THE LA SELVA GROUP - Key Persons
Alex has worked in residential and outpatient programs for over ten years, including at a homeless and runaway youth shelter. Alex is interested in the intersection of spiritual and psychological development.
Ana is bilingual clinician in our outpatient program at La Selva Community Clinic. Using a blend of mindfulness, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Somatic Experience approaches Ana provides short term psychotherapy as well as case management services. Ana thoroughly enjoys helping people find ways to be their best self. She has experience working with at-risk juvenile offenders, families, couples, and individuals. Her interests include working with clients helping them work through trauma while focusing on the mind-body connection.
Anthony oversees the operations across La Selva's programs from Residential to Outpatient. He utilizes both his clinical and operational experience to connect dots and support the everchanging La Selva community. He has over 14 years of residential mental health experience that includes the social rehab and harm reduction models, dual diagnosis, as well as crisis and transitional living. He is a firm believer that the greatest power is to empower others.
Job Titles:
- Program Administrative Assistant
Ashley is the Program Administrative Assistant for the La Selva Outpatient Program. She is a member and works closely with On Your Feet Foundation and MPower Alliance who both are non-profit organizations that provide post-placement services to Birthparents that have placed their child for Adoption. A Birthmother herself, she has shared her story to many Birthparents and Adoptive Parents and provide a foundation for Birthparents who experience trauma and grief. As Program Administrative Assistant, Ashley maintains support for all of the La Selva Outpatient Program Staff and handles a variety of tasks in order to ensure all interactions between the organization and others are positive and productive.
Job Titles:
- Program Administrative Assistant, La Selva Residential
Ashley is the Program Administrative Assistant for La Selva Residential. She strives to create a positive framework that helps individuals flourish. She has experience working with adolescents in mental health. Her personal experiences with various individuals from different environments have made her passionate about mental health. She is a Bay Area native that loves helping everyone and hopes to create a way to end the stigma around mental illness
Cheryl is a Clinician for the outpatient program at La Selva Group, providing individual and group therapy as well as case management services. She's been practicing psychotherapy with a holistic orientation since 2011, in agencies supporting adults, children and families. She is passionate about helping people live personally meaningful lives even in the midst of unfamiliar and chaotic circumstances.
Kyle is a bilingual clinician and intake coordinator at our La Selva Residential program. Kyle tends to utilize a blend of CBT/DBT/Mindfulness to provide individual therapy and crisis intervention. He has years of experience working with vulnerable populations. He has experience at a detention center, transitional housing, 2-1-1 resource call center, food bank, health clinic, and at residential treatment center.
Danielle is a clinician at the residential treatment program at La Selva. She is a recent graduate from Chapman University where she received her master's in marriage and family therapy. Danielle previously worked at a low cost clinic serving a diverse population of individuals within the community, which inspired her interest in systemic and emotionally-focused therapy. Danielle emphasizes a humanistic approach to treatment, with a strong belief in the power of human connection, genuineness, and empathy to produce positive change.
Donna is a clinician at the Outpatient program at La Selva. She received her master's degree in Counselling Psychology at the University of Roehampton, London, England. Donna has previously worked in the NHS in England, in a family therapy center in Dallas TX and La Selva Residential facility. She has volunteered in the community with at-risk and detained children, as well as adolescents and survivors of domestic violence. She has a published paper in the Journal of Psycholinguistics. At the Outpatient program, Donna provides therapy, case management, facilitates groups and admissions. Donna is a qualified Yoga instructor and likes to remain physically active in her personal life, she believes that physical health is inextricably connected to psychological and emotional well-being.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Director
- Clinical Psychologist
Dr. Connolly manages our Discovery Day Program at California Avenue. She is our clinical lead and conducts DBT and CBT groups as well as individual therapy. Dr. Connolly is a clinical psychologist.
, will directly oversee this new program. Dr. Connolly, a Clinical Psychologist who has led LSG's clinical teams for 10 years, explains, "Esperanza House is supportive housing for women focusing on safety as well as early stage interventions for trauma and emotional health issues. Our hope is to prepare women to be back in the community and instill hope and recovery in their lives. These women will have the opportunity to reside in a recovery-based community and will gain numerous skills to cope with their individual struggles. Some of the groups these women will attend in our Day Program include Dialectic Behavior Therapy (DBT), Trauma 101, Seeking Safety, Yoga, DBT for Trauma, and Trauma Process Group."
Job Titles:
- Juliana Lockman
- Physician for La Selva Group Behavioral Health Services
- Psychiatrist, Addiction Medicine Specialist
- Staff Psychiatrist
Dr. Greer Murphy is a staff psychiatrist at La Selva. He is also Professor of Psychiatry, Emeritus, at Stanford. At Stanford, he trained hundreds of medical students, residents, and fellows, many of whom now practice in the Bay Area. He is board certified in Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry, and in the new specialty of Addiction Medicine. For years Dr. Murphy's Stanford laboratory investigated molecular biology and genetics, and he has over 100 scientific publications. He was also a strength and conditioning instructor for Stanford Athletics, and coached numerous Stanford students. He enjoys getting patients healthy and moving.
Dr. Greer Murphy is a physician for La Selva Group Behavioral Health Services, a division of Momentum. He is board certified in Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry, and in the new medical specialty of Addiction Medicine. At the recent American Psychiatric Association Meeting held in San Francisco, Dr. Murphy was honored with the 2019 Mrazek Award. Created […]
Dr. Juliana Lockman directs the Functional Neurologic Symptom Disorder (FND) track at La Selva. She works in collaboration with the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Stanford, where she is Clinical Assistant Professor in Neuropsychiatry. She completed residencies in both Neurology at the University of Virginia and Psychiatry at Stanford Hospital & Clinics. Her professional goals include developing effective therapies and improving access to care for clients with FND and related disorders.
Dr. Miller serves as Chief Medical Officer for Momentum for Health, and also provides psychiatric assessment and treatment to individuals participating in the La Selva IOP and PHP. She completed medical school at Columbia University and residency at Stanford. Following residency, Dr. Miller was Clinical Assistant Professor at Stanford where she specialized in bipolar disorder research and treatment, and served as Chief of the Bipolar Disorders Clinic from 2017-2018.
Job Titles:
- Instructor
- Director of Admissions for Residential Services
Emily Gray, LMFT, is La Selva's Director of Admissions for Residential Services. She worked as a therapist in community mental health with children, adults, and families until joining our team.
Emily is a certified yoga instructor, has a background in mind/body medicine, and is experienced facilitating admissions and providing intakes for persons seeking treatment. She is passionate about helping people navigate systems to get the care they need.
A supportive housing program for women recovering from the impact of trauma. La Selva Group is excited to announce the addition of its new residential site that opened on November 26, 2018. The new program is a supportive housing site in the Palo Alto community with a focus on women recovering from the impact of […]
Welcome Emily Gray, LMFT I am happy to introduce Emily Gray, LMFT, as our new Director of Admissions. La Selva's residential treament program provides comprehensive and individualized treatment in a compassionate, warm, home like environment. It is located in a beautiful, residential neighborhood of Palo Alto near Stanford University. Our residential treatment program provides a […]
Job Titles:
- Program Coordinator
- Program Coordinator for the La Selva Outpatient Program
Franny is the Program Coordinator for the La Selva Outpatient Program. They are a recent graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire where they received their bachelor's in psychology. Franny has a passion for working with those processing marginalizing identities such as gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, and ability level and was one of the first graduates to receive a Tier III Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion (EDI) Certificate from their alma mater. As program coordinator, Franny facilitates therapy groups and manages day-to-day operations.
Dr. Wang is ABPN Board Certified in Adult Psychiatry and is La Selva Group's primary psychiatrist. He graduated from Harvard University with an undergraduate degree in Biochemical Sciences and received the National Science Scholar award. He received his M.D. and Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and completed his residency at Stanford University receiving The NIMH Outstanding Resident Award in 2005.
La Selva's Executive Director Jim Millsap CPRP adds, "It just seemed like the perfect time for LSG to add this new level of care to our array of services. I am very proud of those on our clinical teams taking this on. They have a real passion and commitment to serving those who suffer with trauma. This now adds even more depth in our efforts to provide support and care to those who have suffered from trauma.
Job Titles:
- Residential Lead Therapist
Jurek has been with La Selva Group for over 12 years. He received his PhD in psychology at ITP (through Sofia University) in Palo Alto. In addition to leading the residential clinical team and coordinating clients' care & recovery, he also conducts groups at California Ave: they include Heart & Mind Alignment, Family Constellation, Poetry and Archetypes, and psycho-dynamic experiential group. His approach is eclectic, holistic and pragmatic interwoven with healthy sense of humor & spirituality.
Kevin provides nursing services and medication oversight at our Residential Program.
Kristin is a Group Facilitator at La Selva. As a certified Wellness Recovery Action Plan Facilitator, she conducts WRAP groups twice a week, in addition to facilitating the LGBTTQQIIAAP (Rainbow) Group, and the evening/Alumni Program. Kristin is a graduate of the La Selva program and Notre Dame de Namur University.
Job Titles:
- Supportive Housing Specialist
Maya is a Supportive Housing Specialist assigned to our Supportive Housing program. She is a counselor at the Supportive Houses, Lowell and Middlefield; she also teaches classes, on Planning Your Future and Health and Wellness, for the Outpatient program.
Martha is a bilingual clinician working with both mono-lingual clients and clients participating in our outpatient program at La Selva. Using a blend of mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapy, Martha provides short term psychotherapy as well as case management services. Martha is passionate about community work and has worked in various settings including working with at-risk juvenile offenders, survivors of domestic violence and child protective services. Her interests include working with young adults, incarcerated/at-risk populations and family therapy.
Melissa (pronouns she/her/hers) is a licensed clinical social worker providing group and individual therapy. Melissa integrates her extensive experience in psychosocial rehabilitation and community mental health with her clinical training to provide practical and comprehensive care, employing cultural humility and intersectionality. She supports her clients to develop self-compassion, increase self-awareness, learn and practice coping skills and build on their strengths and resources. Melissa specializes in anxiety reduction, parenting support, codependency recovery, sleep hygiene and CBT for psychosis.
Job Titles:
- Director of Residential Admissions
Michelle Ly, LCSW is the Director of Residential Admissions at La Selva Group. She has over 19 years of experience in mental health services. She started as a Parent-Child Counselor and worked her way up to Clinician, Clinical Lead, and Associate Director. She has experience working in multiple settings in mental health and social work (e.g., residential, outpatient clinic, medical social work, and inpatient psychiatric behavioral health). Michelle has a bachelor's degree in Child Development and a master's degree in Social Work. She has worked with children, adolescents, and adults from diverse backgrounds. Her passion in mental health and social work stems from her own life experiences, perseverance, and resilience.
Job Titles:
- Director of Outpatient Admissions
- Outpatient Admissions Director
Monika Arnold, LCSW, is the Director of Admissions for outpatient services at La Selva. She also manages admissions and clients in the Functional Neurologic Symptom Disorder (FND) track at La Selva. In addition, Monika has caseload of clients, runs groups at the outpatient setting and supervises interns. Prior to joining our team Monika gained valuable experience working in residential setting working with adults, and wilderness therapy with teens. She graduated from the University of Michigan School of Social Work in 2008.
Robert provides individual therapy and case management for clients participating at the Middlefield Supportive Housing Program as well as facilitating groups in our outpatient program. Robert has been working with those diagnosed with Co-Occurring Disorders since 1998. Robert is passionate about community work and has worked in various settings including in patient behavioral health, residential, partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient programs. Other areas of interest include CBT, substance abuse, motivational interview and mindfulness.
Tengfei is a clinician in the Residential Treatment Center at La Selva. Tengfei received his Master‘s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Golden Gate University and a second Master's Degree in Transpersonal Psychology from Sofia University. He believes that psychotherapy is not just a way for individuals to learn how to cope, but also a path to cultivate potentials and reach higher Self. By applying Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), mindfulness approach, Sandplay therapy, psychoanalytic approaches, as well as spiritual explorations to people with different needs, Tengfei believes individuals can uncover the true self and clear their barriers through body-mind-spirit connection.
Tessa is a clinician at the residential treatment program at La Selva. She is a recent graduate from Notre Dame de Namur University where she received her master's in clinical psychology. Tessa has experience working with adolescents, youth, adults, and facilitating groups. She has studied grief, trauma, and loss and believes in creating a space where difficult feelings can be expressed and processed. She believes at the center of each person is well-being and encourages connections with nature and animals.
Dr. Ando (he/him) is a staff psychiatrist at La Selva. He graduated from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, and he is completing his residency at Stanford Hospitals and Clinics. He has undergone training in psychopharmacology, psychodynamic therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and CBT for insomnia. He has a particular interest in working with the young adult and college age population, and believes strongly in collaborating with his patients on their treatment decisions. He is a Bay Area native and enjoys rooting for the Giants and 49ers and trying out new restaurants.