Fourteen students completed the program in 2018. Learn more about some of this great group below!

Sarah is a third year doctoral student in Counseling Psychology at New Mexico State University with a minor in Spanish for Mental Health Professionals. Prior to starting her doctoral program, she worked as a counselor in Chicago serving largely Latino families involved in juvenile court and in a community health center. Sarah is interested in expanding the accessibility of mental health services for Spanish speaking communities. Her future goals involve training other mental health practitioners in providing culturally and linguistically appropriate service for the Latino community.

Mercedes is a licensed marriage and family therapist and current graduate student in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program at Palo Alto University.  She comes from a Mexican and Guatemalan background and was raised in South Central Los Angeles. She is keenly aware about the mental health disparities that exist in minority populations and has a genuine and deep desire to advocate for and improve the lives of ethnic minority and under-served populations, particularly Latinx youth and families. Her clinical interests include working with children and families, child trauma, parenting, culture, and social justice advocacy. Her research experience includes using community-based research methods to understand the trajectories of newcomer immigrant youth, complex trauma in immigrant populations, and risk and resilience factors among youth. Mercedes strives to be a culturally humble bilingual psychologist that provides services in underserved, low-income communities. PASEO provided her with the opportunity to continue to enhance her Spanish-speaking abilities to better serve the Latinx population

Allie is a 2nd year master’s student at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Social Work. She received a Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology and Minor in Hispanic Studies at Davidson College. Allie’s professional interests center around working with Latinx women and families. In the past, Allie has facilitated Spanish and English-language support groups for survivors of sexual violence and for loved ones of survivors. Upon her return to the U.S.A., Allie will begin working at the NC Women’s Hospital in their Center for Maternal and Infant Health. She hopes to continue working with this population and is excited to see where her path leads her! PASEO gave Allie the opportunity to improve her language abilities while also developing and enhancing her budding clinical skills.

Elisa DeVargas is a recent graduate of the University of Oregon. She completed her Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology with a specialization in Spanish Language Psychological Services and Research. Elisa has had a long-standing commitment to developing her Spanish language skills and providing culturally sensitive services to underserved populations. As an undergraduate, Elisa double majored in Psychology and Spanish and completed a study abroad program in Costa Rica at an intensive language immersion school. The summer after her first year of graduate school, Elisa also spent 8-weeks in Mexico conducting research with migrant children and learning about international data collection. To further develop her language and clinical skills in Spanish, Elisa participated in the PASEO program and completed her practicum at El Comedor during the summer of 2018. Elisa is currently completing her post-doctoral fellowship at the New Mexico Veteran Administration in the outpatient family therapy program. Her clinical interests include child and adolescent development, parent skills training, and family therapy. Her research interests include substance use prevention, treatment outcomes, and Latinx mental health.

Chris Senior is a Clinical Psychology doctoral student attending the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. His current research and clinical interests focus on resilience-based group interventions for children in schools. Chris is eager to take all he has learned through PASEO and apply it to his clinical work with the Latinx population in DC. His long-term goals involve improving mental health care services in the school setting. When not submerged in graduate school responsibilities, you can find him playing soccer, enjoying music, and exploring the outdoors. 

Shauna Weinstein is a licensed Clinical Psychologist working at Rikers Island Correctional Center in NYC; she provides therapy and psychological testing services to the adolescent and young adult (16-21 years old) incarcerated men and women. Shauna completed all of her doctoral training with underserved, minority populations, mostly in the city and state hospital systems in NYC. Shauna is primarily interested in treating and evaluating individuals with histories of trauma and consequential conduct- and personality-disordered sympomatology. Shauna has also published and presented research evaluating the relationships between trauma, mentalization, and personality disorders. Shauna is interested in improving her Spanish language ability to fluency, as well as learning about and gaining experience in competently serving LatinX populations, particularly because a large number of individuals in the NYC jail system identify as LatinX. Shauna attended PASEO in order to continue working toward these goals. Shauna was born and raised in Stanfordville, NY and has been living and working in NYC for the past 11 years; she received her doctorate from Long Island University - Brooklyn Campus. Shauna enjoys reading, cooking, outdoor adventures, and would like to get back to playing lacrosse

Anne is currently pursuing her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Marquette University. Her research and clinical interests focus on culturally sensitive strategies to mitigate Latinx mental health disparities, particularly among Latinx children with ADHD and their families. Participating in PASEO was an invaluable opportunity for her to gain a variety of training experiences and expand her clinical skills/vocabulary in Spanish. The program also sparked her interest in global mental health concerns and furthered her desire to continue to enhance her Spanish-speaking abilities to better serve the Latinx population. She looks forward to applying the knowledge and skills gained from PASEO to her clinical training in the U.S., and hopes to return to Huanchaco in the near future!

Nicole Kirsch is a licensed clinical psychologist currently working in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has over 10 years of experience in serving both clinically and culturally diverse clients. She specializes in psychological assessment and diagnosis related to developmental disabilities, most notably, Intellectual Disability and Autism Spectrum Disorder. Nicole has studied Spanish for three years and became interested in working with the Spanish language population clinically after years of observing the discrepancies of services provided to the Latinx population as it relates to developmental services.  While participating in the PASEO program, Nicole worked at the special education school, Tulio Herrera Leon, in an Autism specific classroom.