Philicia Ross, LCSW-C
Soul-cial Worker |Professional Space Holder|Facilitator| Community Builder|Advocate|
Hello, I'm Philicia Ross, LCSW-C, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, speaker, facilitator, and the founder of Village of Sound Mind.
My path to this work wasn't linear. I found healing long before I ever sat in a therapy office — in deep conversations at a beauty shop, in vulnerable moments shared between people navigating real life, in quiet pauses that nobody planned for. Those spaces taught me something I've never forgotten: healing isn't confined to therapy rooms. It lives wherever people feel truly seen, heard, and held without judgment.
That understanding is the foundation of everything I build. Over a decade in mental health and years of clinical practice have deepened my skills, but it's that original truth that shapes how I show up, whether I'm in a one-on-one session, on a stage, in a community circle, or at a legislative hearing.
I founded Village of Sound Mind to make that kind of healing accessible, culturally grounded, and real. Not just for individuals, but for organizations, communities, and the profession of Social Work itself.
How I Show Up
Speaking and Training: I bring trauma-informed, liberation-centered facilitation to conferences, universities, ERGs, and organizational teams. My workshops and keynotes are designed to move people, not just inform them.
Consulting & Facilitation: I partner with equity-focused organizations to build culturally-rooted wellness strategies that go beyond programming for optics. This is about sustainable, healing-centered change.
Coaching: Through the Aligned and Liberated Framework, I support individuals, particularly high-achieving Black and POC women, in moving from survival mode into lives rooted in alignment and authenticity.
Community & Learning: I curate curricula and digital products designed to help folx go deeper into their healing journey, moving beyond awareness into embodied, sustainable change. Past offerings have included Your Healing Arc, with more always in development. I also host Holding Space, a donation-based monthly affinity gathering for Black women, and co-host The Weight & the Wonder podcast with Dr. Jason Herndon.
Therapy: Trauma-informed talk therapy and EMDR for BIPOC and Queer individuals in Maryland and Virginia. My caseload is currently full.
My Approach: My work is grounded in a decolonized, liberation-centered framework that moves beyond Eurocentric healing models. I integrate trauma-informed care, EMDR, Narrative Therapy, somatic awareness, and — true to who I am — anime and storytelling as tools for exploring grief, identity, and healing. I meet folx where they are, and I trust them to know what they need.
Advocacy & Systems Change
Healing doesn't stop at the individual. As President of SWEAR (Social Workers for Equity and Anti-Racism), I lead organizational advocacy to dismantle systemic barriers within the Social Work profession and the broader mental health landscape. This includes legislative testimony, professional development, and building infrastructure for a more just and equitable field.
I believe Social Workers should be at the table as strategic leaders, not just crisis responders. That conviction runs through everything I do.
The Full Person
When I'm not working, you'll find me deep in anime, gaming, and storytelling, interests that aren't separate from my work but woven into it. As someone navigating life with three chronic illnesses, I don't just talk about rest as resistance. I practice it. My personal experiences shape my empathy and keep me grounded in what it actually means to heal in a body and a world that doesn't always make it easy.
Quote I Live By….
“Healing doesn’t mean the damage never existed. It means the damage no longer controls our lives.” Unknown
This quote captures my philosophy: empowering those I hold space for to regain control of their lives and move beyond to their true alignment.