Our Counselors
Ami Aiken, M.S., LMHC, Senior Counselor
Ami earned both her B.A. in Psychology and M.S. in Mental Health Counseling from SUNY New Paltz. She has experience with diverse populations in community-based settings including a partial hospitalization program and holds a certification in mindfulness meditation. She is passionate about helping students manage stressors (whether day to day, life transitions, grief and loss, depression, or anxiety), by developing skills and strategies to cope and to develop greater compassion for self and others. She takes a person centered and collaborative approach, integrating mindfulness and cognitive-behavioral based therapies to empower individuals to live balanced and meaningful lives.
When she’s not working, you’ll likely find her crocheting or crafting, training outdoors for upcoming triathlons, listening to music, and hanging with her two cats.
Gail Boone, M.S., LMHC-D, Senior Counselor
Gail attained her B.S. in Psychology from SUNY Oswego and her M.S. in Mental Health Counseling from Cazenovia College. Prior to joining Cortland, Gail’s experience in a college setting included work as a counselor, adjunct instructor, and clinical supervisor. She also has been a mental health counselor in adult and adolescent clinic settings. Gail has a passion for assisting individuals in finding a path to living their best, most authentic lives by building a strong positive sense of self, gaining self-awareness of emotions and self-beliefs, then building on recognized strengths and insights. She enjoys providing students with the tools and strategies to thrive by gaining self-compassion and self-worth and support them in being resilient and working through overcoming loss, struggle, trauma, and everyday worries and obstacles to obtain success in relationships, academics, and shaping and envisioning their future to live a joyful and fulfilling life.
Christina Cerruti, MSW, LCSW, Senior Counselor
Christina earned a B.A. from the University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa prior to obtaining her MSW from University at Buffalo. Christina has experience in working with college students, children, adults, and families in both private practice and community mental health settings. Her approach to counseling is rooted in evidence-based practices, with a strong emphasis on person-centered and trauma-informed care. Christina is passionate about helping students navigate challenges and seeks to empower students to achieve their goals and enhance their overall well-being.
Kathryn Gallup, MSW, LCSW-R, Senior Counselor
Kathryn earned her B.A. from the University of Notre Dame in American Studies and a Master’s of Social Work from Syracuse University. Prior to coming to SUNY Cortland in 2012, Kathryn worked in the substance abuse and mental health fields providing short- and long-term therapy for individuals, families, groups, and couples, as well as crisis intervention. Kathryn has experience in and passion for helping individuals struggling with shame, grief, stress and anxiety, interpersonal challenges, and problematic family of origin dynamics; through improving self-awareness and learning more effective ways to navigate life’s challenges, she works to help individuals move to a place of inner peace, personal growth, and healthier relationships with self and others.
Roueida Ghadban, PhD, LP, Director, Counseling and Wellness Services
Roueida earned her B.A. from Ottawa University, her M.S. in Counseling Psychology from Northeastern University and her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the New School for Social Research. She has over 20 years of experience in the mental health field in the areas of psychological assessment, psychotherapy, trauma, crisis intervention, substance abuse, gender identity, depression and anxiety. Roueida is particularly interested in the impact of life experiences on self-identity across the life span. She encourages students to engage in a collaborative process that expands their self-awareness and understanding of their needs, internal conflicts, motivations and patterns of behavior empowering them to live their lives more fully and more successfully.
Stacey Massari, M.A., MSW, LCSW, Senior Counselor
Stacey attained her B.A. in Sociology from SUNY Oneonta, an M.A. in Community Psychology with a minor in Forensic Psychology from the University of New Haven, and a Master of Social Work from Adelphi University. Stacey has experience with a variety of populations in both residential settings and a community services agency, as well as in secondary education as a School Social Worker. She is most passionate about working with teenagers and young adults in their journey of self-discovery. She works to facilitate enhanced feelings of self-efficacy in students, so they become more aware of their individual strengths and are better able to overcome to life’s obstacles. She also has a special interest in family dynamics and how family history may impact an individual's sense of self. She works with students to overcome relational challenges so that they do not interfere with emotional growth and academic success.
Jennifer Talarico, M.S., LMHC-D, Senior Counselor
Jen obtained her B.A. in Psychology from Northeastern University and her M.S. in Mental Health Counseling from Capella University. She has experience in providing mental health and substance use counseling to individuals, couples, family systems, and groups. Jen’s areas of interests are in helping individuals with body image, self-identity, life transition, relationships, and challenging emotions of anger, shame, and grief. Her therapeutic approach incorporates mindfulness-based and trauma-informed care to increase insight and self-awareness.