Meet the Staff
The UCC is a united and compassionate team dedicated to social justice, equality, and inclusion. Our doors are open to serve and affirm students of color and students with minoritized identities. Every UCC staff member takes pride in providing a validating and safe space for all of our students who may experience discrimination, prejudice, or violence as a result of white supremacy and additional systems of oppression. Our UCC providers engage in regular staff-wide trainings, educational opportunities, personal introspection, and professional development to increase our cultural humility and advocacy on behalf of the Vanderbilt student community. We are here for you. We welcome you. You are valued.
Clinical Staff
Vanessa Bell, Ph.D., HSP
Psychologist
I support students by providing psychological assessments to better understand various factors that may be adversely impacting their academic, emotional, social, and/or other areas of functioning. Working together, we will collect important pieces of the diagnostic puzzle and identify the most appropriate diagnoses, treatment recommendations, and supportive resources.
Heather Boyd, LCSW
Therapist
I believe that life is all about balance, in therapy that means balancing acceptance with change. I provide a safe environment for my clients to fully accept themselves while identifying parts of their lives they would like to change.
Mary Clare Champion, Ph.D., HSP
Psychologist
My goal as a therapist is to meet students from all programs and identities and support them in their time at Vanderbilt, creating a safe space together in which to determine strategies to help navigate stressors and challenges that may have interfered with them succeeding in their academic or personal lives.
Nalini Conner, Ph.D., HSP
Psychologist
“It’s okay to feel what you feel- it’s what you do with those feelings that is the most important.” I believe that therapy is a space to learn how to better understand your emotions, what may be contributing to them, and how to respond to them. My goal is to provide a safe, collaborative space for all clients where they can learn the individualized tools they need to help them navigate through any difficulties.
LaToya Favre, Ph.D.
Psychologist
I feel honored to work with Vanderbilt students and to hear the experiences that bring them into therapy. Students that I work with will most often hear me say “You are the expert of you;” I say this out of my aim to work collaboratively with students and to help them remain empowered during their journey to healing. I am committed to social justice and inclusivity and invite students to discuss how systemic issues have intersected with their various identities and impacted their wellbeing.
Viviana Grice, LPC
Therapist
I strive to offer students a safe and confidential space where they are invited to a journey of self-exploration and growth. I work in collaboration with my clients toward unveiling and ending the cycle of self-defeating behaviors that have been barriers to reaching their full potential.
Heather Hemmeger, PharmD, MSN, PMHNP-BC
Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
My approach to patient care is evidence-based, holistic, and informed only by a genuine understanding of your unique story and lived experience. As a patient advocate, I value your voice and will work collaboratively to develop a treatment plan that best optimizes your overall health, happiness, and mind-body synchronicity.
Ruth Howard, Ph.D., HSP
Psychologist
I strive to provide a warm, affirming, and safe space for students to reflect on their concerns, identities, and experiences with openness and compassion. I believe that trust is built through feeling heard, understood, and valued and that it is through these nurturing connections with others that we develop new ways of understanding ourselves as well as more creative ways of coping with the inherent stressors of life. I am humbled by the strength, resilience, and perseverance of the students at Vanderbilt, and it is a privilege to support them as they work to reach their goals.
Adriana Kipper-Smith, Ph.D., HSP
Associate Director for Clinical Services
My approach to psychotherapy is integrative and it is an amalgam of my training and experience working as a clinical psychologist in South America and in the U.S. I love having genuine and courageous conversations that spark curiosity and connectedness while helping students develop more resilience and insight into their lives. As a white Latina, cisgender female, I am committed to using my privilege and power to promote equality and justice.
Kim Koon, LPC-MHSP
Therapist
My goal as a therapist is to create a trusting, safe and collaborative therapeutic relationship with clients of all backgrounds and identities. Together, we will examine areas in which you may be struggling, and work to enhance skills to help you better cope.
Kierra Landrum, LPC-MHSP
Therapist
It is my goal to provide an affirming space that welcomes all individuals from every walk of life. I work collaboratively with all of my clients to provide insight on areas of growth to ensure that they are living a life that promotes wholeness. I facilitate healing and self-exploration through replacing destructive thoughts and behaviors with love and acceptance. I am always inspired by each of my client’s resiliency, willingness to be vulnerable and embracement of their unique qualities.
Peg Leonard-Martin, M.Div., LCSW
Therapist
No matter who you are or where you came from, I will create a safe space for you to tell your story. I will work with you so that can you learn new skills to cope with whatever issue you bring and respectfully explore how to carry your story forward in a way that represents your integrity and authentic self.
Jaylen Lindsey, M.Ed.
Therapist
My goal as a therapist is to create a safe, welcoming, and therapeutic environment for all clients. I enjoy working with students, helping them navigate adversity, and equipping them to use what they have learned, in alignment with their core values. As an African American male, I am committed to promoting diversity and inclusion.
Matias Massaro, PMHNP-BC
Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
My goal is to provide a safe and welcoming environment to build genuine partnerships with patients while working together to determine and address therapeutic objectives. I appreciate and find inspiration in the uniqueness of each patient and aim to honor my patients’ authenticity. I provide evidence-based care and develop treatment plans that will address their mental, physical, and spiritual needs.
Amira Mohamad, LPC-MHSP
Therapist
It’s a privilege to be asked to enter the most vulnerable spaces with clients. As a Kurdish-American who resettled in the U.S. as a refugee, I prioritize recognizing the intersectional identities of each client in order to create a safe space where they can exist authentically. My hope is to continue playing a role in improving access to mental health services in the minority communities. I aim for a curiosity-oriented approach with my clients to help develop skills of self-observation and exploration.
Frances Niarhos, Ph.D., HSP
Associate Director for Training
I enjoy helping young adults identify potential barriers to their academic success using well-established measure of cognitive, academic and mental health functioning. I also have a passion for teaching and mentoring trainees across all mental health disciplines as they prepare for professional roles as psychologists, clinical social workers and professional counselors.
Brian Pollock, DNP, PMHNP-BC
Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
My goal is to assist students by being authentically present and developing helping-trusting relationships.
Melissa Porter, Psy.D., HSP
Assistant Director for Clinical Operations
My goal is to provide a space where I can provide support and guidance on working through the various challenges that life brings, where a student can feel heard, validated, and challenged while making decisions that best fit their life.
Bhupendra Rajpura, M.D.
Psychiatrist
My approach to your care is to understand your concerns and help develop a plan of that is “YOU”-centric and encompasses most recent treatment guidelines within a holistic approach. I believe in working with you to achieve outcomes resulting in a healthy body and healthy mind.
Ciera Scott, Ph.D., HSP
Assistant Director for Community Engagement
While honoring your unique identities, I collaborate with clients in exploring how your background may impact your current thought patterns, your self-esteem, your mood, and how you experience your present relationships.
Kyle Shadrick, LMSW
Therapist
I enjoy assisting people in learning how to better navigate their stressors and difficulties in life by helping them to better understand their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. I also find great value in incorporating elements of mindfulness into therapy. My most forefront passion is working with LGBTQIA+ communities.
Tamaki Silver, Psy.D.
Psychologist
My goal is to create a space in which students can feel comfortable discussing challenging experiences and relationships, build resilience and learn how to cope, and develop their own individual identity. I hope to make this a collaborative experience, one where we can engage in problem solving and exploration around all aspects of personal and professional development, while also sharing in some laughter.
Stephanie Singer, M.Ed.
Therapist
As a therapist, I try to create a welcoming space for you to feel comfortable and safe exploring areas in your life that need support. I believe in the importance of allowing yourself to be vulnerable, working towards life balance, and creating boundaries with yourself and others. I hope to help you navigate these areas through a collaborative and unique approach, catered to your needs. My goal is to help you gain the confidence, skills, and tools to continue this growth.
Todd Weinman, Psy.D., HSP
Director
All of us get stuck at different points in our lives and I believe counseling can be an important vehicle for helping us get unstuck and reaching our full potential. I really enjoy working as a psychologist within a diverse college community and come from a flexible, integrative, collaborative and culturally responsive perspective designed to help you build on your unique strengths and skills as you continue your journey as a student and beyond.
Sarah Jordan Welch-Moore, LMSW
Therapist
My goal when working with clients is to help them navigate the challenges that come from their experiences of trauma. As a systematic practitioner, I work with clients to recognize the ways their unique identities are essential in understanding their experiences and relationships, and this must be honored in the therapy room. I hope to foster autonomy and growth through the therapeutic process, and believe everyone is deserving of dignity and respect. Through a trauma-informed lens, I work to support students in their work towards healing, and realizing their own resilience.
Courtney Williams, Ph.D., HSP
Psychologist
Consistent with both my professional and personal identity, I find that my relationships are an integral part of my identity. My relationships help me better understand myself, others, and various aspects of my life. In the same way, my clients make sense of the world through their relationships, often finding that the challenges they confront are related to relational variables. In my work with diverse populations, one theme remained consistent-the desire to connect-to others, to feelings, to self. As such, my role as your therapist is to co-facilitate a therapeutic process that fosters that connection.
Zsanett Williams, PMHNP-BC
Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
My approach to patient care is founded on developing a deep understanding of patients’ stories to provide a therapeutic environment that is culturally sensitive, inclusive, and celebrates all forms of diversity
Anabella Pavón Wilson, Ph.D., HSP
Psychologist
I strive to provide an environment in which students can feel welcomed and safe. I will work with you to address challenges that may come up during your time at Vanderbilt, and/or address what may have impacted you in your past. I will also help you develop strategies to challenge unhelpful thinking patterns and to cope with difficult emotions.
Administrative Staff
Trainees
Kayla Abbatello, M.A.
Doctoral Intern in Psychology
I believe that much of who we are and how we view ourselves is shaped by those around us. I strive to build a genuine relationship with students as they develop their own identities and interpersonal patterns and explore how they are impacted by past experiences and current stressors.
Emma Diaz, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
My primary goal is to make sure clients feel heard, respected, and empowered during our sessions. I work with my clients to develop self-compassion and challenge themselves, so that they can meet their goals and develop meaningful connections with others.
Justine Diener-O'Leary, M.A.
Doctoral Intern in Psychology
I strive to create a safe, judgment-free space for my clients to explore their authentic selves, to develop self-compassionate strategies for change, and to gain insight into the contextual, internal, and external roots of their concerns, as well as pathways forward. I work collaboratively with my clients to identify their strengths and values and to help them feel empowered to make meaningful change in their lives.
Cayla Leung, M.A.
Doctoral Intern in Psychology
Sometimes life hands us a sour lemon, and we find ourselves in need of someone to listen, validate, and empathize. I strive to build trusting relationships with my clients so that we work together overcome hardships and my clients can live a life worth living. My approach to treatment is to listen and help clients identify skills that can make life less difficult.
Becca Sandhu, Psy.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
I work to build a genuine relationship that honors the unique identities of each of my clients in order to provide a safe environment in which they can explore how their background and past experiences may be impacting their current relationships, thought patterns, and view of themselves.
