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William Laughlin, MA (Ex officio)
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Renee Horst, MS, OTR/L
Renee brings a wide range of clinical experience to Mountain Valley, having worked across home health, outpatient, inpatient, and skilled nursing settings with individuals from infancy through older adulthood. Her background has given her a strong appreciation for developmental nuance, sensory attunement, and the importance of hands-on, experiential work.
Renee was drawn to Mountain Valley after discovering the position while preparing to return to New England. As she learned more about the program, she immediately recognized aspects of her own adolescence in the experiences of the young people we serve. Her history of intense anxiety, avoidance, and fear of judgment informs her deep empathy for residents and her belief in their capacity to build skills, confidence, and meaningful change.
Before becoming an occupational therapist, Renee worked in group home settings supporting older adults with complex behavioral histories who required continuous supervision. That early experience shaped her commitment to trauma-informed practice and her appreciation for environments that prioritize safety, structure, and warmth.
Outside of Mountain Valley, Renee loves reading—especially nonfiction—spending time outdoors, taking on home improvement projects, and being with family. She brings steadiness, creativity, and a grounded presence to the OT team and is grateful for the opportunity to support residents as they take brave steps toward growth. Renee lives in Lebanon, New Hampshire, with her husband and son.
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Olivia M. Peros, MA
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Keeleigh Mahler, MSW, LICSW
Keeleigh grew up in rural Michigan on a farm in a large family, where she developed an early appreciation for community, teamwork, and the value of pushing through difficult moments rather than avoiding them. A lifelong athlete with an energetic and deeply relational personality, Keeleigh brings warmth, humor, authenticity, and a strong sense of connection to her work with adolescents and young adults.
Keeleigh is passionate about helping young people build the confidence to face fear, discomfort, and uncertainty directly. Her clinical approach is grounded in strong therapeutic relationships, genuine human connection, and the belief that meaningful growth happens when young people feel both supported and challenged. Keeleigh is known for her ability to connect quickly and authentically with residents, balancing playfulness and humor with honesty, accountability, and deep care. She believes that trust, relatability, and showing up fully as a real person are essential parts of effective therapeutic work.
Keeleigh especially values the experiential and relationship-based nature of Mountain Valley’s approach, where staff work alongside residents in real time rather than limiting treatment to traditional office-based therapy. She appreciates the opportunity to help young people recognize that anxiety does not have to dictate the direction of their lives and that courage is often built through repeated practice in everyday moments.
One of Keeleigh’s favorite parts of Mountain Valley is the sense of community among the residents themselves. She loves how supportive, encouraging, and invested residents are in one another’s growth and how willing they are to face difficult challenges together. Keeleigh also appreciates the creativity, humor, and individuality the residents bring into the community each day, noting that their energy, insight, and ability to support both peers and staff create a uniquely meaningful environment.
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Sharon McCallie-Steller, MS, MHC
Sharon has lived in New England her whole life, most recently in Vermont, where she and her husband raised their four sons. Sharon attended the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams, MA receiving her BA in English Communications. Her career took her on a journey through many roles in various industries while focusing on raising her family. As her family grew older and began to set out on their own, Sharon began to feel the draw to change her career and focus her energy and talents on helping others. As an adult-learner Sharon received her Master of Science degree in Mental Health Counseling from Springfield College.
Sharon initially worked with adolescents in substance abuse treatment and then was an early member of the clinical team at Mountain Valley Treatment Center. For five years she worked extensively with adolescents with all types of Anxiety, OCD, and related disorders using Exposure Response Prevention therapy, Acceptance and Commitment therapy, CBT, and leading the Expressive Arts Therapy program. Much of her work at Mountain Valley included family therapy and parent coaching. Sharon later worked in an assessment program for boys in the foster care system, and most recently she worked as a therapist at a specialized boarding school for students who have struggled in more traditional settings, facing all different types of struggles.
Sharon’s unique combination of personal parenting experience, direct work with adolescents and their families in an assessment setting, residential treatment setting, and in a boarding school setting post-treatment, allows her to bring a special set of skills to her roles, as part of the Transition Planning Team at MVTC and as a Parent Coach and Program Director of the new Mountain Valley Transitions program.
Sharon believes there is a promise of possibility in every young person, no matter the challenges they face. Sharon believes that every parent that has the desire to be the best parent they can be and is capable of learning how to be the parent that their child needs. She has a passion for helping teens and families wade through the many barriers that can get in the way of reaching this possibility; helping them blaze their own path towards finding meaning, purpose and contentedness while discovering and following their passions; getting reconnected, re-engaged, and pulling in the same direction.
Contact Sharon to learn more about Mountain Valley Transitions.
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Chelsea McHugh, BSN, RN
Chelsea joined Mountain Valley Treatment Center in March of 2021. She brings with her seven years of LPN experience which includes pediatrics, obstetrics, and program coordination. In May of 2021 Chelsea graduated with her Associate’s Degree in Nursing from Vermont Tech and shortly thereafter passed the national board exam to become a licensed Registered Nurse. She has been inducted into both the Phi Theta Kappa international academic honors society and Sigma Theta Tau international honors society for nurses. Chelsea is currently finishing up her BSN degree while working full-time.
Chelsea loves the close knit feel the Mountain Valley program offers, both among staff and residents, and appreciates the unique staff members with diverse educational backgrounds and skillsets, and that everyone brings something unique to the table to support each other. Chelsea enjoys the beauty of campus, providing her with a sense of nostalgia, having grown up on a farm. She loves her role as Program Nurse because she gets to practice a wide range of nursing skills each day.
Chelsea is a Vermont native and grew up on a rural horse farm in Vermont. She appreciates the pastures that are just steps away from the health office at MVTC and has a love for creatures, big and small. She lives at the base of Ascutney Mountain in rural Vermont with her husband, Joe, their two fluffy cats, and a Siberian husky. In her free time, Chelsea enjoys snorkeling in the Caribbean, gardening, reading, and boating on local lakes with her husband.
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Matthew Pedersen, MA
Matt brings a background in school-based counseling, crisis response, and clinical mental health, shaped by years of work with adolescents in high-needs school and community settings across the country. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Human Development from Binghamton University, with concentrations in education and developmental psychology, and completed his master’s degree in School Counseling at Concordia University Chicago.
As a first-generation college graduate, Matt was drawn early to the helping professions and to work that supports young people’s social and emotional growth. He has worked in schools in Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas, Vermont, and Philadelphia, often in communities facing significant academic and mental health challenges. In Denver, Matt was part of a leadership team that helped turn around a struggling middle school, contributing to rapid improvements in school culture and student engagement.
Matt has extensive experience supporting adolescents with severe anxiety, school avoidance, and emotional dysregulation, including young people who struggle to leave home or engage in daily life. Prior to joining Mountain Valley, Matt worked in mobile crisis services, supporting individuals and families during periods of acute distress.
Matt is drawn to Mountain Valley’s values-based and experiential approach to care, informed by person-centered and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy principles. He is passionate about helping young people clarify what matters to them and build the courage to move toward meaningful lives. Matt and his wife live in Claremont, New Hampshire, and outside of work he enjoys spending time outdoors, including backpacking, skiing, hiking, and biking.
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Aric Eaglestone
With a love of food and cooking as a youngster, Aric enrolled at Culinary Institute of America where he received a degree in Culinary Arts. Aric worked at restaurants and resorts around Lake George, New York, and Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key, Florida. With the arrival of a newborn baby girl, Aric and his growing family moved back to New England. In New England, Aric worked at The Woodstock Inn & Resort, Blake Hill Preserves, and the Salt Hill Pubs.
Aric enjoys sharing his passion for food with others and cooking for a purpose. Mountain Valley is the perfect setting for both of these.
Aric is originally from Lake George, New York, and has settled in Weathersfield, Vermont with his wife Tara, daughters Anna and Abigail, and dog Hazel. They enjoy walks and hikes around Woodstock and Mt Ascutney, kayaking, swimming, cookouts, and Red Sox games. Aric’s hobbies include property and vehicle maintenance.
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Daniel Villiers, PhD
Dan Villiers completed his PhD in Counseling Psychology at Northeastern University in 2009. He also earned an MEd. in School and Applied Child Psychology from Kent State University and an MA in Cognitive Science from Dartmouth College. His academic journey began with a BA in Psychology, with a minor in Classics, from Kenyon College.
Originally from a small village in the Cotswolds, England, Dr. Villiers has lived in the US since attending The Thacher School in Ojai, California. His personal struggle with severe anxiety during high school sparked a deep commitment to developing innovative methods and programs to address the emerging epidemic of youth anxiety in the early 2000s. This dedication led him to co-found Mountain Valley Treatment Center in 2011 and the Anxiety Institute in 2016, both of which have become industry leaders in the residential and outpatient treatment of anxiety disorders, respectively. Over his 21-year career as a scholar-practitioner, Dr. Villiers has developed subspecialties in family-based exposure therapy for pervasive school avoidance and refusal, exposure/response prevention (E/RP) for treating OCD in both neurodiverse and neurotypical teens, and exploring the roles of perfectionism, avoidance, and self-sabotage in anxiety and mood disorders.
Dr. Villiers’s early career was profoundly influenced by his experience at Mountain Valley, where he witnessed the value of intensive treatment. This experience inspired him to create the first in-home intervention model for anxiety and OCD spectrum disorders. His return after eight years, now serving as an admissions and outreach consultant, marks a full-circle moment in his professional journey.
Dr. Villiers is based in South Carolina with his wife, Kate, an equestrian professional, and their two daughters, Bryn and Zara. He enjoys racquet sports, fishing, golf, and playing guitar and piano. Dan also enjoys vacationing in Naples, Florida, and visiting family in England, France, and Australia.