Our Team
Karen Roller, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Co-Chair, LTF
Karen Roller, PhD, MFT, FAAETS, DNCCM, CT, CFT, CSCR, is a Clinical Traumatologist and Compassion Fatigue Therapist. She served the foster care and migrant communities of Santa Cruz County for 15 years; has worked in juvenile detention diversion programs addressing disproportionate minority confinement; and is currently Clinical Coordinator at Family Connections in Redwood City, a parent-involvement preschool serving the migrant community of San Mateo County. In collaboration with Global Trauma Research, she is performing trauma training and outcome research in Haiti. She is Secretary for the United States Association of Body Psychotherapy, and an Associate Professor in the Counseling and Human Services Department at Palo Alto University.
Danna Torres
Ph.D. Student, Clinical Psychology Program
Co-Chair, LTF
Danna Torres is a bilingual licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and second-year clinical psychology student at PAU. Danna graduated with a master's degree in counseling from Mount St. Mary's University in 2016 and achieved licensure in 2020. Her professional journey has been marked by a deep engagement with the Latinx community, providing therapy and parent coaching services to parents, children, teenagers, and first-generation Latinx individuals in the Santa Clara and East Palo Alto region.
Danna's dedication extends beyond her academic and clinical endeavors. Recognizing the importance of community and peer support, she is motivated to foster a sense of belonging among her fellow students and staff. In her role as Co-chair of the Latinx Task Force (LTF), she aspires to actively contribute to creating an inclusive environment that values diversity and encourages meaningful connections among Latinx students across all programs at PAU.
Upon graduation, Danna’s goal is to build upon her foundation of experience by providing culturally sensitive psychological assessment services for the Spanish-speaking community. Her goal is to join the growing number of bilingual providers in bridging the gap between psychological services and the Latinx community's distinct needs.
Nicolas Lapido
Associate Director of Outreach
Nicolas was born in Montevideo, Uruguay and moved to the United States at the age of eight. One of the biggest reasons his family relocated was to give his sister and him the best chance possible of getting an education. He is a first-generation college graduate and he is passionate about, and committed to, empowering our Latinx community. There are doors that only an education can open, and he wants to help others navigate that process- he knows what it’s like to be the first person in your family to ever attempt to do so, having limited support and zero prior knowledge. He believes education should be accessible to all and wants to do all he can to make that a reality.
Jackie Grapa
Jackie graduated from the master’s in counseling program at PAU. She grew up in Mexico City, where she completed her undergraduate studies in pedagogy. She moved to California, where she completed her master’s degree in Instructional Technology at San Jose State. She is passionate about working with immigrants and improving access to education and health care for the Latinx community and other minority groups. She is interested in how culture influences personality and behavior in the individuality of each person. She is currently doing her internship at Family Connections, where she provides counseling in Spanish and English. Starting in the fall, she will also be at CHAC’s Latinx Training Program, where she is excited to continue working with the Latinx community.
Blanca Pineda, Ed.D.
Research Project Manager for i4Health
Dr. Blanca Pineda joined Palo Alto University and the Institute for International Internet Interventions for Health (i4Health) in March 2018. Prior to joining PAU, she worked at Stanford University for several years. She is bilingual (English/Spanish) and is interested in using internet interventions and digital technologies to enhance learning outcomes in psychology and education. She is a former Chair of the Latinx Task Force.
Elisabet Revilla, Ph.D.
Clínica Latina Director
Elisabet Revilla, originally from Argentina, is a California licensed clinical psychologist specializing in multicultural and community psychology with an emphasis on Latinx Spanish-speaking immigrants.
As a specialty clinic at the Gronowski Center, Clínica Latina started in 2014 and serves primarily Latix clients. Bilingual/Spanish doctoral students from PAU and the PGSP-Stanford PsyD Consortium complete a one-year clinical rotation as part of their clinical training.
Dr. Revilla’s clinical expertise and research interests are on multicultural clinical supervision and training, acculturation, immigrant families, depression, anxiety, and trauma within the immigration/acculturation context.
Edson Andrade Vargas
Visiting Assistant Professor
Edson Andrade Vargas (He/Him) is in his second year as a faculty member in the Counseling Department at PAU. Edson completed a PhD. in Counselor Education and Supervision at Idaho State University and an MS in Counseling at CSU Fullerton and his clinical experience includes working in community and university settings. His experiences growing up as a Mexican immigrant in Southern California sparked an interest in enhancing services rendered to underserved populations. For this reason, Edson’s professional interests revolve around promoting the success of students of color and developing competent bilingual/bicultural counselors-in-training.
Susan Branco, PhD, LPC, NCC, ACS, BC-TMH
(she/her/ella)
Associate Professor
Susan Branco, PhD, LPC, NCC, ACS, BC-TMH, she/her/ella, is a transracial and transnational adoptee from Colombia, South America. She is an advocate for increased adoption related research and training within counselor education and is passionate about improving mental health outcomes for transracially adopted persons. Dr. Branco is a practicing counselor, clinical supervisor, and an Associate Professor in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Palo Alto University. Her research includes transracial adoption and mental health, Colombian adoption policy, and clinical training and supervision practices for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color counselors. In addition, she has multiple peer-reviewed publications related to her research interests and frequently presents at regional, national, and international counseling related conferences.
Website: https://www.drsusanbranco.com
Yanire (Yani) Puentes
Executive Assistant to President Maureen O’Connor
Yani, originally from Colombia, is an experienced Executive Assistant with over 20 years of administrative experience. She graduated Baruch College in New York with a degree of Business Administration. She has worked in several fields including Wall Street and the most recent at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, recognized as one of the nation’s leading law firms.
Lizbet Delgadillo
Ph.D. Student, Clinical Psychology Program
Martha Hernández, Ph.D.
Clinical Supervisor, Gronowski Center – Clínica Latina
Dr. Hernández joined Clínica Latina at the Grownowki Center in 2017. She earned her B.S. from the University of California, Los Angeles and both her masters and doctorate in clinical psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology - Los Angeles. Dr. Hernández is the Family Support Services Manager at Ronald McDonald House at Stanford where she created and implemented a Spanish Track which includes Spanish supervision and didactics for trainees, and training to trainees working with chronically ill children and their families. Dr. Hernández is an adjunct professor at Santa Clara University’s MFT-Latino Emphasis program and maintains a private practice providing psychotherapy and conducting psychological immigration evaluations. Lastly, Dr. Hernández is Vice President of Public Interest and Diversity of APA’s Division 43 – Society for Couple and Family Psychology.
Eduardo Bunge, Ph.D.
Professor, M.S. Program Director
Dr. Eduardo Bunge, Ph.D., Professor, is the MS. Program Director, and core faculty of the Department of Psychology at PAU. His research encompasses the intersection of technology and mental health services with a focus on improving mental health awareness in developing countries in Latin America. He also serves as the Director of the Children and Adolescents Psychotherapy and Technology (CAPT) Research Lab. Associate Director for the Institute for International Internet Interventions for Health (i4Health). Being a trilingual professional Dr. Bunge published 5 clinical books in 3 languages and taught classes in English, Spanish, and Portuguese throughout the Americas (at least 7 countries). Additionally, Dr. Bunge has more than 50 publications, including published articles in peer reviewed journals and chapters. Finally, Dr. Bunge has been been director of two clinical training programs in Argentina and have taught more than 19 Graduate Courses and Seminars in Latin America (including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Panama, Paraguay, Peru).
Alinne Z. Barrera, Ph.D.
Professor
Associate Director at i4Health
Alinne Barrera, PhD is a California licensed clinical psychologist. Her scholarly work is focused on depression prevention, intervention adaptations, and the use of technology to deliver maternal mental health resources. As a trainee, she built a strong foundation in the detection and treatment of major depression using standardized measures and evidence-based interventions and now primarily works with Spanish-speaking and Latinx communities. During the past 15 years Dr. Barrera has dedicated her research program to adapting and empirically testing internet and SMS versions of the Mothers and Babies Course/Curso Mamás y Bebés (MB), a prevention of postpartum depression intervention. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of California, Berkeley, her doctoral degree at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and her predoctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco.
Aeriell Armas, B.A.
5th Year Ph.D. Student, Clinical Psychology Program
Aeriell Armas is currently a fourth-year Ph.D. student in Clinical Psychology at PAU. Originally from New York City, Aeriell graduated from The City College of New York with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a Minor in Women’s Studies. Her current clinical and research interests are in Latinx mental health, with a focus on intimate partner violence in the Latinx community. Aeriell has completed a clinical practicum at the Clinica Latina within the Gronowski Center at PAU, where she worked with Spanish- and English-speaking therapy clients of Latinx descent. She is now completing her third-year practicum at Safe Alternative to Violent Environments (SAVE), working directly with women and families exposed to domestic violence. In her spare time, Aeriell is passionate about serving current and future first-generation graduate students by providing access to information related to higher education.
Tania Romero
Senior Admissions Counselor
Tania is a Mexican-American first-generation college student and the first person in her family to receive a Bachelor’s degree. Her parents immigrated from a small town in Mexico in order to provide their children with opportunities they never had. She graduated from San Francisco State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and plans to receive her Master’s in Counseling to ultimately work closely with underserved students at the community college level. Having to navigate higher education as a first-generation student revealed to her just how impactful support organizations are to underrepresented students everywhere. The assistance she received during her undergraduate studies at Chabot College and San Francisco State University inspired her to continue the work of creating spaces and opportunities for disadvantaged populations to prosper. Since becoming an admissions counselor at PAU, Tania strives to guide underserved students in higher education toward a future of success and empowerment. She is committed to uplifting Latinx students during their time at PAU and beyond.
