EXPEDITION LEADER / EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Cherie oversees the implementation of Compass’ Mission Statement and adherence to its driving principles.

HER STORY

After nearly two decades of working with adolescents struggling with depression, suicidal ideation and other disorders, Cherie noticed a disturbing trend. “When I interviewed the young adults on our psych ward who weren’t getting better, I heard the same statements over and over,” she recalls. “It must be me, I must be too broken to be fixed.”

Working closely with hundreds of patients and their families, it became clear to Cherie that recovery depended on developing an effective treatment program before patients started to form their identity. “Before their identity literally became ‘depressed and suicidal’,” she says. “Before they developed a mindset that nothing could help or that they were broken, that was when they needed help the most.” It was with these families in mind that Cherie founded Compass Behavioral Health.

HER TRAINING

• Undergraduate degree from Vanguard University in Cultural Anthropology
• Master’s degree in Marriage, Family, and Child Therapy from Fuller Theological Seminary’s Graduate School of Psychology
• Certification as a Play Therapist from UCSD Extension
• Intensively trained in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) through Behavioral Tech, DBT treatment developer Dr. Marsha Linehan’s training institute
• Intensively trained in DBT-Prolonged Exposure by treatment developer Dr. Melanie Harned
• Comprehensively Trained as a Family Connections Leader by treatment developer Dr. Alan Fruzzetti
• Intensively trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Eating Disorders (CBT-E) through Oxford’s Center for Research on Eating Disorders
• Intensively Trained in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy for Children (DBT-C) by treatment developer Dr. Franscheska Perepletchikova

HER SUMMITS

• Past Director of the Advisory Board to Orange County Parenting Magazine and a contributing writer
• 1999 nominee for Mental Health Care Professional of the Year for Orange County for her effective treatment outcomes (now titled Thomas F. Riley Award)
• DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician™
• Calibrated DBT Adherence Coders Through the University of Washington, Behavioral Research, and Therapy Clinic
• Coder for the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification
• Member of DBT Leadership, Strategy, & Future Directions Committee of the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification™

HER TRUE NORTH

An avid mountaineer and globe-trotter, Cherie is on a continuing mission to carry a Compass summit flag to the highest peak on every continent on Earth. Two down, five to go.

Mount Elbrus, the highest point in Europe at 18,511 ft.

Lizbeth serves as Field Instructor for Colombia School of Social Work Compass Interns.

HER STORY

Lizbeth first become introduced to the practice of evidenced based therapies in 2006 when she was completing her Master’s in Social Work (MSW). At first, she was a bit hesitant and turned off by the idea that adopting a treatment protocol may make her feel “tied down”- still, she gave evidenced based treatments a chance. In her MSW program while interning at Harbor UCLA Medical Center she was trained in the evidenced based therapies of dialectical behavior therapy, cognitive behavior therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, and cognitive behavioral analysis system of psychotherapy. It was then that she was able to implement these modalities and was in awe of the significant positive outcomes she witness. She was successfully able to treat clients who had struggled with lifelong illness associated with issues such as severe trauma, depression, panic attacks, suicide attempts, non-suicidal self-injurious behaviors and substantial interpersonal problems. Lizbeth has been in favor of and an advocate for evidenced based practices ever since. Lizbeth also saw a need to provide evidenced based practices such as dialectical behavior therapy to diverse communities such as monolingual Spanish speaking clients. While at Harbor UCLA, in October of 2007, she co-led the first Spanish DBT Skills group as she helped found and launch the first adherent dialectical behavior therapy program in Spanish within Los Angeles County. As a bilingual bicultural therapist, Lizbeth finds it a gift that she is able to use her primary language to serve her clients. She has continued her work as a consultant, researcher and provider of DBT in Spanish.

HER TRAINING

• Bachelor’s in psychology from UCLA
• Master’s in Social Work from CSULA
• Doctorate in Social Work form USC
• Intensively trained in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) through Behavioral Tech, DBT treatment developer Dr. Marsha Linehan’s training institute
• Trained in DBT-Accepting the Challenges to Exiting the System by treatment developer Dr. Kate Comtois
• Intensively trained in Prolonged Exposure by treatment developer Dr. Edna Foa
• Trained in DBT-Prolonged Exposure by treatment developer Dr. Melanie Harned
• Trained in Case Formulation of Cognitive Behavior Therapy by Dr. Jacqueline Persons
• Certified Cognitive Behavior Therapist via the Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies
• Certified Prolonged Exposure Therapist via the University of Pennsylvania, Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety

HER SUMMITS

• Published work on the intersection of DBT and culture
• A founder of the first DBT adherent program in Spanish within Los Angeles County, Harbor UCLA Medical Center
• Chair, Diversity Action Committee, Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies, 2020-Present
• Consultant, Treatment Implementation and Care Collaborative: Race(ism) Work Group, 2020-Present
• Board Member, Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies, 2019-Present
• Student Ambassador, Association of Cognitive and Behavior Therapy, 2017-2019
• Nominated and Scholar of Saks Institute for Mental Health, USC Gould School of Law 2016-2017
• Co-Chair, Doctoral Student Association, USC Suzanne Dwork-Peck School of Social Work, 2016-2017
• Nominated, Social Worker of the Year, 2015, Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, Harbor UCLA Medical Center

HER TRUE NORTH

As a proud mommy, Lizbeth considers her role as a mother as first and foremost. She is often found chasing her little one around in her home or going on family bike rides with her toddler. When she is not parenting she enjoys baking and photography.

HER STORY

Resha attends Columbia University School of Social Work, where she is in her second year on the Advanced Clinical Practice track with a focus on health, mental health, and disabilities. Her first-year internship was at a community elementary school in the Bronx, NY providing individual weekly counseling and psychoeducation workshops to at-risk students facing housing insecurity. Prior to this, Resha volunteered at a continuing education high school in Los Angeles, CA where she co-created and lead workshops for at-risk youth. Resha is passionate about growing and learning in her practice as a clinician through a trauma-informed and client-centered lens.

HER TRAINING

• A. from New York University
• RYT-200 Yoga Teacher
• Ongoing M.S.W. from Columbia University School of Social Work ‘21
• Ongoing Jump Start in DBT foundational training

HER TRUE NORTH

Resha enjoys practicing yoga, traveling, dancing, cooking, and spending time with her family, friends, and rescue Chihuahua Pepe!

PROGRAM CLINICIAN

Natalie provides comprehensive DBT including individual therapy, phone coaching, DBT group skills training, team consultation, and skills coaching. She is also a part of the research team associated with Duke University taking on the role of the research assistant and case manager. Natalie receives expert consultation from Dr. Clive Robbins, DBT Training Director at Duke University and Compass Training Institute and is supervised by Marissa Colangelo, LCSW (#78805).

HER STORY

Natalie is a recent graduate of Columbia University’s School of Social Work (CSSW) where she was a fellow in Dr. Andre Ivanoff’s Dialectical Behavior Therapy Training Lab. Natalie completed her second year internship at Columbia University Irving Medical Center Psychiatry Department’s DBT Program where she helped launch their Accelerated DBT Program and was their first Social Work intern. Prior to her time at Columbia University, she was Marissa Colangelo’s teacher’s assistant during undergrad where she was introduced to DBT. From that point on, the spark of passion for this modality and its efficacy has been her driving force in helping teens, adolescents, and young adults find their life worth living.

• Master of Science in Social Work at Columbia School of Social Work, New York City
• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Child and Adolescent Development at California State University, Northridge
• Completed 65 hours of Intensive DBT Training offered by Behavioral Tech trainers, Randy Wolbert and Gwen Abney-Cunningham
• Completed Behavioral Tech’s Skills Training Therapy Interfering Behaviors, and Exposure Therapy Trainings

HER TRUE NORTH

Natalie’s passions include teaching, interior decorating, music, and fashion. She also enjoys spending time with her fur-baby, Sparky!

SENIOR GUIDE / DIRECTOR OF COMPASS TRAINING INSTITUTE

Compass Behavioral Health is proud to have Dr. Clive Robins as its premier Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) expert and Director of the Compass Training Institute. Dr. Robins provides consultation to Compass on program development, staff training, and treatment assessment. Dr. Robins evaluates Compass treatment plans, and reviews treatment videos for coding and treatment adherence in Compass’s comprehensive DBT Training program. In Dr. Robins’s role as Director of the Compass Training Institute, he oversees the University of California, Irvine Child & Adolescent Psychiatry second year DBT Didactics at Compass Behavioral Health. This comprehensive DBT training involves core didactic lectures on DBT principles, strategies, and protocols.

HIS STORY

Dr. Robins has been a proponent of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for more than 20 years. In 1993, he completed the first intensive training in dialectical behavior therapy, which was conducted by Dr. Marsha Linehan, the psychologist who created DBT, which combines behavioral science with concepts such as acceptance and mindfulness.

During that same year, Dr. Robins established the DBT program at Duke University Medical Center, which he directed until 2015. In the last two decades Dr. Robins has: provided DBT to many patients, trained and supervised more than 70 psychology interns and postdoctoral fellows, taught graduate-level courses in Psychological Intervention, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and the Psychology of Mindfulness, given more than 25 Grand Rounds and other invited presentations at Universities and Medical Centers, and conducted more than 90 DBT trainings and workshops for mental health professionals. He was also a co-investigator, along with his colleague Cedar Koons, on the first randomized controlled trial of DBT outside Dr. Linehan’s laboratory, and published in 2001.

HIS TRAINING

• Masters degree in Experimental Psychology from the University of Sussex graduate school at Stanford University
• Doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology, State University of New York at Stony Brook

HIS SUMMITS

• Faculty member, New York University
• Faculty member, Duke University
• Professor Emeritus, Duke University, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
• Professor Emeritus, Duke University, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience
• Certified in Cognitive and Behavioral Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology
• Licensed Psychologist, North Carolina, License No. 1421
• Founding Fellow in the Academy of Cognitive Therapy
• Served as Associate Editor and on the editorial boards of several scientific and professional journals
• More than 80 published articles and book chapters on depression, borderline personality disorder, and cognitive-behavioral and dialectical behavior therapies
• Recipient of research grant funding from the National Institute of Mental Health
• Behavioral Tech DBT Expert Trainer
• DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Certified Clinician™

HIS TRUE NORTH

Clive had the privilege of seeing Jimi Hendrix perform live in 1967 and playing guitar has been a passion ever since. Self-taught as a rock guitarist, he is now (slowly!) learning to play jazz.

HER STORY

Aerie has a background in real estate and home furnishing purchasing and design. She has a passion for creating peaceful spaces with an emphasis on minimalistic organization. Aerie is constantly developing herself professionally and is currently training in human resources.

HER TRAINING

Fullerton College

HER SUMMITS

Member of Society of Human Resource Management
Member of HR California

HER TRUE NORTH

Aerie has a passion for traveling and loves meeting new people from different cultures. She has taken solo journeys to Spain and China, and her most recent trip was to the Philippines. When Aerie is not planning the next big event at Compass, she is undoubtedly planning her next adventure.

BASE CAMP MANAGER/BILLING DEPARTMENT MANAGER

Kellie Severin role as Billing Department Manager oversees the Billing Department to ensure that families can make use of their health insurance policies and minimize their out-of-pocket expenses.

HER STORY

Kellie’s background is in public education, where she has worked various positions helping contribute to the care and education of children grades Pre-K to 12th grade. Kellie has worked in a variety of positions since arriving at Compass, and now helps to lead the team upward in successful support of our families.

HER TRAINING

Andon College, Modesto Jr. College, and Clark Community College. Certificate in Medication Administration, AIDS Education, UC Davis Online Pet Nutrition, Beyond Diversity Training, & Highly Qualified Para Assessment Certification.

HER SUMMITS

Founded a community-based food assistance program of over 4,000 to help serve families in need.

HER TRUE NORTH

Kellie’s mantra is “Living my best life” here at Compass and anywhere else her journey leads her.

LEAD GUIDE / ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF COMPASS TRAINING INSTITUTE / CLINICAL SUPERVISOR / DBT PROGRAM CLINICIAN

Within Marissa’s role as Associate Director of Compass Training institute, Marissa serves as the Clinical Supervisor for Columbia University’s Master of Social Work graduates. Additionally, Marissa is responsible for teaching didactics and DBT Skills Training to UCI’s Psychiatry Fellows and the community, providing supervision and ensuring adherence to DBT, and managing Continuing Education. Marissa works closely with Compass’ Research Director to identify training needs and to ensure clinical excellence. She provides both in-house training and external trainings. Additionally, she facilitates meet and greets with families interested in Compass to identify goodness of fit and to provide an overview of the program.

Additionally, Marissa facilitates a clinical caseload, providing individual and family therapy, leading DBT Skills Training groups, phone coaching and attends weekly team consultation meetings. A team of coding and therapy adherent professionals review her treatment plans and clinical videos and she receives expert consultation from Dr. Clive Robbins, DBT Training Director at Duke University and Compass Training Institute.

HER STORY

Marissa started her master’s in Social Work at Columbia School of Social Work (CSSW) in 2012. She served as a Student Ambassador, working with prospective students and Alumni. It was here that Marissa gained interest in research and participated in research under Dr. Allen Zweben studying the efficacy of Chantix with substance abuse. Marissa’s research sparked interest in working with mental health and substance abuse. During her second year at CSSW, she found her passion in providing therapy to individuals who suffer from emotion dysregulation and completed her intensive training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) in 2014 by Dr. Andre Ivanoff. Marissa completed her second-year internship at Rikers Island, providing DBT to female inmates. Here, she provided DBT in a setting with limitations and restrictions, leading to her passion of providing affordable and accessible DBT to the community.

Marissa has extensive experience working with adolescents and young adults providing evidence-based therapy in a variety of levels of care. Marissa participated in the development of the Partial Hospitalization Program at Clearview Treatment Programs and has provided therapy at the outpatient and intensive-outpatient level of care for nearly 4 years. Marissa has a passion for teaching and returned to her alma mater at California State University, Northridge and was an Associate Professor in the Child and Adolescent Department for 3 years. Here, Marissa taught Child Abuse and Neglect, Adolescence, Professional Pathways and Careers in Child and Adolescent Development before joining the team at Compass Behavioral Health.

HER TRAINING

• Bachelor of Arts in Child and Adolescent Development at California State University, Northridge 2012
• Master of Science in Social Work at Columbia School of Social Work, New York City 2014
• Adjunct Professor California State University, Northridge 2014-2018
• Completed Intensive DBT Training, 2014
• Certification in Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Lynn McFarr 2016
• Completed Advanced DBT Training, 2017
• Completed Intensive Training in DBT-Prolonged Exposure, 2018
• Completed Intensive Training in DBT-C (DBT for Children), 2019

HER SUMMITS

• DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician™
• Calibrated video Adherence Coder to the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification™

HER TRUE NORTH

In addition to her loving fur-baby, teaching is at the core of Marissa’s passions and values.

LEAD GUIDE / ASSOCIATE CLINICAL DIRECTOR

Matt oversees Compass’ clinical policies, quality assurance, and adherence to DBT treatment procedures.

HIS STORY

Matt is a DBT-Board of Certification, Certified Clinician™ and has been comprehensively trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) through Compass Behavioral Health. He provides therapy for individuals and their families, skills coaching, and co-facilitates Compass’ DBT Skills Training groups. A team of coding and therapy adherent professionals review the therapy he provides and he receives expert consultation from Dr. Clive Robins, DBT Training Director at Duke University. Dr. Melanie Harned, Research Director at Dr. Linehan’s lab at the University of Washington, has intensively trained Matt in Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE) in a DBT framework. He has been intensively trained to provide Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Children (DBT-C) by the treatment’s developer, Dr. Francheska Perepletchikova. Matt has also been comprehensively trained as a Family Connections (FC) Leader by Dr. Alan Fruzzetti, FC treatment developer, in alliance with the National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality. Additionally, Matt has been intensively trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Eating Disorders (CBT-E) through Oxford’s Center for Research on Eating Disorders.

Matt has extensive experience working with children and adolescents with emotion dysregulation. He has worked with several different populations providing behavioral therapy and interventions. Before joining Compass, Matt provided Applied Behavioral Analysis to children and teens with Autism and other presenting conditions, working in home, school, and community settings. He also provided parent training for families, helping them learn (and practice) essential skills to effectively respond to a wide range of issues while supporting their child throughout the treatment process. He completed his Graduate School Practicum at the Eli Home for Abused and Neglected Families, where he provided individual and group therapy to victims of domestic violence. Matt also taught the shelter’s “Safe People” class, which focuses on forming boundaries and creating long-lasting relationships.

Among his other accomplishments, Matt participated in research at the University of California Irvine (UCI) that measured the relationship between Betamethasone intake during pregnancy and infant temperament. He helped the program facilitate its “Stranger Danger” situation scenario. He also collected research data at UCI and participated in weekly program updates and video coding adherence for therapists.

HIS TRAINING

• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Social Behavior from the University of California, Irvine
• Masters of Arts in Clinical Psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology
• Intensively trained in Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA)
• Intensively trained in Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Eating Disorders (CBT-E)
• Comprehensively trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
• Intensively trained in DBT-Prolonged Exposure (DBT-PE) by Dr. Melanie Harned, Ph.D
• Intensively trained in DBT for Children (DBT-C) by Dr. Francheska Perepletchikova, Ph.D

HIS SUMMITS

• Registered member of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists
• DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician™, 2019
• Calibrated DBT Adherence coder through the University of Washington
• Created Compass’ Electronic Medical Record system

HIS TRUE NORTH

Throughout early adulthood and his education, Matt knew that he wanted to work with teens to help them when they are at their most vulnerable. Compass has provided him the ability to not only do that, but to also to work with technology and use it to help those around him. Therapy and IT together as a dream job!

GUIDE/ PROGRAM CLINICIAN

Angel conducts individual therapy and coaching sessions, in addition to co-leading the DBT Skills Training groups for teens. He also is part of the research team associated with Duke University.

HIS STORY

Angel Amaro is a Dialectical Behavior Therapy Program Clinician at Compass Behavioral Health as of June 2019.  He is a recent graduate of Columbia University’s School of Social Work (CSSW) and was intensively trained in Dr. Andre Ivanoff’s Dialectical Behavior Therapy Training Lab at CSSW. Prior to his academic work, Angel worked for over nine years at a non-profit organization in Santa Monica assisting homeless adults who had been diagnosed with mental illness. Angel Amaro is supervised by Marissa Colangelo, LCSW (#78805).

HIS TRAINING

• Bachelor of Arts in Latin American and Caribbean Studies at Lehman College
• Master of Science in Social Work at Columbia School of Social Work in New York
• Completed 65 hours of Intensive DBT Training offered by Behavioral Tech trainers Randy Wolbert and Gwen Abney-Cunningham
• Completed Online DBT Trainings by Behavioral Tech on Skills Training, Therapy Interfering Behaviors, and Exposure Therapy

HIS TRUE NORTH

Angel has a fur-baby named Max who also makes special appearances at Compass and provides emotional support to clients. Angel’s passions include anything Disney-related as well as focusing on building a life-worth living for himself, family, friends, and clients’ alike.

GUIDE/ PROGRAM CLINICIAN

Erin works directly with patients and their families as program and skills group clinician. Her psychological interests include anxiety, eating disorders and hypnosis.

HER TRAINING

• Undergraduate degree from UCLA majoring in psychology
• Master and doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology from California School of Professional Psychology – San Diego
• Internships included years’ worth of trainings in process groups, testing, inpatient hospitalization with severely mental ill adults, teens and children, as well as work with substance abuse and long-term private practice clients.
• Intensively trained in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) through Compass Behavioral Health
• Intensively trained in DBT-Prolonged Exposure by treatment developer Dr. Melanie Harned
• ntensively trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Eating Disorders (CBT-E) through Oxford’s Center for Research on Eating Disorders

HER SUMMITS

• Dissertation “Body Dissatisfaction and Ideal Body Internalization in Heterosexual Men and Women”
• Has completed 3/4 steps towards DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Individual Clinician Certification™

HER TRUE NORTH

Erin enjoys reading non-fiction and traveling to places with historical significance.

Katina provides individual and group therapy, skills coaching, and phone coaching to Compass patients and their families.

HER STORY

Katina has practiced as a marriage and family therapist in a wide variety of settings with diverse populations. She has provided therapy to individuals with severe emotional dysregulation, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, psychotic disorders, and Borderline Personality traits at Pacific Clinics, a county-contracted community mental health agency. She has also worked with children and their families in public elementary schools through the Boys & Girls Club of Garden Grove. She has in-depth experience in cross-cultural and spiritual issues having worked at Asian-American Christian Counseling Service and Lake Avenue Church Counseling Center. She was also trained in an insight-oriented, attachment approach at the Center for Individual and Family Therapy. Katina is passionate about the intersection of spirituality and mental health. Prior to being a therapist, Katina taught English-as-a-second language to teens and adults in China, Newport Beach, and Berkeley.

HER TRAINING

• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley
• Masters of Science in Marital & Family Therapy from Fuller Theological Seminary
• Comprehensively trained in Restoration Therapy by Dr. Terry Hargrave
• Comprehensively trained in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) by Cherie Mills, LMFT, DBT-LBC Certified Team Leader
• Intensively Trained in DBT-Prolonged Exposure by Dr. Melanie Harned

HER SUMMITS

• Registered member of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists
• Has completed 3 of the 4 steps towards DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician™

HER TRUE NORTH

Katina is passionate about her family, friends, God, and all kinds of art. She and her husband are expecting a (long-awaited) baby girl and are overjoyed to start a new adventure of being parents. Katina is guided in all aspects of life by a passion for helping others find their way to joy, peace, and the fullest life possible.

GUIDE/ PROGRAM CLINICIAN

Megan provides evidenced-based treatment to adolescents, teens and their families.

HER STORY

Megan began her clinical career providing individual therapy to middle school students during her undergraduate internship through San Francisco State’s highly-acclaimed School of Social Work. She earned Bachelor of the Arts degrees from SFSU with highest honors in Psychology as well as Social Work. As an undergraduate student, she was a teaching assistant for statistics, research methods and cognitive psychology courses and participated in Dr. Ben Zeev’s research lab, studying Stereotype Threat and Perceived Fraudulence (The Imposter Syndrome).

Megan went on to earn a Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from John F. Kennedy University where she completed her MFT traineeship as a group and individual therapist in a San Francisco-based Intensive Outpatient Substance Abuse program. Since graduating, Megan has provided group and individual therapy for children, adolescents, adults and families in a variety of settings. School-based, residential, intensive outpatient and clinic experience all contribute to Megan’s style and approach to therapy.

In addition to her clinical work with Compass Behavioral Health, Megan oversees Children’s Residential Intensive Services for teens and adolescents in the Child Welfare systems of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. As a part of her role as the Head of Service, Megan provides clinical supervision to pre-licensed clinicians.

HER TRAINING

• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from San Francisco State University
• Bachelor of Arts in Social Work from San Francisco State University
• Masters of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy from John F. Kennedy University
• Comprehensively trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
• Intensively trained in DBT-Prolonged Exposure by treatment developer, Dr. Melanie Harned
• Intensively trained in DBT for Children by treatment developer, Dr. Francheska Perepletchikova

• Lifetime member of the Psi Chi Honor Society for Psychology
• Lifetime member of the Mu Beta Honor for Social Work
• Research assistant in Dr. Avi Ben-Zeev’s lab at San Francisco State University (studying Perceived Fraudulence and Stereotype Threat/”Imposter Syndrome”)
• Teaching Assistant for Statistics, Research Methods and Complex Cognitive Psychology courses for Dr. Avi Ben-Zeev at San Francisco State University
• Registered member of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT)
• DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Certified Clinician™

HER TRUE NORTH

Megan spends as much time as possible with her sisters, nieces, nephews, father and extended family. Dedicated to your family and hers, she travels from her home base in Big Bear to Compass Behavioral Health to enjoy the “best of both worlds.”

GUIDE/ PROGRAM CLINICIAN

Naoki provides individual therapy, phone coaching, skills coaching, and team consultation.

HIS STORY

At the Columbia University School of Social Work, Naoki was part of a year-long extensive DBT training and lab program directed by Dr. Andre Ivanoff. During this time, he received intensive training by Behavioral Tech in DBT. Naoki is dedicated to utilizing DBT to support adolescents and young adults who are struggling with emotion dysregulation, impulsivity, anger, substance abuse, and other mental health vulnerabilities.

After graduating from New York University, Naoki began his career in clinical work as an Assistant Behavioral Intervention Specialist to support people with profound Intellectual Disabilities and Developmental Delays in residential and hospice settings. After going back to graduate school in social work, he interned at an at-risk high school providing weekly individual counseling and psychoeducation workshops. Additionally, he worked as a DBT-informed family therapist in a community-based aftercare team to support foster care youths in their goals of family reunification and independent living.

A team of DBT adherence coding professionals reviews his therapy treatment plans and clinical sessions, and he receives expert consultation from Dr. Clive Robbins, Professor Emeritus at Duke University. Naoki is supervised by Marissa Colangelo, LCSW (#78805).

HIS TRAINING

• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at New York University
• Master of Science in Social Work at Columbia School of Social Work in New York City
• Completed 65 hours of Intensive DBT Training offered by Behavioral Tech trainers Randy Wolbert and Gwen Abney-Cunningham
• Completed Online DBT Trainings by Behavioral Tech on Skills training, Therapy interfering behaviors, and Exposure therapy

HIS TRUE NORTH

Naoki enjoys playing competitive soccer and practices rigorously to improve his game. He loves discovering new music and creating samples and mixes, and is currently working on polishing up his blues and jazz guitar skills.

GUIDE/ PROGRAM CLINICIAN

Dr. Nicole Zaha is a licensed Clinical Psychologist, a DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, Certified Clinician™. She specializes in the treatment of children, adolescents and young adults with emotion dysregulation, depression, anxiety, self-injurious behaviors, Borderline Personality traits and other conditions.

Dr. Zaha’s role at Compass includes providing individual DBT treatment and skills coaching sessions, conducting DBT skills group, participating in weekly team consultation and supervision, and developing the teen residential program.

HER STORY

Dr. Zaha has actively practiced DBT and multiple evidence-based therapies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy since 2008. Dr. Zaha’s DBT experience developed initially though Harbor-UCLA’s doctoral practicum training in the Adult Outpatient Clinic and Inpatient hospital in Torrance, CA, and under the direction of Lynn Mc Farr, Ph.D. Dr. Zaha completed her doctoral internship at Metropolitan State Hospital, in which she participated and helped to train and develop an inpatient DBT team, led DBT Skills Training groups, conducted individual DBT sessions, and developed positive behavior support plans. Dr. Zaha additionally worked at Clearview Women’s Residential DBT Program in Los Angeles, CA in which she conducted individual and group DBT sessions and helped train staff members in DBT. Dr. Zaha has extensive training and education in suicide and risk assessment. She additionally has several years of training in conducting neuropsychological and forensic assessments and community mental health experience. Dr. Zaha has worked as a Research Assistant with eHarmony and as a Research Coordinator at her university. Dr. Zaha’s graduate studies focused on Family Psychology and Adolescent Identity Formation and emphasized multicultural and spiritual integration. Dr. Zaha’s personal interests include yoga, family, ukulele, dancing, writing, and mindfulness meditation.

HER TRAINING

• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (Minor in Religious Studies), Cum Laude, Azusa Pacific University
• Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology, specialty in Family Psychology, Azusa Pacific University
• Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology, specialty in Family Psychology, Azusa Pacific University
• Comprehensively trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy
• Intensively Trained in DBT-Prolonged Exposure
• Comprehensively trained in Acceptence and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

HER SUMMITS

• DBT- Linehan Board of Certification, Certified Clinician™

HER TRUE NORTH

Dr. Zaha’s passions and personal interests include yoga, family, ukulele, dancing, writing, and mindfulness meditation.

Ashley works diligently on behalf of Compass families to ensure they pay the lowest possible out-of-pocket costs.

HER STORY

After graduating with honors from American Career College, Ashley began her billing career with Compass Behavioral Health, joining the family in October of 2016. She is developing and mastering valuable skills in insurance verification, denials and billing.

HER TRAINING

• Certificate in Medical Billing and Coding, American Career College
• Associates Degree in Human Services from Cypress College

HER TRUE NORTH

Ashley is currently continuing her education and is pursuing to become a Certified Professional Coder (CPC).

Corine works closely with insurance companies to ensure full insurance reimbursement and correct any claims issues families may experience.

HER STORY
After graduating with honors from American Career College, she began her billing career with Compass Behavioral Health in October 2017. She comes to Compass Behavioral Health with over 15 years of collections and customer service skills.

HER TRAINING

• Diploma in Medical Billing and Coding, American Career College

HER TRUE NORTH

Corine plans to continue her education to become a Certified Professional Coder (CPC).

BASE CAMP CREW/CERTIFIED MEDICAL BILLER

Elizabeth translates healthcare services into billable claims, working closely with clinicians to ensure that all services are correctly billed to insurance.

HER STORY

Raised in Orange County, Elizabeth grew up exploring the outdoors with her family. Spending much of her time going on hikes and exploring all that nature had to offer, created both a love and admiration for the great outdoors.

HER TRAINING

• Diploma in Medical Billing and Coding, American Career College
• After graduating from American Career College, Elizabeth began her billing career with Compass Behavioral Health in January 2019.

HER TRUE NORTH

Elizabeth strives to continue exploring all the wonders that nature has to offer. Her ultimate bucket list goal is to visit Alaska and see the Northern Lights in person. Aside from continuing to explore nature, Elizabeth is also actively working to receive her Certified Professional Coder (CPC) certification.

Melody takes great pride in assisting all departments with their special project needs.

HER STORY

Gifted the name “Mama Mel,” Melody helped open Compass Behavioral Health in 2014 after working with Executive Director Cherie Mills for a year.

HER SUMMITS

• Opened and ran two successful businesses.

HER TRAINING

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Chapman University
• Front Office Clerk & Sales Assistant, Marriott Hotels and Resorts International
• HR Project Coordinator, PacifiCare
• Medical Billing, office Cherie Mills, LMFT

HER TRUE NORTH

Melody is a proud Southern California native and admirer of all things bacon, In-N-Out Burgers, and Netflix.

Sarah is the first point of contact for new families, and responsible for the day-to-day business operations.

HER STORY

Sarah joined Compass Behavioral Health after a decade as a medical assistant and insurance specialist for Memorial Care Medical Group. Her passion for medical care inspired her to undertake a medical mission to Haiti after the devastating 2010 earthquake.

HER TRUE NORTH

Sarah takes great pride in all her work here at Compass simply because it’s what she loves to do and is a believer that when you love what you do you never work a day in your life.

Johanna assists in document and file management, administrative tasks, and event planning. She is committed to building community at Compass and has been known to leave encouraging post-it notes on staff desks.

Before moving to southern California, Johanna spent several years in Washington where she enjoyed theater and experiencing the beautiful nature of the Pacific Northwest.

HER TRAINING

• Management training, scheduling, inventory and ordering maintenance, filing weekly store reports, and maintaining a safe work environment.

HER SUMMITS

• Promoted to Store Manager of two franchises with in the first year of employment, managing 12 employees at the age of 19.
• Working at Compass Behavioral Health.

HER TRUE NORTH

Johanna is pursuing her Associates of Arts degree at Santiago Canyon College. Johanna would like to obtain a master’s in business administration to better assist Compass as the future CEO.

SUPPORT CREW

Madonna is a Maltese-Terrier mix with an unknown age (about 8 years old)! She provides comfort and self-soothe to those in need. She helps others accumulate positives by playing fetch, doing tricks for treats, or playing with toys. She also helps clients practice mindfulness skills. Sometimes Madonna is in the mood to play and sometimes she is in need of rest.

HER STORY

Madonna was rescued in March 2015 and required a lot of TLC. She had an ulcer in her eye, an ear infection, and a hurt hip from giving birth. Madonna wants to contribute to others in their healing journey. Her favorite hobbies include playing with toys, following her mom around the clinic (who has warmly nicknamed her Shadow!), watching other people eat yummy human food that she’s not allowed to have, and getting her belly and ears rubbed. Madonna is most happy when people let her smell their hand first so that she can get to know their scent and warm up to them.

HER TRUE NORTH

Madonna has built mastery at sitting, handshakes, laying down and rolling over. She’s currently building mastery at jumping through hoops—for treats of course!

SUPPORT CREW

Mochi’s main skill is tactile self-soothe for the Compass kids that hold and pet him

HIS STORY

Mochi was born at Compass! His mom was taken in as a foster cat by Compass and in the middle of her first night here, she gave birth to a litter of 5 kittens. He is most-likely a Norwegian Forest cat, as he is so “chill.” He likes laser pointers and people’s laps. Mochi typically “trills” (a high-pitched, chirp-like noise in cats signaling hello) more than he meows.

HIS TRUE NORTH

Mochi has spent almost every workday at Compass since his birth comforting, entertaining, and loving on Compass kids—in fact Compass kids gave him his name and his purpose.