The Wright Institute

“People are immensely complicated and unique and interesting and fascinating,” reflected Janine Gee, a third- year student in the Wright Institute’s Counseling Psychology program. “Getting to be present with someone and be part of their journey - I think that's the piece that I've enjoyed the most about all of the work that I've done.”

Read more about Janine here - https://www.wi.edu/student-spotlight-janine-gee

"It took a lot of introspection and exploration for me to figure out what I wanted to do," shared André Jackson, a 2019 graduate of the Wright Institute Counseling Psychology program, "but once I started to feel the connection to the mental health world, everything fell into place."

Read more about André here - https://www.wi.edu/alumni-spotlight-andre-jackson

Dr. Kayoko Yokoyama, a core faculty member in the Wright Institute's Counseling Psychology program and adjunct faculty member in the Wright Institute's Clinical Psychology program, was born in Tokyo, Japan. She described her childhood and how, at age five, her father was asked by his company to relocate to the United States. “He went to the U.S. and my mom, younger sister, and I followed a couple of months later,” Dr. Yokoyama recalled. “They thought it would be a two-year assignment, but then two years later they asked him to stay two more years, and well, two decades passed.”

Read more about Dr. Yokoyama here - https://www.wi.edu/faculty-spotlight-kayoko-yokoyama

“I want to be able to provide to the next generation of clinicians the kind of caring, supportive, thought-provoking, life-changing support I received,” explained Dr. Susan Ryan, a 2022 graduate of the Wright Institute’s Clinical Psychology program and the current director of Wright Institute Older Adults Counseling and Psychological Services. “That's pretty ambitious, but my experience was life-changing and I try to provide the kinds of opportunities and support that I felt were so helpful for me as a student.”

Read more about Dr. Ryan here - https://www.wi.edu/alumni-spotlight-susan-ryan

Dr. Stephanie Kuehn, a half-time institute faculty member in the Wright Institute’s Clinical Psychology program, was born in Monterey, California. She was adopted at three months old and raised in the Elmwood district of Berkeley, California, where she lived with her parents and two older sisters. “Both of my parents are from the East Coast originally, but moved to Berkeley because of their interest in political advocacy,” she explained. "My dad was a journalist at the San Francisco Chronicle and my mom worked for KPFA radio.” Dr. Kuehn and her sisters attended Berkeley public schools and were raised as avid readers and writers.

Read more about Dr. Kuehn here - https://www.wi.edu/faculty-spotlight-stephanie-kuehn

Ignatius Chen, a fourth-year student in the Wright Institute’s Clinical Psychology program, was born and raised in Michigan. “Both sets of my grandparents were born in China and ended up fleeing China for Taiwan during the Communist Revolution, which is where my parents were born,” he shared. “My parents didn’t know each other in Taiwan, but they ended up both going to university in Michigan and met there.” After Ignatius and his younger sister were born, their parents decided to stay in Michigan and raise their children there.

Read more about Ignatius here - https://www.wi.edu/student-spotlight-ignatius-chen

April Parker, a second-year student in the Wright Institute’s Counseling Psychology program, was born and raised in Northern California. She lived with her mother, who was a single mom, and her older brother. “My mother worked very hard and was doing the best she could to take care of two young children,” she reflected. “A lot of our social safety nets were already weakened at that time and there were a lot of ways our family fell through the holes.” Despite the family’s personal and financial struggles, April remembers a childhood filled with laughter and fun. “I was taught from a young age how to laugh in the face of life's most difficult challenges,” she explained. “That's a lovely piece of my childhood that I feel really grateful for.”

Read more about April here - https://www.wi.edu/news-student-spotlight-april-parker

The Wright Institute's Psychology Outreach Program (POP) invites Bay Area college students and other adults to explore pathways to advanced psychology degrees—from Master's to Doctoral level and beyond at their Real Stories Diverse Voices event on May 9th from 11:30am-3:30pm. Connect with diverse graduate students and mental health professionals for mentorship, networking, and real-world insight. Come learn and be inspired.

RSVP here - https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdNCv04QaATMixD1TVa1SFxhtVXD5Ddevv3fPSm_BDV9fMgSQ/viewform

“I don't have dreams of grandiosity. I just want to be able to take care of myself and my loved ones and enjoy each day,” explained May Zahm, the program coordinator for the Wright Institute’s Counseling Psychology program. “I'm trying not to take for granted what I already have, how blessed I am, and how much I've established for myself.”

Read more about May - https://www.wi.edu/news-staff-spotlight-may-zahm

Dr. Krystal Stanley, a core faculty member in the Wright Institute’s Counseling Psychology program, spent the first fifteen years of her life in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she lived with her parents and three younger siblings. When Dr. Stanley was fifteen, her family moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida for her father’s job in the pharmaceutical field. They moved again to Fort Dodge, Iowa for her senior year of high school. “It seems like it would be a big deal, but it didn’t feel that way,” she reflected. “I think I was always up for an adventure!”

Read more about Dr. Stanley - https://www.wi.edu/news-faculty-spotlight-krystal-stanley