people navigate the complexities of life. When she was required to write a thesis paper for an International Baccalaureate program in high school, her teacher told her to start with a burning question. Hers essentially was: Where does resiliency come from? What influences how we “turn out” in life?

The high school paper turned into an undergraduate thesis at Clark Honors College, which informed her choice to pursue family therapy as a graduate course of study. She searched for the common thread in it all and arrived at some basic truths: childhood experiences shape the way we see the world, the way we relate to others and ourselves. Our families are the strongest early influence of our emotional health and well-being. They hold power to teach us that it’s okay to ask questions, set boundaries and speak truth.

Jess formally began her career more than 17 years ago as a therapist-in-training with a Structural Family Therapy framework. She found that lasting change was most likely to occur for a client when the entire family system is a part of the treatment. Teaching boundaries and communication, defining values, and modeling compassion and flexibility have yielded the most lasting changes for the families she has worked with. Jess believes that the greatest fulfillment and satisfaction in life comes from the alignment of ones actions and words with their core values. This is her definition of integrity and is something that she supports people in finding for themselves. In her work, she continues to emphasize an exploration of boundaries in all relationships throughout a client's family system.

Jess was a first-generation college student and holds a Bachelor of Art in Psychology from the University of Oregon Clark Honors College and a Master of Arts in Counseling, Psychology and Human Services with a specialization in Couples and Family Therapy from the University of Oregon, which is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) and approved by the state of Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists. She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), and is experienced in working with young and mature adults, couples, broader family systems and Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACOAs). She is also designated as an American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (AAMFT) Approved Supervisor.

Jess is an enrolled member of the Cherokee (Tsa-La-Gi) Nation. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family; camping, hiking, crafting and singing. She is the designated judge for her husband’s cooking, daughter’s baking, and son’s art, all of which she rates highly!