Jessica is a pre-doctoral practicum student specializing in clinical psychology with a child and adolescent emphasis through Pacific University. Jessica has extensive experience working with diverse populations, including children, adolescents, and adults facing developmental, behavioral, and mental health challenges. She holds an MA from Pacific University, a MSc in Psychology from the University of York, and a BA in Psychology from Richmond, The American International University in London. Currently pursuing her Psy.D., Jessica has worked in outpatient settings, foster care programs, schools, and residential care. She is particularly interested in working with kids and families involved in the foster care system, children with trauma, and assessing developmental and learning disorders such as autism and dyslexia. Additionally, she has been training PTSD service dogs (like Tribute—see below!) for veterans through Paws Assisting Veterans (PAVE), with a goal that the dogs will eventually be prepared to help support a veteran’s mental health and independence. Since 2021, she has trained about 5 dogs that have successfully graduated and been matched to their forever person

Supervisor: Rebecca Marcin, PsyD, Oregon Licensed Psychologist #2788

About Tribute, Service Dog In Training:
Tribute is a 2-year-old male yellow lab certified through PAVE, which is an Assistance Dogs International accredited program. He is in training to be a psychiatric assistance dog for veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. His main duties will eventually include notifying the veteran when their anxiety is increasing, providing deep pressure to help regulate their anxiety, waking them from nightmares, and retrieving items for them. Due to the nature of the training, Tribute is required to receive much exposure and in as many settings as possible to learn to stay focused even with distractions. This also means that Tribute should not be interacting with individuals other than his handler. What that may most often look like in either a therapeutic or assessment setting is he will be tethered near the handler and primarily lying quietly in the room. He is an energetic, fun-loving boy who loves to curl up and sleep on his handler’s (Jessica) lap.