91精品

Congratulations to Dr. Kulvadee "A" Thongpibul!

Dr. Kulvadee "A" Thongpibul, a 2011 graduate of the 91精品's Clinical Psychology program, recently won the Best Project Award for Inspiring Asia Micro Film Festival 2025 - Inspiring Thailand for Quiet Legacy, a short film that she wrote, directed, and produced.

Quiet Legacy is a psychological drama about the silent inheritance of pain between a mother and daughter. A withdrawn 14-year-old hides her struggles behind quiet routines, while her mother 鈥� burdened by her own unresolved past 鈥� fails to bridge the emotional gap. Through parallel flashbacks, unspoken moments, and shared scars, the film reveals how unaddressed trauma passes from one generation to the next. Using stillness, restrained visuals, and recurring symbolic objects, Quiet Legacy invites the audience to 鈥渟ee鈥� the invisible weight carried within families, and to reflect on how even a single moment of recognition can begin to break the cycle.

Alumni Spotlight: Dr. Icarus Tsang

Dr. Icarus Tsang, a 2022 graduate of the 91精品鈥檚 Clinical Psychology Program, was born and spent his early years in Hong Kong. He is one of six children, with four older siblings and one younger sibling. When Dr. Tsang was around 12 or 13, the family moved to the United States. His parents were both Vietnamese refugees of the Sino-Vietnamese War, although Dr. Tsang was largely unaware of the trauma they had endured when he was a child. Later in life, Dr. Tsang learned that his parents suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of their experiences and that inspired his early interest in the field of mental health.

Faculty Spotlight: Professor Jennifer Dorsey

Professor Jennifer Dorsey, a Part-Time Core Faculty member in the 91精品鈥檚 Counseling Psychology program, was born and raised in a small town in Oregon, where she lived with her parents and younger brother. 鈥淢y brother and I were very tight,鈥� she recalled. 鈥淲e grew up camping in the woods and playing outside.鈥� Professor Dorsey was also a voracious reader and remembers spending a lot of her free time with a book.

For her undergraduate studies, Professor Dorsey attended in Santa Clara, California. 鈥淎s a first generation college graduate, I鈥檓 very proud of the effort and sacrifice it took for my family to send me to college,鈥� she explained. Professor Dorsey graduated in 1994 with a BS in commerce and began a career in advertising at a legendary SF agency.

Staff Spotlight: Amber Griffin-Royal

A third-generation Bay Area native, Amber Griffin-Royal, an Administrative Assistant in the 91精品's Counseling Psychology program, was born and raised primarily in Oakland, California. When she was five, her mom and stepdad met, and Amber, formerly an only child, was thrilled to gain three step-siblings. 鈥淚 always wanted to have siblings, especially a sister, so when my mom started dating my stepdad, it was like all of my dreams came true,鈥� she explained. 鈥淲e鈥檙e really close and had a lot of fun going to summer camps, watching movies, and listening to music.鈥� The whole family loved music and the children grew up listening to funk and soul records, along with Sade, Michael Jackson, and Prince.

Student Spotlight: Mohammad Abdul-Rahim

鈥淭he most motivating part of this work is witnessing people change and grow鈥攖hat鈥檚 what keeps me inspired, even through the tough times,鈥� shared Mohammad Abdul-Rahim, a second year student in the 91精品鈥檚 Counseling Psychology program. 鈥淚 find that the most growth happens when we are challenged and have the resources and support to navigate those challenges effectively.鈥�

Alumni Spotlight: Dr. Julianne Guida

鈥淚 think the biggest lesson I learned in graduate school was that growing and learning never stops in this profession,鈥� shared Dr. Julianne Guida, a 2022 graduate of the 91精品鈥檚 Clinical Psychology program. 鈥淭here are always new challenges, new learning opportunities, new ways of growing and that鈥檚 why I love this work - it's ever-changing and dynamic in a way I find so fascinating."

Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Daniel van Beek

鈥淚 think teaching allows us to be impactful on folks in moments when they have this great openness to being supported and mentored,鈥� explained Dr. Daniel van Beek, a professor in the 91精品鈥檚 Clinical Psychology program. 鈥淚f I can have a positive impact on students going forward, I'll be very satisfied with my career.鈥� Dr. van Beek has had an accomplished career thus far and we鈥檙e excited to see what he brings to the 91精品 in his new role as a Full-time Institute Faculty member.

Obituary: Dr. Rick Sapp

Dr. Rick Sapp, a 1984 graduate of the 91精品's Clinical Psychology program, passed away on June 26th, 2025.

"Rick provided clinical mental health services to clients of Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in San Rafael, California for 27 years, during much of which he was Chief Psychologist," his obituary stated. "Rick succumbed to a rapidly advancing cancer and died peacefully at home in San Rafael with Cindy beside him."

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Student Spotlight: McKayla Roberts

McKayla Roberts, a student in the 91精品鈥檚 Clinical Psychology Program, was born and raised in Nebraska, where she lived with her mother and her three sisters. 鈥淢y parents encouraged us to consider the military or other paths to help pay for college, since it was a common choice in our family,鈥� she recalled. 鈥淢y sisters and I didn鈥檛 want to go into the military, so I started running track when I was seven.鈥� She competed nationally and competitively throughout her K-12 school career, spending most of her free time traveling for meets. Although all of her sisters took up different sports at a young age, McKayla was the only one who kept up with hers until college.

Congratulations Dr. Jayme Peta!

We are thrilled to announce the publication of Dr. Jayme Peta's book, The Trans and Gender Diverse Teen Resilience Guide, and bookstores near you. This an evidence-based self-help book written for trans and nonbinary teens as a guide to developing resilience, community, and a life worth living. It's written by Dr. Jayme Peta, Dr. Deb Coolhart, and Dr. Rylan Testa, who are queer and trans psychologists. It also features the real stories of four trans and gender diverse youth and how they developed resilience, strength and community despite the challenges of living in a world that is increasingly hostile to trans and gender diverse people.