Katherine Rivera is a Licensed Social Worker with experience across residential programs, housing services, child case management, and program support roles. She has worked with adults, youth, and individuals within the homeless community in a variety of settings, including outpatient care, residential programs, schools, and homeless shelters. Her experience allows her to understand the complex systems that often impact a client’s mental health and daily life.

Katherine’s approach to therapy is warm, collaborative, and rooted in truly listening. She believes there is a meaningful difference between hearing someone and fully understanding them. She works to create a safe, nonjudgmental space where clients feel supported, empowered, and comfortable challenging themselves. Her therapeutic style blends evidence-based practices such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Structural Family Therapy, and Play Therapy. While she values family involvement when appropriate, Katherine is intentional about keeping the individual client at the center of care, especially for children and adolescents who may worry about being overshadowed.

She specializes in working with anxiety, depression, anger management, and children and adolescents, helping clients build effective coping skills and confidence. Katherine earned her bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Family Studies with a concentration in case management from Kent State University. She completed her master’s degree in Social Work from Rutgers University, as well as a certificate in LISTA (Latina/o/x Initiatives for Service, Training, and Assessment), which gives practitioners the ability to provide culturally informed and responsive services to Latina/o/x populations. In previous roles, she also served as Head of Cultural Diversity and remains passionate about culturally responsive care.

Outside of work, Katherine enjoys reading psychological thrillers and is part of a book club that blends reading with philanthropy. She also enjoys baking and exploring creative hobbies like special effects makeup. She is a proud pet parent to her dog, Juno, and her two cats, Ollie and Luna.

“Something I’ve learned from my clients is that it’s okay to sit with discomfort and begin something new and scary, even when society thinks it’s ‘too late.’”