Jean Carlos is the founder and Clinical/Executive Director at Minds Together, LCSW PC. He graduated from Stony Brook University in 2007 with a Master’s in Social Work (MSW). He is also a NYS Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and a Certified Dialectical Behavioral Therapist (CDBT) Spanish/English speaking male. Jean has worked in the field of Social Work for more than 12 years in many different social work settings, including Psychiatric hospitals/institutions, inpatient and outpatient mental health facilities, community centers, non-profit agencies, LGBTQI community centers, and has been in private practice for the past eight years. He specializes in childhood trauma/abuse/neglect, unresolved childhood issues, addictive behaviors, personality disorders, anxiety, depression, and gender identity conflicts. He has also worked with victims of human sex trafficking, the undocumented population, and provided psychological and mental health reports for immigration purposes.
Salvatore is a bicultural-Hispanic (English/Spanish) speaking NYS Licensed Social Worker. Before joining this practice, Salvatore provided psychotherapy in psychiatric hospitals, outpatient community mental health settings, and non-profit agencies. Salvatore holds a BA from Pace University, an MA from New York University, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, an MA from New York University, Graduate School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, and an MSW from Hunter College – Silberman School of Social Work. Salvatore has been an independent psychotherapist for more than twelve years. His areas of expertise include anxiety disorders, mood disorders, personality disorders, trauma and stress-related disorders. Salvatore has experience working with children, adolescents, and adults. He provides a nonjudgmental approach, empathetic/unconditional listening, and focuses on exploring patients’ inner strength to guide them in resolving their concerns/issues. Salvatore is an ally to the LGBTQI+ community.
Allan is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW). He received his Master’s in Social Work (MSW) from New York University (NYU) Silver School of Social Work in 2018. Allan completed his training in psychodynamic psychotherapy from the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy (ICP) in the Spring of 2022. He is a Hispanic (Spanish/English) speaking male highly passionate about therapy. He also partakes in psychoanalytic training at the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy (ICP) to enhance patients’ therapeutic journeys. He has experience working with people from all backgrounds and mental health needs in outpatient settings. He believes therapy should be where patients talk about anything that comes to mind, creating a safe, empathic, and accepting environment. He is a steadfast supporter and ally of the LGBTQI+ community who uses compassion and a nonjudgmental approach to create a safe environment.
Justina is a recent Graduate of Stony Brook University, receiving her Master of Social Work degree in May of 2023 with a specialization in Families, Youth, and Transition to Adulthood. She has previous experience practicing within the school system, researching the mental and physical transition of students from High School to College life and young adult students who are developmentally disabled. She has recently obtained a certificate of completion in Core Components and Skills for Trauma Informed Practice from the UNC School of Social Work Behavioral Health Springboard. Her treatment methods include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Client-Centered Approach, Family Therapy, Play Therapy, Trauma Informed Practice, and Solution Focused Therapy. Justina encourages and provides comfort, allowing clients an open, communicative, safe space. She is driven to serve the communities she encounters.
Jessica is a psychotherapist who recently graduated from Capella University with a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. She has worked in the mental health field for over eight years, supporting multicultural individuals and families with experience in nonprofit and private practice settings. Her therapy approach is holistic, focusing on an individual’s strengths and abilities. She aims to provide a supportive, judgment-free environment that encourages personal growth and wellness. She is an ally of the LGBTQIA community.
Solaman is a doctoral candidate student in psychology and is currently doing his clinical training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy. His graduate studies in philosophy have given him a deep understanding of the complexities of human consciousness and a passion for understanding the unconscious aspects of human experience. He specializes in psychodynamic psychotherapy and psychoanalysis. He is skilled at exploring the unconscious aspects of the human mind, facilitating a deeper understanding of the influence of past experiences on present thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. His expertise lies in helping individuals navigate complex emotions including trauma, attachment issues, self-esteem issues, and relationship difficulties. Solaman employs a non-judgmental and supportive approach, creating a safe environment where clients can explore their inner world with curiosity and self-reflection. He encourages clients to explore their deepest thoughts and feelings to help them gain insight into their unconscious motivations, unresolved conflicts, and recurring patterns of behavior. He values the collaborative nature of therapy and actively involves his clients in the treatment process, empowering them to take an active role in their healing journey. He helps individuals develop self-awareness, understand the origins of their emotional struggles, and work toward meaningful change. Individuals embark on a transformative journey towards self-discovery and personal growth with his guidance.
Marielle Ray (English/Spanish) is a graduate of Columbia University School of Social Work where she received an MSW in 2023. Marielle specialized in Advanced Clinical Practice and studied a variety of clinical modalities including CBT, DBT, IFS, Motivational Interviewing, Solutions Focused Therapy, among others. Prior to beginning her social work career, Marielle completed her Bachelor’s degree at Hunter College. Through her work at Minds Together and precious clinical experience, Marielle has worked with clients experiencing anxiety, depression, adjustment disorders, post-traumatic stress, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and a variety of other mental health issues.
Jasmine received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art with a Photography concentration and a minor in Philosophy from Georgia State University. Jasmine also recently completed her Master’s Degree in Art Therapy at New York University. Prior to her pursuit of art therapy, Jasmine was awarded an AmeriCorps ArtistYear fellowship for two years, a position through which she used art education to support underserved students in local schools. In addition, Jasmine as worked as a teaching artist and art therapist with in a wide variety of communities including immigrant families with neurodiverse children, survivors of domestic abuse, and refugee children. Her experience as a bi-racial LGBTQ+ artist informs her practice and her focus on providing a supportive space for free expression.”
Olga Preciado is a first generation, bilingual (Spanish) and bicultural Mexican American clinician, who holds a Master of Social Work from NYU Silver School of Social Work. Over the past 8 years, Olga has worked with predominantly Spanish-speaking migrant children and families in Oakland, Chicago and New York City in multiple settings. She has experience working with individuals with anxiety, depression, adjustment disorders, behavioral problems, grief and loss, crisis management and life transitions. Olga’s practice includes CBT, mindfulness, narrative therapy and art and play therapy components. Olga has made it her mission to operate through a social justice lens in everything she does, and offers a holistic, person-centered, and trauma-informed approach. She aims to create a brave space where clients feel welcomed and empowered to be willing to dive into their self-discovery journey.
Estelle is a Licensed Master of Social Work (LMSW) who graduated with Honors with a Master’s degree from Hunter College’s Silberman School of Social Work, and also holds an MFA in Acting from The New School. As a bicultural, first-generation American, she speaks fluent French and some Spanish, and has experience supporting individuals from diverse backgrounds facing challenges around a variety of mental health needs including ADHD, depression, anxiety, trauma, and abuse, as well as the impacts of immigration status, foster care and justice system involvement, poverty, LGBTQ+ identity, race, and other intersectional areas of marginalization. Using Person-Centered, Trauma-Informed, Strengths-based, and Psychodynamic work with individuals and families, as well as Art Therapy with groups (including music, movement/dance, theater, creative writing, and visual art), she takes a collaborative approach to create empathetic, non-judgmental spaces in which people feel empowered to heal and grow.
Meet Maria Camilo, your compassionate guide on the healing journey. With over 8 years of devoted social work services, Maria specializes in supporting Spanish-speaking immigrant adults in New York City. Fluent in three languages, Maria bridges cultural divides to connect deeply with her clients. Holding a Master’s in Social Work (MSW) from Yeshiva University, Wurzweiler School of Social Work.
As an Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Specialist, she is deeply committed to guiding survivors of domestic abuse. Through her leadership of the online community, “DR-Discussing the Relationship,” Maria provides tailored support and empowerment, particularly to compatriots and fellow Brazilian women.
Grace is a Creative Arts Therapist, currently practicing with a NYS limited permit. She has had extensive training in the mental health field as a Creative Arts Therapist. She received her bachelor’s degree in Arts and Science majoring in Creative Arts Therapy from St. Thomas Aquinas College and received her Master of Professional Studies in Art Therapy and Creativity Development from Pratt Institute. She has worked with a wide range of clients, from students K-12 in a day treatment center/school for those with emotional and behavioral difficulties, to adults in a rehabilitation/detox center. Based on her prior experience with said clients, She strives to create an inclusive safe space in order for those seeking treatment to effectively heal through creativity and psychotherapy.
Melanie is a Licensed Master of Social Work who graduated from New York University in May 2023. She has experience in non-profit agencies, NYC shelter systems, advocating for Asylum Seekers and Psychotherapy. Melanie has also dedicated over a decade of her life to learning and practicing yogic philosophy, acquiring over 500 hours of Yoga Teacher Trainings. Within these training sessions, she learned to incorporate tools such as movement, breath-work, and meditation into her practice. Likewise, she specializes in treatment modalities such as CBT, Psychoanalysis, Mindfulness, Play Therapy, Group Therapy, and Person-centered therapy. Melanie’s philosophy when it comes to healing is reconnection to the true self. Melanie’s aim is to cultivate environments that are inclusive, safe, loving, empathetic, and growth centered.
Shenelle is a NYS Licensed Master Social Worker and a Silberman School of Social Work graduate. She has experience working with individuals of all ages. She prioritizes the utilization of strength-based & client centered treatment interventions to help her clients feel empowered and supported. She specializes in helping clients cope with anxiety, depression, life transitions, and grief/loss.
She choice treatment modalities include but are not limited to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Solution Focused Brief Therapy, and Narrative Therapy. She incorporates approaches that consider cultural diversity, women’s issues, and stages of development. Through her work, She seeks to aid her clients with becoming the best version of themselves.
Halinah Neris graduated from Mercy University with a Masters degree in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT-LP). She is proud to be a Hispanic military veteran woman who speaks fluent Spanish and English, born and raised in New York City. Her training in family therapy is extensive, with specialties in narrative therapy, Internal Family Systems, and Cognitive behavioral therapy. Halinah enjoys working with children, teens, and young adults and is well versed in helping them traverse challenges such as depression, anxiety, ADHD, and others. She is able to work with people individually, as well as with couples. As a systemic therapist she understands the interrelated relationships that form families and/or communities. For Halinah, family therapy’s main focus is on improving, transforming, and healing interactions between family members. She is creative and innovative in her interventions, working to improve communication and encourage adjustments to change.
She is a bilingual (Spanish/English) Clinical Psychology PhD candidate at Long Island University-Brooklyn and currently has a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology. She has been therapeutically trained through a psychodynamic relational lens and utilize an integrative approach, incorporating DBT, TFP, and CBT techniques. She has worked in a variety of clinical settings, including; inpatient settings, therapeutic schools, outpatient clinics, and in-home. She has experience working with clients across the lifespan, from infancy to end-of-life care. She strives to offer a therapeutic environment that is consistent, warm, empathic, and validating. She is interested in serving minority communities and providing both cultural humility and cultural competence to clients.
Valerie received her Masters degree in Social Work from New York University in 2024. She has worked in elementary school and higher education settings supporting individuals across the lifespan. Her expertise includes working with individuals with ADHD, autism, and various disabilities as they navigate life transitions and the social world, while enhancing skills around self-advocacy, self-regulation, and social interaction to promote self-esteem. Valerie has experience implementing CBT, play therapy, mindfulness, and trauma-informed practice in her collaborative work with each client. Her approach involves working alongside individuals to create a life worth living that allows them to be all of who they are.
Gili is a Licensed Master Social Worker. She offers a compassionate space where you can bring your whole self without judgment. Her work with adults, adolescents, and children covers a broad range of struggles including anxiety, depression, relationship issues, difficulties with intimacy, complex trauma and challenging family dynamics. Her approach is grounded in a psychodynamic perspective (how your history affects your present experience) and is informed by her years as a yoga practitioner and teacher. She sees therapy as a transformative practice that helps you clarify old experiences and develop new approaches to life that work and feel better for you. Gili received a Master’s of Social Work from Silberman School of Social Work Hunter College, and a Bachelor’s in Theater from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Spencer holds a Master of Social Work degree from the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College (CUNY) and comes to psychotherapeutic work after a decade teaching history at the City College of New York (CUNY) and the Harry Van Arsdale Jr. School of Labor Studies (SUNY Empire State College). Spencer’s work as a historian informs his psychodynamic approach, a practice that examines how socio-historical conditions and systemic forces configure psychological experience, engender conscious and unconscious thoughts and beliefs, and produce recursive behavioral and relational patterns. Integrating his focus on understanding how a client’s past informs their present with modalities and techniques that enable clients to address present challenges in more immediate, direct, and short-term manners, Spencer considers growth as proceeding from client-led processes of disalienation, self-empowerment, and emancipatory self-transformation. Experienced working in educational and social work contexts with adolescents and young adults and doing trauma-informed work with refugee and immigrant populations seeking asylum, Spencer grounds his psychotherapeutic practice in a commitment to social justice and a belief that, in Saidiya Hartman’s words, “care is the antidote to violence.” Recognizing care as essential for dismantling and replacing harmful social and psychological structures—be they destructive self-concepts, behaviors, and internalized narratives, or oppressive social systems, institutions, and discourses—Spencer views psychotherapy as hopeful, collaborative care work that enables clients to create new possibilities for personal growth, loving and liberated relationships, and collective care in families and communities.
Jossiel is a bilingual (Spanish/English) Licensed Master Social Worker who graduated in 2019 from Hunter College’s Silberman School of Social Work. He has over 9 years of experience helping individuals living with chronic medical, mental, and substance use conditions reach their goals by identifying clients’ strengths and interactively creating strategies to achieve positive change. In his professional trajectory, Jossiel has helped those experiencing homelessness, abuse, racial bias/discrimination, homophobia, and those being affected by HIV/AIDS. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), motivational interviewing, mindfulness and a welcoming smile are some of the techniques he tailors during sessions to improve clients’ health outcomes. Jossiel believes that each therapy session is a judgement-free safe space to explore feelings, motivations, and desires while being kind to ourselves and others. He is compassionate, detail-oriented, and an “outside the box” thinker with a sense of humor.
John D. Melendez is a bilingual, English and Spanish speaking, Mental Health and Substance Use Counselor experienced in providing assessment and treatment to adolescents, adults, and families from diverse ethno-cultural and racial backgrounds in order to determine appropriate services and referrals needed, implementing short-term and long-term goals in collaboration with clients.
John is qualified to treat a variety of mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety, traumatic stress, and substance use challenges, and also provides relationship counseling and cognitive therapy. As an accomplished and experienced professional, he understands the level of sensitivity which is required in his field of work.
Eun Na is a dedicated and compassionate social worker with a master’s degree in social work, specializing in mental health, from the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College, and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the same institution. With extensive experience serving marginalized populations, including immigrants, older adults, children and adolescents, and individuals with special needs, Eun Na recognizes the critical role of environmental factors in mental well-being. She employs a client-centered and strength-based approach tailored to each client’s unique needs and challenges. Committed to creating a non-judgmental and supportive environment, Eun Na utilizes evidence-based intervention methods to help clients achieve their treatment goals. Her practice includes working with clients facing a wide range of mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety, life transitions, anger and stress management, grief/loss, PTSD, ADHD, and phobias. Eun Na’s empathetic and responsive approach ensures that clients receive personalized care and support on their journey towards improved mental health and well-being.
Lucas is a Licensed Master Social Worker who received his MSW from the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College in 2024. Lucas has experience working with adolescents and adults who experience a variety of troubles including depression, anxiety, and trauma-related issues.
Lucas’s approach stems from a psychodynamic orientation that values knowing how our unconscious lives impact our day-to-day experiences, thoughts, and emotions. Lucas strives to practice empathic acceptance for every person that he works with because he believes that healing and growth are enhanced by experiencing quality human connections. Using this approach, Lucas centers individuals as they explore their inner worlds.
