Meet our Team

CLINICAL COUNSELOR

Anna Le (She/They) is a Vietnamese-American, Bay Area native, lifelong student of contemplative spiritual practices, and an associate licensed psychotherapist. They utilize compassion-based practices, mindfulness, and various spiritual modalities through a somatic-based and trauma-informed lens to heal others. They are committed to showing up as an open, warm, and nonjudgmental presence in the therapeutic space.

They are an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (#145443) and Associate Professional Clinical Counselor (#16050) in California .

They earned their Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Sonoma State University and B.A. in Psychology from University of California, Davis. They have experience counseling LGBTQ+ and BIPOC youths in high school & college settings and have taught undergraduate students as a teacher assistant.

CLINICAL COUNSELOR

Ashley Majoros (She/Her) is a first generation American, dual citizen. Ashley grew up in a low income community and pursued her education to increase her opportunities to serve those around her. She is an alumni of San Diego State's CBB Counseling program where she earned her master’s degree with an Emphasis in Multicultural Social Justice. She is an Associate Professional Clinical Counselor in California (#12368). Ashley has been a college counselor assisting students in the EOPS, CalWORKs and International Programs at Grossmont Community College, Southwestern Community College and MiraCosta Community College.

Ashley has passion and enthusiasm for guiding individuals to improve their emotional, physical and mental health. Throughout her experiences working with adolescents and youth in the San Diego Youth Services and Social Advocates for Youth programs, she built strong connections with those who have experienced trauma and want to improve their overall wellbeing.

OFFICE MANAGER

Carena (She/Her) spent over three years in the mental health field. With work experience in mental health administration and an educational background in professional counseling, Carena has truly grown to love this field. She’s passionate about connecting clients with quality care, and supporting mental health professionals so they can show up refreshed for their clients.

In addition to working as an office manager, Carena is a proud dog-momma of two German Shepherd pups and an aunt to six (soon to be eight!) nieces and nephews. Some of her values include equality, destigmatizing mental health, humane animal treatment, and empowering others to live their most authentic lives.

With a warm and welcoming demeanor, Carena is dedicated to ensuring that every client feels heard, valued, and supported from the very first interaction.

Contact Carena Here.

EQUITY TRAINING FACILITATOR & COACH

Caroline Haskell (She/Her) is a board-certified and Licensed Clinical Social Worker in California (#20408); national consultant for the National Coalition Building Institute; certified Koru Mindfulness and Meditation Teacher; co-founder of Whites for Racial Equity (WRE), the Monterey County affiliate of SURJ; and, faculty emeritus at CSU Monterey Bay where she was the founding director of the Personal Growth and Counseling Center. She is the co-author and editor of the award-winning book, Combined Destinies: Whites Sharing Grief About Racism.

Caroline serves as a national consultant and lecturer on diversity, equity and inclusion to many institutions of higher education, including Stanford University, several UC campuses and Columbia University. She is an adjunct faculty at both CSUMB and Smith College for Social Work. She is committed to mental health and wellness, anti-racism, and guiding others in self-discovery. She and her spouse live in Pacific Grove, CA with their dog, Musubi.

CO-FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Jayne (She/Her) - or Dr. J if you prefer - is a Cisgender white woman who grew up in Salinas, CA. She is committed to addressing inequities that impact mental health by increasing access to high quality services, creating opportunities for new professionals to integrate advocacy, social justice, privilege and oppression into their professional identity and practice, and training non-clinical staff and adults to build their capacity to foster mental health and wellness. She started in the mental health field as a volunteer for a suicide crisis hotline in 1998. For over 20 years, Jayne has worked in residential treatment, community college, university, charter school, job training and private practice settings providing individual and group counseling, program management, curriculum design and facilitation, clinical supervision, professional development and training.

She has taught in high school, undergraduate and graduate programs. She is a nationally board-certified counselor (#202501), Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor in California (#495) and Approved Clinical Supervisor (#4610). She earned her Ph.D. in Counselor Education and Supervision from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA, a Master’s Degree in Counseling from University of San Diego in San Diego, CA, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Development from Boston College in Chestnut Hill, MA.

EQUITY TRAINING FACILITATOR & COACH

Dr. LaShauna Dean (She/Her) has over 8 years experience as an educator and DEI consultant. With a doctorate degree in education, Dr. Dean is able to seamlessly blend interactive pedagogical strategies with practical, real-world experience. She has provided high-energy, interactive presentations on a variety of topics including implicit bias, microaggressions, assertive communication strategies, classroom management strategies, stress management, addressing mental health problems in schools, cross-cultural communication tools, and many more.

With over 9 years of educational training, Dr. Dean has a knack for making meaningful connections with attendees whether in-person or virtually. She quickly engages with groups and leaves them with empowering tools and focused mindsets that they will use long after the training has ended. Dr. Dean is a consistently highly rated trainer skilled at engaging employees and broaching difficult topics. As a relationship-driven leader with research skills, and the ability to focus on data driven results; she is skilled at exerting influence at all levels of the organization.

EQUITY TRAINING FACILITATOR & COACH

As a transformational leader, Dr. Lawrence V. Fitz (He/Him) has worked in the field of education in exciting and rewarding roles in public and private institutions, Fortune 500 corporations, and non-profit environments. His experience includes training, mentoring, and coaching school leaders and administrators; authoring curriculum and evaluating instructional programs; serving as lead school site administrator; and teaching in the areas of music, leadership, and college & career-readiness. Dr. Fitz received a service award of distinction by the California State Senate for his “commitment to inspiring vision and leadership excellence.”

Dr. Fitz’s research interests are in social & educational justice leadership with a three-pronged focus in Mentorship (establishing support systems for marginalized, at-risk, and transitional-aged youth); Human Capital Development (building human capital through education and career attainment); and Arts Advocacy (achieving justice through inclusivity practices in choral music, film/TV, and theatre). His doctoral dissertation explored and compared effective national and regional mentoring frameworks for transitional-aged youth in educational settings.

Fitz holds the Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Leadership for Educational Justice from the University of Redlands. He possesses California K-12, career-technical, and adult education credentials for administrative service leadership and teaching in the areas of Arts, Media & Entertainment, and Business.

EQUITY TRAINING FACILITATOR & COACH

Dr. Marie Brown-Mercadel (She/Her) is a seasoned human services executive with 38 years of experience serving at the executive level in California, North Carolina, Louisiana, and Texas. She served on statewide committees focused on child welfare in California and developed curricula related to trauma-informed care and strengths-based leadership.

Dr. Mercadel is certified in Lean Six Sigma, University of Central Florida’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Program, and Gallup’s strengths-based leadership coaching. She is also a credentialed California County Senior Executive through the California Association of Counties. She earned her Doctorate in Management from University of Phoenix. She incorporates the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion into staff training, employee orientation, and organizational policies and procedures. Dr. Mercadel is a published author and inspirational speaker.

EQUITY TRAINING FACILITATOR & COACH

Paula (They/Them/She) is a Multi-Race native of South Central Los Angeles, Queer Affirming LMFT, focusing on providing services to Multi-Race, Black, Latine, and other melanated folks within the LGBTQIA+ community. As a dedicated leader in holistic healing services, they focus their time and energy on challenging systems of harm, specifically those that uphold racism, oppression, and denial of rights for the Queer, Transgender, Non-Binary, and Gender Non-Conforming communities. Paula is driven by the mental health movement to ensure equitable access to mental health services and reframing resilience as a form of resistance that strengthens individual capacity to continue our collective fight for social justice.

They combine their 20+ years as a community counselor with Eastern practices to offer healing through somatic psychotherapy, movement, breathwork, and EMDR. Paula has experience in building healing community partnerships, mental health education, crisis response, curriculum development, and workshops. They began in the mental health field as a volunteer domestic violence advocate with Project Peacemakers in conjunction with the L.A.P.D. as an on-scene crisis counselor in 2000.

They recently completed a Doctorate in Social Work from The University of Southern California. Paula received their Master of Arts Degree in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University and their Bachelor of Science from Cal State Northridge. They are a Clinical Supervisor and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California (#116553). They are a certified mindfulness and yoga instructor trained in trauma-sensitive yoga techniques.