Who We Are

Marie is a clinical psychologist with a broad background in school, college, and hospital mental health. Marie completed her Ph.D. at The New School for Social Research and trained at the Yale School of Medicine, at the Yale University Counseling Center, and with the Sheppard Pratt Health System. Marie has worked in a variety of residential and school treatment settings including special education, inpatient and outpatient eating disorders treatment, residential treatment, and in independent schools. Marie also maintains a private practice. Marie practices psychotherapy within a framework that integrates neuroscience, positive psychology, narrative therapy, self-acceptance, and a view toward lifelong growth.

As Director of the Counseling Center Marie oversees all aspects of the Counseling Center’s services, including outreach, psychotherapy, and support and consultation with students, parents, and faculty and staff, and the Notre Dame Community. Marie also provides supervision and training to the Counseling Center’s graduate level counselors. Marie is excited to be a part of the Notre Dame of Maryland community and its support of students, and is wholeheartedly committed to the support of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Cara has always been proud to be a licensed clinical social worker. She graduated from McDaniel College with a BSW and received her MSW from University of Maryland, Baltimore. Upon graduation she anticipated doing macro level social work, but over the years found her passion in providing micro level clinical counseling. Prior to transitioning to higher education, Cara spent decades of her career working with victims and survivors of intimate partner and sexual violence in a variety of non-profit and hospital settings. This work consisted of crisis intervention, advocacy, outreach, case management and both individual and group counseling. In working with clients, Cara focuses on the impact of early life experiences, family of origin dynamics, oppression and current life stressors as they are all important factors in our functioning and well-being.

As a therapist Cara has always been, and continues to be, grateful for the opportunity to work with people and recognizes the courage it takes to seek support via therapy. She uses a variety of treatment modalities, including internal family systems, acceptance and commitment, compassion focused, and mindfulness-based strategies. Cara's goal is to facilitate clients in identifying and getting to where they want to go; providing the support they need along the way. Beyond being a therapist, and in an effort to "practice what she preaches," she has many hobbies that she enjoys which include spending time outside, tennis, time with friends and family, reading and listening to books and podcasts. She's excited to be a part of the NDMU community with such an important mission, including the focus on social responsibility.

Joe is a fourth-year doctoral student in the clinical psychology program at Loyola University of Maryland. He completed his M.S. in clinical psychology at Loyola University of Maryland, and a B.A. in Psychology from Rutgers University in New Jersey. Joe has served people of a wide range of ages in a variety of settings, including the Loyola Clinical Centers, Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital, private practice, and several social work domains. He has a special interest in trauma, as well as the influence of gender on identity/self-understanding. Joe’s therapeutic style is informed by a psychodynamic approach, interpersonal process, and mindfulness-based intervention, drawing from the potential of the therapeutic relationship to facilitate change.

Joe sees individuals as the leading expert on themselves, and he lets their expertise guide psychotherapy in a safe, nonjudgmental environment. He works together with clients to understand their goals and values, and to collaboratively determine what may be needed to live congruently with them. Joe believes that relationships – with family, friends, coworkers, culture, and other systems – have the potential to offer clarity and drive meaning in a person’s life. Joe enjoys the process of understanding and articulating these relationships further with clients, and in finding language to capture their influence.

His personal and therapeutic intent can be captured by words from Victor Frankl: “Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose.” Joe believes that therapy can be a great mechanism for cultivating that meaning and purpose, and he appreciates the challenge, drive, and process needed to find it.

Kate earned her master’s degree in clinical psychology from Loyola University Maryland where she is currently a fourth-year student pursuing her doctorate degree. Before her graduate training, Kate was an English teacher to adult refugees and asylum seekers in Maine as well as a Fulbright scholar in the Netherlands. She received her bachelor’s degree in psychology and education from Bates College.

Kate’s approach to therapy is holistic, individualized, and strengths based. She pays special attention to understanding the impact of sociocultural identity and intergenerational oppression, family of origin and relationship dynamics, and stuck thinking patterns when contextualizing current distress and day-to-day functioning. She uses a psychodynamic approach while integrating techniques from interpersonal processing, and cognitive-behavioral therapies, such as acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT). Kate has received specialized training in treating anxiety disorders, OCD, mood disorders, and concerns related to personality and relationship functioning. Other clinical interests include group therapy, trauma, grief/loss, spirituality, and identity exploration.

Jackie is a doctoral student in the counseling psychology program at Pacifica Graduate Institute. She received an M.A. in Global Marketing Communications and Advertising from Emerson College and a B.A. in International Studies from West Virginia University.

Jackie’s approach to psychotherapy is grounded in her belief in the importance of human connection and relatedness. She focuses on the uniqueness of each person and strives to create a therapeutic relationship based on empathy and characterized by authenticity, caring, and acceptance. Jackie believes in the power of insight and uses a combination of psychodynamic, interpersonal, existential-humanistic, and attached-based modalities to help people examine their inner motivations, current anxieties, and early relational patterns as they work towards creating a more connected and meaningful life. Her research focuses on the protective effect of chosen family and the adaptation of attachment-based therapy to help members of the LGBTQIA+ community thrive.

Jackie is a student member of the Washington-Baltimore Center for Psychoanalysis (WBCP), the District of Columbia Psychological Association (DCPA), the Virginia Academy of Clinical Psychologists (VACP), the Los Angeles County Psychological Association (LACPA), and the American Psychological Association (APA).

D’Anna Freeman is a Doctoral Level Extern attending The Chicago School of Professional Psychology where she is pursuing her Doctorate of Clinical Psychology (Pys.D). She has earned a B.A in Psychology and minor in Sociology at Norfolk State University.

During D’Anna’s academic journey, she has gained experience in working with diverse backgrounds and socio-economic populations amongst children, adults, and families from various walks of life. In addition, D’Anna has gained knowledge in psychological assessments and report writing, clinical interviewing, adult and child psychopathology, and family systems. D’Anna is particularly passionate about social-economic barriers such as but not limited to, social justice related issues, anxiety and adjustment-related stressors, adverse childhood trauma, sexual trauma, and family systems.