Melissa Handt, MSW, LICSW
Riverwood Healthcare Center is excited to welcome Melissa Handt, MSW, LICSW, as a behavioral health therapist to its Behavioral Health provider team. In her role, Handt will assess, diagnose, and provide psychotherapy to individuals aged 10 and older. Additionally, she can offer non-clinical licensing supervision and is working toward the qualifications to provide clinical licensing supervision.
Handt brings a wealth of experience to her position, having completed two practicum placements at Recovering Hope Treatment Center, where she later worked for over three years. Her professional background includes roles as a targeted case manager, adult rehabilitative mental health services worker, direct support professional, child protection social worker, and clinical therapist. She has worked in diverse settings, such as community behavioral health clinics, group homes, treatment centers, county social services, and acute psychiatric hospitals.
A Minnesota native, Handt graduated from Cambridge-Isanti High School before earning her bachelor’s degree in psychology from South Dakota State University and a master’s degree in social work from the University of New England.
“I strive to empower clients to take an active role in their therapeutic journey,” Handt says. “By helping them identify their strengths and using these as a foundation to build new skills, I provide client-centered services aimed at supporting their best possible life.”
Handt and her husband Kevin, an Aitkin High School graduate, reside in Malmo with their two young children. Their family also includes two dogs and a flock of chickens.