About Dr. Dennis Stevens
Dr. Dennis Stevens, a veteran and Columbia University–trained artist/educator, is the founder of the Sempergeist Institute and author of The Sacred Descent of the Warrior. His current focus, Warrior’s Return, helps veterans heal through art, storytelling, and community.
I’m a U.S. Coast Guard veteran, visual artist, and author with a Doctor of Education in art and art education, the college teaching of art, from Columbia University’s Teachers College.
I am the author of Sacred Descent of the Warrior and the founder of the Sempergeist Institute, which currently operates as Conway Cultural Development Corporation. This nonprofit research and practice center is dedicated to healing through art, storytelling, and narrative exploration.
My current focus is Warrior’s Return, a visual storytelling platform I developed to enable veterans to transform their personal experience into meaningful digital artworks using structured storytelling and AI-powered creative tools.
Example Digital, Narrative Artworks by Dennis Stevens, Ed.D., created via Warrior's Return platform
About Sempergeist Institute
Sempergeist Institute (Conway Cultural Development Corporation, EIN: 47-5065116) uses creative placemaking to strengthen communities by translating frontier artificial intelligence (AI) into trauma-informed healing tools for veterans and service communities. Our platform Warrior's Return uses AI-powered storytelling and image generation to help those navigating PTSD, CPTSD, and moral injury transform internal experiences into visual narratives, processed in peer-facilitated cohorts.
We bridge Silicon Valley innovation and VSO/VA infrastructure, developing the field's first therapeutic AI protocols with HIPAA compliance, crisis integration, and evidence-based outcomes, making advanced creative technologies accessible through trusted veteran service channels.