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If you are an undergraduate who is interested in the work at TLC and you would like to volunteer, please submit your resume to Spring Opara, at springopara@thelinktochildren.org.
2012-2013
Psychology PracticumTraining
Application, Information & Instructions
(For MFT Application, please see below)
Mission of Agency
The Link to Children (TLC) was established as a 501(c)(3) non-profit community-based organization in August 1996 by a small group of concerned preschool and mental health professionals. Their goal was to give low-income high-risk children 0-5 years of age a good start in order to increase their ability to achieve productive lives as adolescents and adults. Our mission is to provide support to the emotional and social development of young children 0-5 years of age within a culturally relevant context so they will be able to develop to their full potential, no matter how difficult the circumstances of their lives.
Practicum
Training
Sixteen years later we now provide prevention and early
intervention services to 538 low-income high-risk families whose children have
acute mental health needs due primarily to the chaotic, often violent
circumstances in which they live. Our services are located on-site at
subsidized child development centers and a community center that provides
comprehensive domestic violence services.
Our early intervention mental health trainees provide play, individual
and dyadic therapy for the children and their families. Trainees also provide parenting guidance and
parent education workshops, as well as teacher consultation and training. Trainees are also exposed to the importance
of evidenced based interventions, pre and post intervention evaluations and
data collection for research/grant writing purposes. An opportunity also exists for 1-2 trainees
to provide trauma-based services to a wide range of children and adults.
Psychology trainees participate in the following activities
during their 20-24 hours per week:
- Up to 12-14 hours
per week of direct client service with children, teachers, parents or
other professionals
- 1 hour of
face-to-face individual supervision per week
- 1 hour of clinical
group supervision per week 3 times per month
- Up to 3 hours per
week of assessment services (for children ages 0 -5 years)
- 2 hours of
assessment group supervision per month
- Additional face-to
face supervision for assessment cases as assigned
- Up to 2 hours per
week allotted for administrative duties
Stipends
Stipends ranging from $3,000 to $5,000 for the year.
Assessment
Training at TLC
Psychology trainees have the unique opportunity to gain
experience in early childhood psychological testing. Trainees receive an orientation in the
administration and interpretation of common early childhood psychological
measures (Bayley-III, SB-5, Vineland-II etc…) to answer common questions about
developmental and behavioral concerns.
Trainees also learn how to conduct observations of young children in
natural settings, use the DSM-IV and DC 0-3 as diagnostic tools, and write
reports for multiple sources. Trainees
will be exposed to appropriate neuropsychological assessment tools as indicated
and will be shown an administration of the ADOS. Trainees will leave TLC with a solid
introduction of testing young children and should expect to conduct 3-4 full
battery evaluations on children under the age of 6.
Goodness
of Fit
TLC strives to provide all of its trainees with warmth,
nurturance and support as they embark on the challenge of fitting in a stimulating
practicum experience with their other University requirements. For this reason, only advanced G2 trainees
with previous mental health experience will be considered. G3 practicum students and above with previous
clinical experience and a foundation in either adult or child assessment are
strongly encouraged to apply. All
students must have a completed Master’s degree to apply.
Successful trainees at TLC have all been able to function
independently, be assertive, and able to work in a face-paced environment
wearing many different hats. All
trainees are placed in an off side child development center or mental health
clinic and must feel comfortable developing relationships with many
professionals and know when to seek supervision and ask for help. Resilience is necessary as work with young
children and their families is an intense, albeit, rewarding experience.
Application Requirements
TLC is a member of the BAPIC program and will follow BAPIC
guidelines. Please send a copy of your CV, a cover letter addressing why you think
you are a good fit with TLC’s mission and training goals, 3 letters of
recommendation, and a de-identified psychological testing report to:
Jennifer B. Rhodes, Psy.D.
Director of Training
The Link to Children
5236 Claremont Ave.
2nd Floor
Oakland, CA 94618
All applications must be postmarked by February 13, 2012 to be
considered. Please contact Dr. Rhodes at
510.428.2028 or at drjenniferrhodes@gmail.com
if you have any questions.
2012-2013 MFT Interns
Application, Information & Instructions
Mission
of Agency
The Link to Children (TLC) was established as a 501(c)(3)
non-profit community-based organization in August 1996 by a small group of
concerned preschool and mental health professionals. Their goal was to give
low-income high-risk children 0-5 years of age a good start in order to
increase their ability to achieve productive lives as adolescents and adults.
Our mission is to provide support to the emotional and social development of
young children 0-5 years of age within a culturally relevant context so they
will be able to develop to their full potential, no matter how difficult the
circumstances of their lives.
Internship
Training
Sixteen years later we now provide prevention and early
intervention services to 538 low-income high-risk families whose children have
acute mental health needs due primarily to the chaotic, often violent
circumstances in which they live. Our services are located on-site at
subsidized child development centers and a community center that provides
comprehensive domestic violence services.
Our early intervention mental health interns provide play, individual
and dyadic therapy for the children and their families. Interns also provide parenting guidance and
parent education workshops, as well as teacher consultation and training. Interns are also exposed to the importance of
evidenced based interventions, pre and post intervention evaluations and data
collection for research/grant writing purposes.
An opportunity also exists for 1-2 interns to provide trauma-based
services to a wide range of children and adults.
TLC takes training in the field of Infant and Preschool
Mental Health seriously. We provide
individual and group supervision on reflective consultation,
countertransference/transference issues in clinical work, assessment/treatment
of trauma, and how to understand ports of entry into working with complex
child/family systems.
MFT interns and social work interns participate in the
following activities during their 20 hours per week internship:
- Up to 12-14 hours
per week of direct client service with children, teachers, parents or
other professionals
- 1 hour of
face-to-face individual supervision per week
- 1 hour of clinical
group supervision per week 3 times per month
- 2 hours of
advanced case consultation per month
- Up to 2 hours per
week allotted for administrative duties
- Stipend of $5,000
for the year
Goodness
of Fit
TLC strives to provide all of its interns with warmth,
nurturance and support as they embark on the challenge of fitting in a
stimulating internship experience with their other licensing board
requirements. Successful interns at TLC
have all been able to function independently, be assertive, and able to work in
a face-paced environment wearing many different hats. Interns are placed in an off side child
development center or mental health clinic and must feel comfortable developing
relationships with many professionals and know when to seek supervision and ask
for help. Resilience is necessary as
work with young children and their families is an intense, albeit, rewarding
experience.
Application
Requirements
To apply, please send a copy of your CV, a cover letter
addressing why you think you are a good fit with TLC’s mission and training
goals, and 3 letters of recommendation
to:
Jennifer B. Rhodes, Psy.D.
Director of Training
The Link to Children
5236 Claremont Ave.
2nd Floor
Oakland, CA 94618
All applications must be postmarked by
February 13, 2012 to be considered.
Please contact Dr. Rhodes at 510.428.2028 or at drjenniferrhodes@gmail.com if you
have any questions.
2012 TLC Faculty and Staff
Hyon-Chin Lee, AM is the Executive Director of the Link to Children. Ms. Lee has served as a faculty member in the Department of Health and Education, Child and Family Studies Department at Montclaire State University, the UC Davis Extension Center for Human Services and at Consumnes River College in the Department of Business and Family Science. She has held multiple administrative positions including serving as Program Manager for Prevent Child Abuse California and Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights. She has presented at the Society for Research on Child Development and has co-facilitated conferences on home visitation and empowering the home visitor at the national Zero to Three conference and at Prevent Child Abuse America. Ms. Lee has also served as a trainer, consultant and as clinical staff in many non-profit organizations working with young children and families. Ms. Lee revised and published, “Building linguistic and cultural competence: A tool kit for managed care organizations and provider networks serving the foreign born” on behalf of Heartland Alliance for Human Rights and Human Need. She remains committed to providing high quality, culturally competent early childhood services to low income communities. Ms. Lee obtained a Masters in Social Work in 1999 from University of Chicago where she was a Wilma Walker Fellow and the Co-founder and Chair of the Pan-Asian Student Association. Ms. Lee also holds a degree in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Illinois, Urbana where she received the Jonathan Baldwin Turner Research Fellowship.
Selected Publications/Presentations:
Crick, Casas, & Ku. (1999) Relational and Physical Forms of Peer Victimization in Preschool. Developmental Psychology, 35, 2. 376-385.
Rosario Murga Kusnir, MFT is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFC#27905) born and raised in Mexico City. She has been working with the Latino population since she moved to the US in 1986. In the last 10 years she has focused her clinical interests on infant-parent psychotherapy. Currently, she is Director of Site Relations and Clinical Supervisor at The Link to Children and she also works as a clinician in the Services to Enhance Early Development (SEED) program of the Center for the Vulnerable Child at Children's Hospital & Research Center at Oakland, providing psychotherapy to families and children that are in a part of the Child Welfare System. She is Certified Gottman Educator and she is in the process of obtaining her certification as a Gottman Therapist. For more than 10 years Ms. Murga Kusnir has worked at La Familia Counseling Service in Hayward, CA and at La Cheim Children and Family Services as a bilingual therapist providing services to immigrant families and their children. She has taught Child Development and Child Therapy in the Psychology graduate program at the New College of San Francisco. Ms. Murga Kusnir also maintains a private practice in Berkeley, CA.
Selected Publications/Presentations:
Zlotnick, C; Wright, M.; Sanchez, R.; Murga Kusnir, R.; & Teio-Bennett, I. (2010). Adaptation of a Community-Based Participatory Research Model to Gain Community Input on Identifying Indicators of Successful Parenting. Child Welfare Journal of Policy, Practice, and Program, 89(4).
Jennifer B. Rhodes, Psy.D. is a California (PSY23201) and New York State (#018122) licensed psychologist who specializes in Child Forensic Psychology and Early Childhood Mental Health. She is currently in private practice in San Francisco and Menlo Park where she maintains a clinical child and adolescent psychotherapy and assessment practice as well as a child forensic psychology practice. In addition to her practice, Dr. Rhodes is the Director of Training and provides clinical supervision to psychology trainees at TLC.
Dr. Rhodes has advanced training in the assessment of attachment, parent-child relationships, parenting, the impact of divorce, child development and trauma with infants and young children. Prior to receiving her doctorate, Dr. Rhodes completed a Masters degree in Child Development and a Masters degree in School Psychology. She received her doctorate degree in 2008 from Yeshiva University with an emphasis in Clinical Child Psychology and completed clinical training at Bellevue Hospital, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, the Early Childhood Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and the NYU Child Study Center. In 2008 Dr. Rhodes completed her APA approved psychology internship at Tulane University School of Medicine and her post-doctoral fellowship in Infant Mental Health also at Tulane in 2009. Dr. Rhodes received her child custody training and advanced training in the assessment and treatment of young children involved in the dependency court system during her first post-doctoral year. Dr. Rhodes also completed formal post-doctoral training in forensic psychology at the Institute for Violence Abuse and Trauma at Alliant International University, San Diego.
Selected Publications:
Rhodes, J. B. (May/June 2011). Too much, too soon: Breaking the entitlement cycle. M Magazine,p. 96.
Linares, O.; Rhodes, J.B., & Montalto, D. (2010). Perceived coparenting and child problems among families in foster care. Family Process, 49, 530-542
Selected Presentations:
Fridlander, B., Rhodes, J. B. Chiu, E., and Isacoff, D. (2012).
Has the pendulum swung? Revisiting the psychological needs of the child. To be presented at the 49th Annual Conference, Attachment, Brain Science and Children of Divorce: The ABCD’s of Child Development for Family Law. Chicago, Il.
Rhodes, J.B. (August 2011). The assessment of young children involved in custody evaluations. Presented at Philip Stahl, Ph.D., ABPP 2011 Child Custody Evaluation Training for California Rules of Court 5.225 & 5.230. San Ramon, CA.
Rhodes. J. B.(October 2010). Parenting Plans in the 21st Century: Infants and Young Children. Presented at the Colorado Chapter of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts, Denver, CO.
Laila Shamszad, MFTis a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFC#47596). She currently serves as a Mental Health Consultant for TLC at three Oakland Unified School District preschools and is the TLC Clinical Program Coordinator. She has been providing mental health services to young children 0-5 and their families in the home, school, and clinic for the past seven years. Ms. Shamszad studied and worked in Early Childhood Education prior to completing her Masters' Degree in Clinical Psychology from the New College of California in 2006. She completed the training program at Child Trauma Institute with Dr. Alicia Lieberman in San Francisco in 2009, and continues to participate in training from Irving B. Harris Early Childhood Mental Health Training Program though Children's Hospital Oakland.
Lori Wensley, PhDis a licensed clinical psychologist (PSY 17879). Currently, Dr. Wensley is a Clinical Supervisor and Assessment Trainer at the Link to Children. Dr. Wensley also works with the Alta Bates Infant Follow up Clinic and is in private practice in San Francisco and San Leandro. She specializes in autism and developmental evaluations of children younger than 3 years old and conducts research on resilience, autism, and inclusion. Dr. Wensley obtained her degree in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Child and Family psychology in 1999 from the California School of Professional Psychology, now affiliated with Alliant International University. Dr. Wensley completed her CAPIC approved clinical internship at the Sullivan Center for Children and completed her Post-Doctoral Training at the Psychotherapy Institute of Individual, Family and Community Development and Children’s Hospital Oakland (CHO). Dr. Wensley worked at CHO for 7 years providing services as a clinical psychologist. Prior to her obtaining her doctorate degree, Dr. Wensley spent many years as an expert in Early Childhood Development and was a childhood educator from 1981-1994 and a business owner/director of a model Child Development Center from 1987-1994. Her center was known in Santa Cruz County for its anti-bias, inclusion, and Emilio Reggio emergent curriculum. Her child development center was also the site for language development research with UCSC’s Dr. Callanan.
Selected Publications:
Ebesugawa, M., Wensley, L. and Sims-Murphy, J. (2010). The Developmental and Social Benefits of the Inclusive E-karate Community Sports Program. The International Journal of the Humanities, 8(5).
Selected Presentations:
Wensley, L. and Ebesugawa, M. (2011). An Inclusive Sport and Curriculum Framework Presented by video conference at the Asian Conference on Education - Osaka, Japan.
Ebesugawa, M. Wensley, L (2010). The Effects of the Inclusive E-Karate Community Sports Program” Presented at the International Conference on Humanities, Honolulu, Hawaii.
Wensley, L (2007.) Assessment and Treatment of ADHD in Preschool Children. Presented at Children's Hospital Psychological Intern Training Seminar.
TLC is a culturally competent agency that is dedicated to increasing the number of culturally competent early childhood mental health professionals who serve children 0 – 5 years of age and their parents and teachers.
TLC offers psychology practicum students and marriage and family therapy interns the unique opportunity to acquire an expertise in culturally competent early childhood mental health.
Early Childhood Mental Health Training
On-site Services
Excellent Trainee/Intern Support
The 2011 -2012 Current Interns & Trainees and Their Respective Sites:
|
Breanna Gentile, MA, MS
Palo Alto University
|
Blue Skies for Children |
Oakland |
Pat Torres, BA
Argosy University |
Centro Vida/Bahia |
Berkeley |
Stacy Knight, MA
California Institute of Integral Studies |
Saint Vincent's Day Home |
Oakland |
Kate Ramsaur, BA
Alliant International University |
Alameda County Family Justice Center |
Oakland |
James de Quinto, BCBA
Palo Alto University |
21st Street YMCA |
Oakland |
| Loren Hadassah, MFTI |
Alameda County Family Justice Center |
Oakland |
| Matthew Jaffe, MFTI | <><><><>
21st Street YMCA |
Oakland |
