Jennifer Atencio-Bacayon, Ph.D., Founder
Dr. Atencio-Bacayon is a licensed psychologist in New York State. She received her doctorate in clinical psychology with a specialization in children and adolescents from St. John’s University. She has worked in various clinical settings including hospitals, community mental health centers, inpatient settings, college counseling center, and outpatient programs throughout the New York area including Long Island Jewish – Zucker Hillside Hospital, Maimonides Medical Center, Holliswood Hospital, and Queens Hospital Center.
Dr. Atencio-Bacayon works with clients struggling with various life events and stressors. She has significant experience working with a variety of issues including anxiety, trauma, depression, mood disorders, trauma, identity issues, poor self-esteem, loss and bereavement, ADHD and behavior problems, anger, and weight management. She also helps couples struggling with relationship issues and communication problems. In addition, she assists families in resolving conflict, finding balance and increasing their communication skills. She also helps families cope with difficult life transitions and changes within the family. She views each client as unique and aims to identify specific goals while being sensitive to ethnic, cultural, and religious beliefs and values.
Trauma/Abuse/Sexual Assault Training
Dr. Atencio-Bacayon has received specialized cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) training and has extensive experience in working with children and their families who have experienced sexual abuse, physical abuse, and other forms of trauma. In addition, she has conducted multiple trainings on sexual assault and trauma. At St. John’s University’s Center for Counseling and Consultation where she served as the center’s Assistant Director for Outreach Services, she provided workshops to staff, faculty, administrators, public safety officers, and students on topics such as responding to sexual assault survivors and trauma. She was also part of the University’s Sexual Violence Prevention Taskforce where she worked with university leaders to improve the response and prevention of sexual violence on campus. She conducted campus wide trainings on Title IX reporting and Bystander Skill-building which were offered by Human Resources. Dr. Atencio-Bacayon is passionate about providing services and treatment to survivors and their families and continues to provide outreach to the community on these topics to promote awareness and prevention.
Background
Dr. Atencio-Bacayon is one of the few Filipino-American licensed psychologists in New York. Her research interests include multicultural issues and ethnic disparities in psychological and physical health. She has co-authored articles in peer reviewed journals and has presented her research findings in both national and international conferences. In 2007 she presented her research findings at the International Congress of Behavioral Medicine in Bangkok, Thailand where she received a Citation Award. Dr. Atencio-Bacayon continues to conduct research on multicultural issues to guide her outreach initiatives to ethnic minority populations including the Asian American community. She has been working with different Asian American cultural organizations in the New York City area to promote mental health awareness. She hopes to help de- stigmatize mental illness among Asian Americans especially Filipino Americans. She hopes through psychoeducation and awareness that Asian Americans will be more open to the idea of seeking help and receiving mental health treatment when needed.
Katie Leinung, Psy.D – Staff Psychologist
Dr. Leinung specializes in working with young children and adolescents of all ages who are experiencing a wide range of stressors. Throughout her career, Dr. Leinung has learned to provide individual treatment for a diverse group of clients and to collaborate with other professionals and families to help provide the best outcome for the clients.
Dr. Katie Leinung received her doctorate in Child and School Psychology (Psy.D) from Pace University. During her time in the doctoral program, Dr. Leinung provided individual therapy to college-aged students who struggled with various stressors including adjustment to college, social anxiety, and personality disorders. Additionally, she worked for two years at an elementary school where she conducted multiple group and individual counseling sessions focusing on behavioral management and social skills. She collaborated with teachers and parents to provide the best psychological care for the students. Dr. Leinung also worked at a foster care agency and a residential treatment center. While at the foster care agency, she worked with a diverse range of families to help children of varying ages process their traumatic experiences. At the residential treatment center, she conducted individual therapy with children who were diagnosed with intellectual disabilities and emotional dysregulation. Her work with these children focused on developing their social skills, giving them tools to regulate their emotions, increasing their self-esteem, and processing their traumatic backgrounds.