Meet the Leadership Staff at The Body Image Therapy Center
Andrew Walen, LCSW-C, LICSW, CEDS – Founder, Executive Director
Andrew Walen is the founder and Executive Director of The Body Image Therapy Center in Maryland, and D.C. He is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist, psychotherapist, author, speaker, and advocate in the eating disorders field, with expertise in males with eating disorders.
Andrew is the immediate past-President of the National Association for Males with Eating Disorders (NAMED), which merged with the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) in November 2019. He currently serves as NEDA’s Senior Advisor on Males with Eating Disorders. He is also a past founding board member of the Binge Eating Disorder Association (BEDA). He has appeared on The Today Show, was featured in The New York Times, USA Today, Men’s Health, and many other national and local media outlets as an expert in the field of eating disorders and body image. In addition, he has authored numerous articles and presented workshops at national and international eating disorder conferences. His book Man Up to Eating Disorders, which is a memoir and self-help book directed at males with eating disorders, was published May 2014.
Andrew is a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Social Work in Nashville. He also graduated from the Berklee College of Music and is a published singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist who continues to write, record, and perform in the metro Baltimore and DC areas.
Dr. Veronica Franklin – Outpatient Clinical Director
Dr. Franklin brings over 20 years’ experience in the mental health field as an educator, advocate, therapist, and clinical leader. Her behavioral health career has come full circle from health and wellness through 20 years as a mental health provider. Her initial experiences were as a Kinesiology professor at University of Minnesota and at Texas A & M University. While teaching in academia, she developed a passion for overall wellness and the search to improve behavioral health on college campuses. Over the next 20 years, Dr. Franklin incorporated body-mind wellness into her academic counseling courses, in her spiritual workshops and by utilizing nutritional education in her practice. She has served as a program director in Rockville Maryland, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and has also served as a Fulbright scholar in Vienna, Austria. When she is not helping in the GBLTQIA community, she can be found volunteering as a PATH member for Maryland Therapeutic Riding Center.
Jane “Robie” McMillan, MS, RD – Nutrition Director
Robie has many years of experience participating in and leading multi-disciplinary departments that include doctors, dietitians, therapists, researchers, and other staff, at renown health facilities Walter Reed Hospital and Northern Virginia Mental Health Institute. After graduating from the University of Oklahoma, Robie was commissioned as an officer in the Army. She eventually earned a coveted nutrition internship at Walter Reed. She rose to become the Chief of Nutrition Therapy and Wellness Services, eventually becoming Director of Wellness Services. Robie is always seeking ways to build upon her dietetic acumen, and left Walter Reed to return to school and earned a Masters in Counseling from Marymount University, after which she spent 10 years as the lead dietitian for the Northern Virginia Mental Health Institute before finally joining The Body Image Therapy Center team. A retired Captain in the Army, Robie is fun-loving person. So, it comes as no surprise that during her free time her focus is spending time with family and friends, and occupying the back seat of a motorcycle!
Kim Machado - Outpatient Assistant Clinical Director, IOP Therapist, Baltimore Location
While Kim was born and raised in Maryland, she an internationally known as a classical musician. Before turning her sights to psychotherapy, she had performed in spaces such as Carnegie Hall, Ely Cathedral, The Kennedy Center, and Strathmore Hall. Now Kim is a psychotherapist at The Body Image Center who specializes in clients diagnosed with eating disorders, trauma and dissociative disorders. Her favorite quote from Alice in Wonderland specifically captures her therapeutic philosophy, “When you can’t look on the bright side, I will sit with you in the dark.” In her spare time she enjoys playing board games, travelling, and performing classical music.
Rendy Marican – Residential Clinical Co-Director
Rendy is a licensed therapist with years of experience working in eating disorders at the inpatient, day treatment and intensive outpatient levels of care. He received his Master of Arts in Sport and Performance Psychology from the University of Denver as well as additional studies in Oxford, England. Rendy has served in clinical leadership roles in various treatment programs and also created training curriculum for staff. A Denver resident, Rendy provides clinical training and operational expertise to Body Image’s new residential center. Along with his private practice, Rendy spends his free time with his family, friends, and in nature.
Elizabeth Mitchell – Operations Director
Elizabeth serves as both head of human resources and day to day operations of The Body Image Therapy Center. Prior to joining The Body Image Therapy Center, she worked in the medical billing field and ran a home daycare business. A Baltimore native, Elizabeth’s personal experience helping families struggling with mental illness led to her passion for this field of work. In her free time, Elizabeth enjoys gardening, attending concerts, and watching her son and daughter play lacrosse.
For more information, please give us a call at (877)-674-2843 or CLICK HERE to contact us.