Meet Our Therapists Individually

Beth O'Rourke, LISW, Executive Director

Beth O’Rourke is a licensed clinical social worker. She provides Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to treat disorders including those involving mood, anxiety and personality.

Beth received her Master’s degree from New Mexico Highland University. She has a BA in Psychology from the University of New Mexico.

Experience Includes:

Working with persons with severe psychiatric disorders in inpatient, outpatient and community settings.
Working with persons with developmental disabilities and brain injuries.
Medical Social Work.
Vocational Rehabilitation with special populations to include traumatic brain injury, mental illness and hearing impairments.

She is currently the Executive Director of Albuquerque Collaborative Therapeutics. A primary mission of the agency is to serve persons with developmental disabilities and brain injuries using a multi-modality approach to treat behavioral disorders. Services include the collaborative delivery of both occupational therapy and behavior therapy services designed to more holistically treat our clients.

She has advanced training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy, a treatment demonstrated to be useful in the treatment of borderline personality disorders. It has now been shown to be effective in treating the depressed elderly, persons with substance abuse issues and persons with eating disorders.

Sharon Bernstein, LISW

Sharon is a licensed clinical social worker. She is in private practice. Sharon is especially interested in the treatment of borderline personality disorder using Dialectical Behavior (DBT) therapy, which is proven effective for the disorder. Sharon has advanced training in DBT, and is the lead of a DBT consultation team.

Sharon has experience with varied populations including individuals with brain injury, severely mentally ill homeless individuals, and families with developmental disabilities.

Sharon has a Master's degree in Social Work from New Mexico Highlands University and a BA in psychology from the University of New Mexico. Sharon has a daily mindfulness practice.

Chris Curry, LISW

Chris Curry has been a behavior therapy subcontractor with Albuquerque Collaborative Therapeutics for 3 years now. He attended the University of New Mexico and New Mexico HighlandsUniversity, and received his Master's Degree in Social Work in 2000.

During the past few years, Chris has worked in a variety of settings, providing social work services with the following: St. Joseph’s Senior Care, Sandia Hospice, University Hospital’s General Medicine inpatient and outpatient clinics, New Mexico Parent and Child Resources, Inc.'s treatment foster care program, and as a treatment social worker with Children, Youth and Families Department.

Chris has worked with the developmentally disabled as a residential direct support provider and has provided life skills counseling to survivors of traumatic brain injury.

Chris won Advocacy Inc.’s, Child Advocate Award for Social Worker of the Year in 2002.

In his free time, Chris enjoys going to movies, reading, hiking, swimming and skydiving.

Kneelynn Gray, LISW

Kneelynn A. Gray, LISW, is a DBT therapist with a private practice in Albuquerque, NM. She is an experienced DBT skills group facilitator and individual behavioral therapist who works with adolescents and adults. Kneelynn is an active member of the Albuquerque DBT Consultation Team.

Jennifer McCash, LISW

Jennifer McCash has a Bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's degree in social work. She specializes in working with individuals, children and families regarding issues of abuse and neglect, parenting, trauma and developmental disabilities. She is trained in EMDR and is a certified mediator.

For hobbies she likes to run, play soccer and hang out with her son.

Linda Orell, MA, LPCC

As an undergraduate, Linda received a double major in Psychology and Religious Studies, pursuing an interest in how the two disciplines work together toward inner transformation that actualized outer social change. She did her graduate work at the University of New Mexico as well, obtaining a Master's in Counseling with an emphasis on Community/Agency Counseling.

After an internship intensive and subsequent employment as a family therapist at Albuquerque's Juvenile Detention Center, she spent a number of years as an APS school counselor and as that district's coordinator of the federal Safe & Drug Free Schools program.

She continues the private practice she maintained evenings and weekends while with APS, specializing in sand-tray counseling with young children and mindful therapy with adolescents, adults, and families.

Since her early retirement from APS she is subcontracting with DD Waiver clients, working with troubled youth, and expanding her private practice.

Dr. Roger Pray, LPCC

Dr. Roger Pray teaches Psychology and Criminal Justice Studies classes and is the Director of the Criminal Justice Studies program at New Mexico Highlands University. Most of the time he works at the Rio Rancho location. He has extensive experience working with the mentally ill and developmentally disabled, particularly in correctional settings. Also, he has conducted numerous psychological assessments of children and adolescents. He brings to our agency considerable skill in psychological testing, diagnosis, and treatment planning.

In addition to two Master's degrees, Dr. Pray has earned a doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Utah. Areas of professional interest include the treatment of traumatic abuse and forensic psychology

Brenda Susman, MA, LMFT

Brenda has been a licensed Marriage/Family Therapist for 16 years. She practiced in California prior to moving to New Mexico in 1991. While living in Los Angeles she worked as a case manager and therapist in an inpatient/outpatient treatment facility serving the most severe psychiatrically disabled. She also has experience working as a clinical director for a large psychiatric inpatient/outpatient treatment center. She had her own private practice working with individuals and couples in the solution focused model. She has also run many process therapy groups for individuals who are diagnosed (mental illness/substance abuse). After moving to Albuquerque she served as program director for a non profit serving the homeless mentally ill. Currently she is a program manager for a government vocational rehabilitation program that serves the most severe psychiatrically disabled, traumatic brain injured and the deaf to overcome their functional limitations in order to find and maintain employment.

Richard Vinnay, LISW

Rick Vinnay earned a Master's degree in social work from the University of Illinois with a Concentration in child and Family treatment.

Experience working with:

Children, Adolescents, Adults
Families
Grief and life change issues
Families in need of assistance regarding material and emotional support
Life skills for MR/DD and TBI clients
All diagnosis of childhood and adolescence issues
Training in diagnoses of childhood and adolescence issues
Cognitive behavioral therapy
Brief solution focused therapy
Employee assistance
Substance abuse

Chelly Weiss, LPC

Licensed in the state of New Mexico. Received Master's Degree from the University of New Mexico. Certified by the National Board of Certified Counselors. Trained in Sand Tray; Certified Mediator. Experienced in working with individuals, couples, families. Worked with at-risk youth in residential, day treatment, and outpatient settings. Experienced in grief and loss issues, working with people with HIV/AIDS, as well as gay and lesbian issues.