Experience

Brighton Park Neighborhood Council

• United States
• Non-profit Organizations
• 1 - 100 Employee

• School-Based Counselor at Kelly College Preparatory

  • Sep 2020 - Present

  My main priority in the school-based setting is to create a safe and collaborative space to engage youth in a therapeutic relationship. I take a strength-based and collaborative approach in individual and group therapy, merging various modalities to meet clients' needs, backgrounds, and goals. The school and community organization setting allow us to build strong bridges between clients' spheres of support (e.g. school, home, community). As a part of BPNC, I have been able to co-facilitate workshops on trauma-informed practices at school, conflict resolution and de-escalation, and parent workshops on promoting resiliency in families.



Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago

• United States
• Hospitals and Health Care
• 700 & Above Employee

• Milieu Therapist in Psychiatry Department

  • Jul 2018 - Aug 2020

  Functioning as a part of an interdisciplinary team, I view my role of supporting and challenging patients through a dynamic and empatic stance. As a Milieu Therapist I am entrusted with helping youth, ages 4-17, through acute mental health crises via therapeutic interventions in group settings throughout their admission to the Inpatient or Partial Hospitalization programs. On the Inpatient Hospitalization Unit I work collaboratively with my colleagues to engage youth in building socio-emotional, communication, and self-advocacy skills.



Heartland Alliance

• United States
• Non-profit Organizations
• 700 & Above Employee

• Social Work Intern at Refugee and Immigrant Community Services

  • Jan 2019 - Aug 2019

  As an member of the Youth and Family Services Team at Refugee and Immigrant Community Services, I gained critical experience in culturally expansive direct practice with recently arrived and resettling families. Direct engagement with participants ranged from after school programming to community building and education surrounding substance abuse prevention. In tailoring curriculum for after school programming, I strived to incorporate elements of psycho-educational and social justice oriented material to inform curriculum and staff-engagement and intervention with youth. While organizing both educational outreach and data collection on substance abuse prevention in our primary service areas, I advocated for the community friendly practices that emphasized social responsibility and promoted future collaboration and trust. My internship culminated in a community dialogue event with multidisciplinary experts and participants discussing the safe use of prescription medication, allowing me to expand my marketing, organizing and communication skills throughout the various stages of planning and execution.



Loyola University Chicago School of Social Work

• United States
• Higher Education
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Graduate Assistant

  • Sep 2018 - Aug 2019

  Through this position I engaged in a broad scope of academic and professional development through my work in tailoring course curriculum at the graduate level and developing programming that aligned with the institutions values and social justice orientation. Specifically, I collaborated on attuning existing social work policy course curriculum to reflect the needs of the first in the nation online bilingual Master of Social Work program by integrating current literature that addressed the intersectionality of working in the Latinx community. My communication and planning skills were strengthened in the collaborative process applied across agencies while coordinating programming for both the abroad excursion to Italy and the Binational Institute for Justice with government and NGOs at home and abroad.



Northwestern University

• United States
• Higher Education
• 700 & Above Employee

• Stress Management Resource Center Aide at CAPS

  • Sep 2015 - Jun 2018

  As a part of the Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) center, this position enables me to work along side psychologists to serve a population of more than 8000 undergraduate students by creating a welcoming, tranquil environment for distressed students to find relaxation and balance. Working under the mentorship of a clinical psychologist I run the drop-in stress management resource center, where I guide students through psycho-educational techniques for stress-relief. This position has been a milestone in my professional development as it continues to reaffirm my aspirations and passions for psychology and working closely with mental health.



GirlForward

• United States
• Non-profit Organizations
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Programs Intern

  • Jun 2017 - Sep 2017

  As a programs intern, I support the work of the program director when it comes to participant recruitment, volunteer management, data entry, and evaluation. Ultimately, I help the team recruit camp and mentoring participants, do home visits, support the camp staff, and pair mentors and mentees. Under the direct supervision I am also able to explore the social work components of the GirlForward program--including case management, community engagement and social-emotional support. As a programs intern, I support the work of the program director when it comes to participant recruitment, volunteer management, data entry, and evaluation. Ultimately, I help the team recruit camp and mentoring participants, do home visits, support the camp staff, and pair mentors and mentees. Under the direct supervision I am also able to explore the social work components of the GirlForward program--including case management, community engagement and social-emotional support.



Life-span Development Lab at Northwestern University

• Research Assistant

  • Sep 2016 - Sep 2017

  As a team member of this lab, I assist in recruiting participants for experiments revolving around emotions and motivation. In addition to running experiments, I collect and analyze physiological data and code facial expression. In the process of composing a literary review of emotion processes and the sociology of power, and hoping to present a poster alongside a Ph.D student at the Application for Psychological Science 2017 Conference. As a team member of this lab, I assist in recruiting participants for experiments revolving around emotions and motivation. In addition to running experiments, I collect and analyze physiological data and code facial expression. In the process of composing a literary review of emotion processes and the sociology of power, and hoping to present a poster alongside a Ph.D student at the Application for Psychological Science 2017 Conference.



Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago

• United States
• Hospitals and Health Care
• 700 & Above Employee

• Education Intern in Partial Hospitalization Program

  • Jan 2017 - Apr 2017

  Through this position I have gained valuable experience collaborating with a team of mental health professionals to promote positive outcomes among children, ages 4-14, with emotional and behavioral disorders. Helping in the Partial Hospitalization Program's milieu allows me to observe and work closely with children, often 1:1 to best meet their needs, in multiple settings (ie. classroom, group therapy, recreational therapy, and unstructured spaces). In the classroom I am often in charge of developing, assisting in, and carrying out lesson plans for a classroom of 8-12 children, keeping in mind their language, cognitive, and behavioral needs.