CAPS Staff
The CAPS staff is dedicated and committed to a respectful understanding and honoring of the social, emotional and cultural contexts represented by each individual student.
In response to the changing needs of the Saint Mary’s College Community, the CAPS staff is committed to training, life-long learning and its own professional growth and development. CAPS maintains strict confidentiality, establishes a professional atmosphere, and holds to the highest clinical and ethical standards.
Dana L. Collins, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)
Director
Dr. Dana is a licensed psychologist who earned her Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Boston College, her M.S. in Counseling and Counselor Education from Indiana University, and her B.A. in Psychology from Spelman College. Prior to joining CAPS she was on faculty in the Department of Family and Social Medicine at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, NY.
Her work is deeply rooted in social justice values, and as a Black woman, she is committed to the empowerment of marginalized individuals and communities, addressing racial trauma, raising awareness about mental health and reducing stigma, and using mindfulness-based practices to work towards healing. As a clinician, she embraces an integrative approach that includes relational, CBT, mindfulness psychodynamic, and trauma-focused modalities. She is an Oakland native and loves being a current resident. In addition to being a mental health and wellness enthusiast she enjoys camping, hiking, cooking, gardening, meditating, national and international travel, and spending all the time she can with her baby niece.
Kristen Freeman, Ed.D., LMFT (she/her)
Training Director, Staff Therapist
Dr. Kristen Freeman earned a doctorate from the University of Southern California in Education, and M.A. in Counseling Psychology, Marriage and Family Therapy from Santa Clara University. Dr. Freeman is a staff therapist in CAPS and visiting professor at the Kalmanovitz School of Education. Dr. Freeman brings over a decade of experience supporting diverse student population's mental health and well-being in a college setting. Her professional interest includes treating adolescents and emerging adults experiencing racial trauma, stress, anxiety, and depression and providing support during significant life transitions. Dr. Freeman's integrative approach is grounded in cultural, relational, psychodynamic, CBT, and mindfulness practice. Dr. Freeman’s culturally responsive and identity-affirming lens encourages insight, acceptance, and empowerment. Dr. Freeman also holds professional certifications in Mindfulness Meditation and Life/Career coaching.
Cynthia Cutshall, Ph.D., (she/her)
Associate Director of Clinical Services and Operations and Outreach Coordinator
Dr. Cutshall completed her training at the University of Iowa, the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, and Humboldt State University. Before arriving at SMC, she worked in community mental health centers and skilled nursing facilities. In collaboration with the Director, Dr. Cutshall oversees clinical services and operations at CAPS. She provides care to Saint Mary’s students, and she consults with concerned faculty, staff, family, and friends. Dr. Cutshall also works with the Training Director to provide supervision to training therapists at CAPS, and she manages outreach programming. Dr. Cutshall primarily employs psychodynamic, relational, multicultural, and trauma informed approaches in her work. She helps students gain insight into their patterns of thinking, feeling, and relating so that that they can better navigate challenges in their personal and academic lives. Dr. Cutshall is involved in anti-racist work on campus, and she strives to educate herself about the delivery of culturally sensitive mental health care.
Carnetta Porter, Psy.D., (she/her)
Staff Therapist, African-American/Black Student Focus
Dr. Carnetta Porter earned her master’s and doctorate degrees in Clinical Psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology/AIU in San Francisco. Her research and clinical interests include linguistic code-switching, acculturative experiences, cultural/racial identity development and racial trauma. As a Black identified therapist with 30+ years of professional development and clinical experience, operating through a multi-cultural lens is an essential therapeutic framework she employs while working with diverse populations. Dr. Porter has held an adjunct faculty position at AIU/CSPP where she taught a course designed to develop first-year graduate students’ awareness of their individual cultural identities while learning to acknowledge and respect cultural differences in others. She demonstrates her passion for working with college-aged students by supporting their unique challenges of identifying and managing developmental issues that can impact personal/relational experiences and academic objectives. Dr. Porter embraces an integrative approach to therapy that includes psychodynamic, multicultural, cognitive-behavioral and trauma-focused modalities that empower individuals to utilize coping strategies to meet their individual and academic goals. A proud native of Oakland, CA where she still resides, she enjoys all outdoor activities, especially hiking with her dogs, exercise, dancing, karaoke, traveling, spending quality family time and attending Warriors basketball games.
Catie Farrell, (she/her/hers)
MFT / PCC Trainee
Catie is an East Bay native and excited to join the SMC community. Her previous experience centers around cultivating inclusive environments to foster well being and growth. Catie's goal is to help her clients identify strengths, explore challenges, and find their groove within their communities. Her background includes group counseling, psychodynamic and positive psychology, teaching yoga, and 12 years of experience in the corporate tech world. As a yoga instructor and counselor, her strength lies in fostering the confidence and curiosity needed to explore our inner worlds to find new insights.
Catie joins us from Santa Clara University's Counseling & Psychology Masters program, training to become a marriage and family therapist. You can find her on the weekends at the Lafayette Reservoir, finding new ways to be creative, or tracking down a good coffee.
Bella Beatty, (she/her/hers)
MFT / PCC Trainee
Bella holds a B.A. in Psychology from UC Berkeley and is currently pursuing an M.A. in Counseling, specializing in Marriage and Family Therapy. Before joining Saint Mary’s, she served as a crisis counselor for adolescents in Alameda County and worked as a resource teacher for elementary and middle school students. Bella is dedicated to combating mental health stigma and enhancing accessibility to mental health services for all.
A proud Oakland native, Bella loves the Bay Area and all it has to offer. Outside of her work at CAPS, she enjoys knitting and crocheting, diving into a good book, and hunting for treasures at the thrift shop!
She is thrilled to be a part of the CAPS team and is eager to work with the Saint Mary’s community.
Dino Tenoria, (he/his/him)
MFT / PCC Trainee
Dino is a SMC alum, graduating with a B.S. in Psychology with a concentration in Child and Adolescent Development, and is currently pursuing his Master’s degree within the Saint Mary’s Counseling program, specializing in MFT/PCC. His previous work includes conducting ABA therapy, facilitating group therapy while working at a therapeutic summer camp as a Counselor and Therapist for elementary through high school age children, and as an assistant teacher at a Montessori preschool. Dino is excited to apply his extensive experience with a new population of clients and is dedicated to serving the needs of Saint Mary’s students and community. In his free time, Dino enjoys playing volleyball, spending time with friends and family, and engaging in new experiences he’s never tried before. Having grown up on Guam, Dino has developed a love for traveling and engaging in learning and in experiencing new cultures, so he is particularly interested in working with international, first- and second-generation immigrant individuals, both at Saint Mary's and in his future practice. He is excited to engage in the SMC community in this new capacity.
Heidi Tend (she/her)
Office Manager
Heidi brings more than 30 years of logistics, managerial, and administrative experience. Prior to joining Saint Mary's, she served as Logistics Manager for EPC/Honeywell, where she managed such projects as courseware curriculum development, training certification, and training coordination. When you come to CAPS, Heidi will be your first point of contact. She will help to navigate you through the process of filling out a questionnaire and setting up an appointment to see a therapist. In her free time, Heidi LOVES DOGS, volunteers at a local animal shelter, and has one pet therapy dog of her own and one pup in training. She is also responsible for coordinating the pet therapy events on the SMC campus. She posts about these events regularly on Instagram and you can follow them on @smccaps.
Joey Tend (he/him)
CAPS's Resident Therapy Dog
Joey brings more than 10 years of pet therapy experience and warmth to Saint Mary's. From Move In Day (cheering on the new arrivals) to the Wellness and Stress Management events, Joey has been lending his empathic expertise in de-stressing, creating a welcoming environment and spreading joy to all that meet him. He passed his Canine Good Citizenship accreditation (twice) through Joybound, in Walnut Creek and has been in pet therapy service for the last 10 years. In his spare time, Joey likes to snuggle, alert of squirrel invasions and/or take long afternoon naps. If you see him on campus, please do not hesitate to come over and say hello!