T I P T O E S

In 2024, California State University, Sacramento launched a Graduate Certificate in Play Therapy, making it:
● One of only three play therapy certificate programs to exist in the entire state
● The only public university and only CACREP-accredited counseling program in California to offer a play therapy certificate.

Sadly, the program ran for just one year before being cut due to CSU budget reductions. But the students who completed it, Cohort 1, were so deeply touched by its impact that they weren’t about to let it disappear.

In 2025, TIPTOES was founded by alumni to revive the certificate through fundraising and advocacy to make play therapy education accessible again. Our mission is to expand equitable access to children’s mental healthcare by growing the workforce of professionals trained in play therapy — a specialized, developmentally appropriate mental health intervention for children that is needed now more than ever.

Currently, the certificate is available only as a continuing education program for professionals with a master’s degree. TIPTOES aims to restore and expand access for graduate students, allowing them to take these courses alongside their M.S. Counseling coursework at no additional cost or time to graduate. This makes advanced training more accessible and helps close equity gaps in the counseling profession, especially for students from historically underrepresented and economically disadvantaged backgrounds.