Counseling Center Staff
Teri L Grayson, LICSW (she/her/hers)
Clinical Social Worker and Director
Teri is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker. She received her MSW with a certification in Urban Leadership from Simmons University and her B.A. in Sociology from UMass Amherst. Teri uses strength-based approaches to help students manage life stressors, anxiety, depression, and other challenges affecting their well-being.
As an African American woman who grew up in the Greater Boston area, Teri personally understands the importance of acknowledging and supporting diversity and culture. Knowing the importance of seeing oneself reflected, she has been intentional about serving the communities where she grew up. She has spent the majority of her career providing community-based mental health services before transitioning to college mental health.
When not working, Teri enjoys traveling, participating in a book club (although she rarely reads books), and spending time with her family including her dog, Ruby.
Bill DeFranc, PhD (he/him/his)
Psychologist and Assistant Director
Bill is a doctoral-level psychologist whose professional interests managing mood disorders; anger management; gender role socialization, and male psychological development; and training and supervision of graduate students in psychology.
At the Counseling Center, Bill uses a goal-oriented and strengths based approach to counseling so student clients can measure their progress in therapy. He utilizes various therapeutic techniques such as cognitive-behavioral therapy for a range of issues such as depression and anxiety.
Bill enjoys spending time with his family and friends, traveling, and going to the beach in the summer.
Rachel Blumberg, LICSW, MSW, (she/her/hers)
Clinical Social Worker
Rachel is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker with a M.S.W from University of California, Berkeley School of Social Work, and a BA from Connecticut College. Rachel has a background working in various settings with children, young adults, and families in the child welfare system in CA and in various hospital social work settings here in Boston. In her current position, Rachel provides individual and group therapy, consultation, crisis services as well as training and outreach. Rachel employs a strengths-based approach and works to help students recognize and build upon their own existing supports, coping skills, and resilience in order to manage during challenging times.
Rachel identifies as a white, cisgender female and strives to provide a safe and welcoming environment for students of all backgrounds and identities. Outside of work, Rachel enjoys hiking, cooking, and chasing after her dog.
Teddy LaGuerre, LCSW (he/him/his)
Clinical Social Worker
Teddy is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who received his MSW from Case Western Reserve University. He has experience working with children, young adults, and adults across a variety of clinical settings. His background includes outpatient mental health, where he provided individual therapy, as well as hospital-based social work in the emergency department, where he gained extensive experience providing crisis intervention and supporting individuals and families during challenging and unexpected circumstances.
Teddy uses a strength-based, collaborative approach and works to create a supportive and welcoming environment where students feel comfortable discussing their concerns and working toward their goals. He has experience supporting individuals experiencing anxiety, depression, life transitions, stress, and other mental health challenges.
Outside of work, Teddy enjoys traveling, trying new restaurants, spending time with family and friends, and working out.
Zeljka Mileusnic, Psy.D. (she/her/hers)
Staff Psychologist
She tailors her approach to meet each individual’s unique needs and has experience leading anxiety management groups and facilitating support spaces for international students.
Beyond her professional work, Zeljka finds joy in nature and loves taking long walks in all kinds of weather. She’s an avid reader of books across diverse fields and treasures trips to her home country of Croatia, where much of her family resides.
Anna Yerang Lee, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)
Staff Psychologist
Anna is a staff psychologist who received her degree in Counseling Psychology from Boston University. She has a special interest in working with emerging and young adults with marginalized identities including race, ethnicity, abilities/disabilities, gender, sexuality, religion, and socioeconomic status. Anna’s therapeutic approach includes cognitive behavioral, humanistic, and feminist theories as well as social justice approach. She identifies as a Korean cisgender woman with disabilities. She would be happy to speak Korean in sessions with students who prefers to speak the language.
Prior to coming to University of Massachusetts in Boston, she worked in other college counseling settings, such as Counseling, Health, & Wellness at Suffolk University and University Counseling Services at Boston College. When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, eating Korean food, and watching Bluey with her little ones.
Allyson Gormley, LICSW (she/her/hers)
Clinical Social Worker
Allyson is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker with a MSW from Boston University and BA from University or Rhode Island. Allyson brings her prior experience working within a medical setting where she supported individuals coping with complex medical conditions, trauma history, substance use and mental health. She has a special interest in women’s health, anxiety, and grief work. Allyson utilizes a cognitive behavioral approach in her individual work with clients. She is a strengths-based clinician who is excited to work with the students of UMB.
On her days off, Allyson enjoys anything outside (even in the cold) and being with her boys and dog.
Judith Taveras, LICSW (she/her/hers)
Clinical Social Worker and Coordinator of Advanced Social Work Training Program
Judith received her MSW from BU’s School of Social Work, after working in hire ed and non-profit for several years. As a social worker, she has previously supported survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV), folx who have struggled with substance misuse, and individuals managing severe mental illness.
In her current work, Judith takes a humanistic, strengths based, and relational attachment approach to supporting her clients. With the goal to create a space in which folx feel empowered to process their experiences while stabilizing and increasing their self-compassion.
Judith self identifies as queer, first-generation, Afro-Latina who is cisgender and uses she/her/hers pronouns. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, wrapped up in a good book, or messing up a bread recipe.
Kimberley Hurdle-Carter, LICSW (she/her/hers)
Clinical Social Worker and Coordinator
Kim is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker who received her MSW at Boston University School of Social Work and BSW at Wheelock College. Kim utilizes a strengths-based, relational approach when working with students. She enjoys incorporating different modalities and interventions, from expressive arts and Mindfulness techniques to skills-building, the Liberation Health Model, and Narrative Therapy.
Beatriz Louzado, BS (she/her/hers)
Mental Health Educator
Beatriz is a UMass Boston alumni, Class of 2022, who received a B.S. in Biology and Psychology. In her experience at UMass Boston, Beatriz has worked in a range of different departments from studying as a pre-medical student, to working as a Resident Assistant at the residential halls, working as a Peer Mentor before and throughout the pandemic, volunteering with SAEC, starting her own club The Character Collaborative, managing as the Vice President of Recruitment for Phi Delta Epsilon, and more. Beatriz, understanding the school from a student's perspective, now dedicates her time as a health educator where she amplifies the voice of our Beacons and teaches them the importance of giving attention and care to our lifelong companions, our minds.
As a Latinx woman, born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Beatriz understands the struggles immigrants and POC face in this country. With personal and academic experience in equity and inclusion, Beatriz promises to educate students on how much our mental health frequently relies on our identity, how we want to be perceived and how we perceive ourselves, highlighting how much pressure that can cause. In being an alumni and a resident of the New England area, Beatriz pledges to provide our students with the resources students of all backgrounds need to survive and thrive not only at UMass Boston, but in the big city.
In her free time, Beatriz enjoys exploring new adventures with her family and friends, hiking
new trails, visiting unique events and locations, and meeting new people. She also knows
how to wiggle her ears!
Leah Livingstone (she/her/hers)
Clinic Administration
Leah is our front desk staff and is most likely to be the first person you will meet coming into the Counseling Center. Leah is in charge of scheduling, administrative duties and keeping the Counseling Center running. Leah’s goal is to make sure that every person who walks through our doors feels welcome, safe, and cared for.
Outside of work Leah enjoys spending time with her family, traveling to Walt Disney World, reading fiction novels and watching Elmo’s World with her grandchildren. She is also an advocate for her transgender and disabled son. Leah identifies as a cisgender white woman.
The Counseling Center's 2026-2027 Trainees
The UHS Counseling Center serves as a training site for second-year students in the UMass Boston Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program. The Counseling Center also serves as a training site for second-year social work interns and advanced psychology trainees and clinical fellows.
Clinical Psychology Program
Arushee Bhoja (they/she)
I graduated from New York University in 2023 with a B.A. in Psychology and a Minor in Child and Adolescent Mental Health. Since then, I have worked on research exploring the impact of discrimination on mental health among LGBTQ+ people of color. I am interested in supporting clients with LGBTQ+ identity, identity exploration, and interpersonal concerns through DBT and acceptance-based lenses.
Fun fact: I have two cats named Frog and Toad!
Ellen Parry Luff (he/him/she/her)
I am interested in neurodiversity-affirming approaches to therapy, neurodivergent and disabled identity development, coping with experiences of ableism, as well as gender identity and expression. Modalities: Feminist and Liberation approaches, DBT, CBT.
Fun Fact: I can play guitar and know how to screen print shirts!
Jorge Delgado (he/him)
My name is Jorge, and I am a trainee in the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program at UMass Boston. My therapeutic approach is encouraging and identity-affirming, drawing from cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and humanistic therapy when working with clients. Some of my clinical interests include LGBTQ+ identity and experiences, racial/ethnic identity and experiences, neurodiversity, and academic distress.
Fun fact: I love playing video games across a wide range of genres! They range from horror games like Dead by Daylight to cozy games like Animal Crossing.
Zareen Mir (she/her)
My name is Zareen, and I am a second-year student within the Clinical Psychology program. My therapy approach is creating a judgement free space for clients to work through challenges such as transitional time periods and personal growth. I use a combination of person central therapeutic approaches and others such as CBT, ACT, DBT.
Fun fact: I am learning how to make fake stained glass and leather notebooks!
Counseling Psychology Program
Ashish Thakur (he/him)
Ashish (goes by Ash - he/him) is currently a fourth-year PhD student in counseling psychology at UMB. His clinical practicum in the first three years of the PhD program has been at the UMB counseling center (2023-2024), at the Boston Medical Centre (2024-2025), and most recently at Counseling and Mental Health Services (CAMHS) at Harvard University (2025-2026). Ashish completed his master's in counseling in Mental Health and Wellness (CMHW), an Applied Psychology program at New York University, in 2017. Following graduation, he worked as a mental health counselor for six years in Mumbai, India. His psychotherapeutic practice is grounded in cross-cultural understanding, trauma-informed care, and a commitment to supporting individuals from marginalized and discriminated against communities. He is particularly dedicated to working with gay and lesbian individuals navigating repressive contexts. A significant part of his work has also focused on depression, anxiety, grief, loss, bereavement, and childhood issues. As an international student of color, Ashish brings heightened sensitivity to the struggles faced by international students of color and those from diverse cultural contexts, with a focus on adjustment challenges. Carl Rogers’ human-centered approach forms the foundation of his psychotherapeutic work, and he draws on various modalities based on each individual's needs in therapy. CBT, DBT, ACT, narrative therapy, psychodynamic and psychoanalytic inquiry, trauma-focused work, and psychoeducation are among the modalities in Ashish's skill set.
Fun fact: I find great delight in metaphors
Camila Fazal (She/Her)
My name is Camila (She/Her), I am from the Bay Area, CA, and I received my MS in Couples and Family Therapy at the University of Oregon. My clinical interests include multiracial mental health, relational concerns, identity development, and life transitions. I approach my work from a person-centered framework to understand the systems that impact the students I work with. I work to create a safe, accepting, non-judgmental environment for students to understand their narratives about themselves and their experiences, and how that affects their well-being.
Fun Fact: I love Karaoke!
Joy Gay (she/her)
I received my MS in counseling psychology from The University of Southern Mississippi in 2026. My research focuses at the time were on emerging adults in the LGBTQ+ community in the south. My clinical focuses were on parents, adolescents, and children. My clinical work thus far has been based in behaviorism, but I am interested in working with individuals through a person-centered lens. I am interested in modalities such as DBT, ACT, Existential therapy, and family systems therapy. I am open to working with clients who experience depression, anxiety, OCD, interpersonal issues, etc.
Fun fact: I am from South Carolina and I have two pets.
Kris McCarthy (she/they)
My name is Kris (She/They), and I received my Ed.M/M.A in psychological counseling from Columbia University in 2020 with an advanced certificate in Sexuality, Women and Gender studies with a focus in LGBTQ+ health. Since graduating, I have worked at a private practice predominately treating individuals and couples through a CBT, CPT, Psychodynamic, and EFT lens. I have experience working with clients across the lifespan but typically focus on emerging adults and couples that identify as LGBTQ+. I work with clients who experience complex trauma, PTSD, depression, anxiety, neurodivergence, mood disorders, psychosis, and relationship or identity-related distress.
Fun fact: I was born in Iceland!
Social Work Program
Amira Hardaway (she/her)
My name is Amira and I am one of the social work trainees here at the Counseling Center. I obtained my BSW (Bachelor of Social Work) from Bridgewater State University and also minored in special education. My past work has entailed supporting students and working with individuals and families. I enjoy the intersection of mental health and education and helping students navigate challenges. I have a special interest in working with students navigating race, gender, orientation, or disability/ability related concerns. My clinical interests include emotional regulation work, acceptance work, and using mindfulness-based modalities like CBT and DBT.
Fun fact: I love music and I always love to hear what other people are listening to!
Cassie Eyma (she/her)
My name is Cassie (she/her) and I am a trainee in the Social Work Training Program at the Counseling Center. I have experience working with individuals with ASD in behavior modification, routine building, and developing effective communication strategies. I prefer using a strength-based and person-centered approach via solution-focused interventions, motivational interviewing, and CBT.
Fun Fact: I love playing tennis!