Ubuntu Wellness is proud of our incredible team of clinicians and healers. Everyday, we strive to offer loving and compassionate service for our clients, students, community and for each other. Ubuntu’s day-to-day operations, marketing, programming and so much more are done by this wonderful team of motivated, mission-aligned individuals.

Interested in joining our wonderful team? Check out our open positions!

Featured

Jennifer Emch, LPCC-S, Co-owner

Location: Chagrin (primary location) and Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 25+
Individuals, Couples, Family
Trauma, Anxiety, Depression, Seasons of Life
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
Advanced Clinical Hypnosis
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
Motivational Interviewing
CBT, DBT

Erin Moore, LPCC, Co-owner

Location: Chardon and Chagrin, in person/virtual
Ages 18+
- EMDR, mood disorders, trauma and comorbidity
- Couples counseling (Gottman and Attachment Theory)
- Motivational Interviewing
- DBT and CBT

Christelle Buholzer-Leikala, LPCC-S, Clinical Director

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages: 18+
Individuals, Couples
Trauma, mood disorders, relationship challenges, domestic violence
EMDR, Flash Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), DBT, Motivational Interviewing, CBT, Choice; Couples: Gottman, Emotion Focused, Attachment, Reality

Dallas Roessner-Lang, LPCC-S, Clinical Supervisor, Internship Coordinator

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages: 5+
Children, Adolescents, Adults, Family
Trauma, anxiety, depression,
Mindfulness based CBT, DBT, Flash processing and EMDR, Motivational Interviewing

Ashley Stevens, LPC

Location: Chagrin, in person/virtual
Ages 13+
Individual
LGBTQ+ affirming, depression, anxiety, psychodynamic, mindfulness

Becky Cervenka, LPCC, ATR-BC

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 14+
Individual
EMDR, art therapy, CBT, Grief, trauma, anxiety, depression

Cassandra Shofar, LPC

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 13+
Individual
EMDR, Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, Substance use, CBT, DBT, ACT, Somantic, Psychoanalytic

Clementine Houghton, CT

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 10+
Counseling Intern and Master’s student in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at John Carroll University

Works under supervision while drawing from cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and person-centered approaches

Elisa Valentine, LPCC

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 18+
Mindfulness, DBT, CBT, EMDR, Flash
Anxiety, depression, trauma

Hadley Hatteberg, LPCC

Location: Virtual only
Ages 18+
Individual, Couples counseling
Specializing in relationships, people pleasing, emotion regulation, trauma, self-esteem, using attachment, psychodynamic, DBT/CBT lens, EMDR

Jason Cole, LPCC

Location: Chagrin in person/virtual
Ages 16+
Individual and Couples Counseling
CBT, REBT, Person Centered Rogerian, EMDR, psychoeducational and trauma aware
Specialized in the area of substance use treatment and recovery

Jenni Meehan, CT

Location: Chagrin, in person/virtual
Ages 10+
Counseling Intern and Master’s student in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at John Carroll University
Works under supervision utilizing EMDR, anxiety, depression, trauma, ADHD, ASD, whole-body approaches (including nutrition), CBT, DBT, Motivational Interviewing

Julia DiFranco, CT

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual

Ages: kids, pre-teens, teens, adults, individual

Counseling intern and Master's student in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at John Carroll University

Works under supervision while drawing from cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), and person centered approaches.

Katherine Farizel, LPCC

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 16+
Individual
EMDR, CBT, DBT, Mindfulness practices, anxiety, depression, PTSD

Keegan Dennis, LPC

Location: Virtual only
Ages 15+
Individual
Grief, Trauma, anxiety, depression, OCD- CBT, DBT, Psychodynamic

Lindsey Simone, LPCC-S

Location: Chagrin and Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 12+
Individual, couples
CBT, DBT, Mindfulness practices, anxiety, depression, trauma

Lynn Friedman-Piunno, MS, MA, LPC, RN, NCC

Location: Chagrin (in-person and virtual)

Ages 18+
Major Life and Health Transitions
Anxiety and Stress Resilience
Lifestyle Change and Optimization
Cultivation of Comprehensive and Lasting Health and Wellness Mind-Body Alignment
Elevating Quality of Life and Vitality

Natalie Tharp, LPCC, ATR

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 6+
Individual, adults, couples
Art therapy, Mindfulness, EMDR, DBT, mood disorders

Michelle Benz, LPC

Location: Chardon and Chagrin Offices, telehealth
Ages 2+
Children, Teens, Adults, Couples, Individuals, Family
Person-Centered, Somatic therapy, Mindfulness, ADHD, art therapy, play therapy,
CBT/DBT, Grief, OCD, trauma, anxiety, depression, Autism, family/relational issues

Ryan Cook, LPCC-S, Clinical Supervisor

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages: 8+
Children, Teen, Adults, Couples
Psychoanalysis, Person-Centered, CBT/DBT, Anxiety, Stress Management, ADHD, Relationship Issues, Existential Issues,
Offers both Autism and ADHD assessments

Scott McDowell, LPC

Location: Chagrin
Ages 18+
Adults and Couples
Chronic Pain, Parts work, Somatic orientation, Mindfulness

Stacey Johnson, LPCC

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages 6+
Anxiety, depression, CBT, somatic, mindfulness, emotional and nervous system regulation

Yelena Tselenchuk, Board Certified Naturopath

Location: Chagrin, in person/virtual
Naturopathic & Homeopathic Consultations
Functional blood chemistry analysis
Quantum Biofeedback
Testing; gut microbiome, hormones with metabolites, heavy metals / mold / environmental toxins, food sensitivities, vitamins and minerals, genetic; brain health and more.

Schedule with Yelena

Sadie Mae, Therapy Pup

Location: Chardon, in person/virtual
Ages: All of them!
Provides comfort and emotional support to clients
Specializes in creating calm and welcoming environment
Enjoys sitting quietly during sessions or offering gentle companionship when invited
Known for friendly, nonjudgmental presence that helps reduce stress and anxiety
Loves belly rubs, pets, making new friends, and especially prenatal women and small children!

Administrative Team

Featured

Dawn Baynes, Chief Operating Officer

Dawn plays a pivotal role in ensuring that our practice operates seamlessly, allowing our team of dedicated mental health and healing professionals to focus on what they do best - providing high-quality care to those in need. Dawn meticulously oversees the day-to-day operations at Ubuntu, seamlessly managing critical tasks such as insurance billing, payroll administration, and essential secretarial responsibilities.

Mary Nicholson, Administrative Assistant

Aleah Eddy, Administrative Assistant

Aleah is currently enrolled in Kent State’s Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program. She graduated from Kent with a B.S. in Psychology. After completing the program, she hope to work with either adolescents or addicts. In her free time she likes to bake and listen to podcasts.

Clinical Team

Administrative Team