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David Walden, Ph.D.

Director, Staff Psychologist & Lecturer in Psychology

I am the Director of the Center and enjoy creating an excellent workplace for myself and my colleagues that serves our students well as they navigate this time in their lives. I also proudly serve on the Board of the Association of University and College Counseling Center Directors. My therapeutic areas of interest include romantic relationships, childhood sexual abuse, identity issues, LGBTQ and gender identity concerns, dynamics related to marginalization, oppression, and racial identity, and existential issues. My approach to therapy is grounded in a broadly humanistic perspective, and I see dialogue as a way to connect people in their shared humanity. I also value humor as a way to break down barriers to intra and interpersonal connection. Outside of work, I love being a parent to two beautiful and spirited kids, rock climbing, exploring alternative healing modalities, and engaging with this beautiful, messy, complex, deep and meaningful experience of living a human life. You can find me on Instagram and I also make music! Here are links to a therapy inspired album called "From the Couch".

Rebecca Dayton, Ph.D.

Assistant Director & Staff Psychologist

Hi! I am the Assistant Director of the Center and am so excited to be continuing my career here at Hamilton College. I received my doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and completed my clinical internship and post-doc clinical work at McLean Hospital in Boston. Following my training, I spent the next two decades in higher education focusing on college mental health and overall student health and wellness. My therapeutic interests are broad, but I do have particular interests in working with anxiety, depression, intimate relationship issues, women's concerns, grief, eating issues, trauma and questions of meaning and place. My therapeutic style is grounded in a relational, humanistic approach utilizing mindfulness- based cognitive therapy and insight oriented techniques. I do feel however, it is most important to fully understand what a student is comfortable with, how they think, and how they best learn and try and fit my approach accordingly. Outside of my professional life, I love to read, spend time in nature, travel, meditate and have a passion for astronomy and geology.

Mariah D. Pfeiffer, LCSW-R

Staff Social Worker

Hi! I am very excited by this opportunity to join the Counseling Center staff at Hamilton! I received my Master’s Degree in Clinical Social Work from Boston College, and have spent the past two decades working in college mental health. I have a relational, humanistic therapeutic style, and I believe that human beings heal and grow in relationship. My goal is to help students feel more comfortable with their emotional experiences and to better understand themselves, their relationships, and the world around them. While my approach to counseling is integrative and holistic, I tend to draw heavily on mindfulness, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. My therapeutic areas of interest are many, including identity development, romantic relationships, depression, grief, and trauma. I particularly value the opportunity to work with students across racial, ethnic, cultural, socioeconomic, and sexual orientations. In my life outside of work I love spending time with my family, reading, hiking, and spending time in, on, and around water!

Amanda Knapp, Psy.D.

Staff Psychologist

Hi! I am very excited to be returning to Hamilton College after completing a practicum placement at the Counseling Center in 2019. Most of my clinical work has been in college counseling centers, and I love working with students to help them reflect and excel during a period of their lives that can be difficult and confusing. I strive to create a warm, safe, and accepting therapeutic space that considers the individual needs of each student, and work together to help my clients live more authentic and fulfilling lives. I have specific training in working with eating disorders, relational dynamics, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and was recently trained in yoga cognitive behavioral therapy. In my personal time I love being outdoors with my two dogs, seeing live music, reading, and cooking!

Michael Saltzman, Ph.D.

Staff Psychologist

Hello! I joined the Counseling Center staff at Hamilton College in the fall of 2022 after completing my doctoral internship at Illinois State University. I received my doctoral degree in counseling psychology from Western Michigan University, and I have experience working with young adults in college and university counseling centers, private practice, and substance treatment facilities. I have also provided clinical and sport psychology services to teams and individuals, and I am particularly interested in addressing the stigma and shame individuals experience related to mental health care. I conceptualize my work through a critical framework which focuses on privilege and oppression, and I rely on an interpersonal, person-centered approach when providing clinical services. I value collaboration and believe that it is important to emphasize both individual and cultural strengths. Depending on the presenting concerns of students, I will also integrate cognitive behavioral and dialectical behavioral theory and interventions into my work. The importance of cultural humility and a willingness to adapt my approach to help the client meet their goals is central to my clinical work. In my spare time, I enjoy hiking, biking, crocheting, listening to live music, and attempting to care for my house plants.

Emily Reynolds

Office Coordinator

Hello! I am the office coordinator at the Counseling Center! My background is in textiles and fashion but I am looking forward to a new career path at the Counseling Center. As Office Coordinator, I maintain daily operations, schedule appointments and provide administrative support. In my spare time, I enjoy hanging out with my husband and two energetic but adorable daughters, traveling, being outdoors and being crafty.

Sascha Arbouet, M.D.

Psychiatrist

(Pronouns- She, her, hers) Hello! I am a child and adolescent trained, board certified psychiatrist who completed her undergraduate degree at Hamilton College and received her Medical Degree from Albany Medical College. I completed a Psychiatry residency at Hillside Hospital/Long Island Jewish in Queens, NY and then completed a fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY. (Go Orange!) During my career, I have worked in a variety of treatment settings, including inpatient, outpatient, residential and college mental health. My professional interests include working in college mental health and with BIPOC, LGBTQQI, and neurodiverse communities. Though I have moved out of NY State, my heart remains at Hamilton and I am excited to have returned to the Counseling Center and my Continental Community!

Jennifer Campagna, M.D.

Psychiatrist

I earned a bachelor of science with high honors in biology from Cornell University and a doctorate of medicine from Upstate Medical University. Thereafter, I attended the University of Maryland/ Sheppard Pratt Psychiatry Residency Program and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship Program, serving as chief fellow during my final year of training. I am certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in both psychiatry and child and adolescent psychiatry. After completing training, I returned to my native Upstate New York where for the past several years I have been providing outpatient community psychiatric care. I was drawn to Hamilton College, as I find the psychiatric care of college students to be particularly rewarding. My professional interests include studying the neurobiological, developmental and environmental influences on mental health, to promote a comprehensive approach to healing and wellness. I enjoy spending time with my family, rowing, sailing, hiking and skiing.

Lela Niemetz, R.D.

Registered Dietitian

I have a variety of experience in the world of nutrition, including skilled nursing, homecare, childhood education, adult continuing education, counseling, sports nutrition and creating culinary wellness presentations. Outside of Hamilton, I am passionate about my business FoodFeasible, which is actively involved with the local food movement. When I’m not practicing as a nutrition professional, I enjoy working as a farmer and hiking!

Chris Cederquist, LCSW-R

Part-time Social Worker

I’m very glad to be a member of the Hamilton Counseling Center staff and to be a part of helping students navigate one of the most important transitions in life. I have a Masters in Social Work from Syracuse University and have spent almost 20 years in the field of college mental health. I try to create a safe, warm, open and accepting counseling environment where a student can openly discuss what they are struggling with. I use humor as a way of helping a student get distance and perspective, and as a means to identify alternative ways of addressing challenges. I also have a particular interest in working with students regarding their relationship with substance use or abuse, as well as substance abuse of family or those close to them. When I’m away from work, I enjoy woodworking, spending time with family, and try to live an environmentally friendly lifestyle.

Peggy O’Connor, LCSW-R

Part-time Social Worker

Hi! With almost 25 years of therapeutic experience in multiple areas, I am excited to join Hamilton College and to be of service to the students, parents and faculty. My career has taken many twists and turns beginning in a city agency with victims of sexual assault to becoming the director of a county sexual assault and domestic violence program. I eventually found my way to a rural mental health clinic for many years providing treatment to all ages and supervising new therapists. Another turn came when I was asked to develop a counseling program for a public school and I became Director of Special Education for a highly ranked pre-k-12 public school. Although I enjoyed the leadership roles, I missed the individual connections and returned to providing therapy by taking a position as a staff therapist in a large university for the last 4 years. Working with the college population has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career and I look forward to continuing the journey at Hamilton College! My therapeutic framework consists of a toolbox of strategies including: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Trauma-Focused therapy (TF-CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and my primary framework is as a Bowen Systems therapist. In my off time, I enjoy sailing on Lake Ontario on “Banshee”, hiking, kayaking, horseback riding, golf and knitting!

Ginger Roddy, LCSW

Part-time Social Worker

Hi! I am very excited to join the Counseling Center here at Hamilton College! The college experience is certainly about education and the pursuit of a career. However, the college experience is also (and to me, more importantly) about learning about life, about yourself, and about how to manage it all. It is my goal to provide a safe, respectful, supportive environment where students can learn to manage these experiences in a healthy way and enhance the quality of their life. The majority of my professional work has focused on working with individuals struggling with anxiety and depression often associated with compulsive / self-destructive behaviors. I employ a strength based, cognitive behavioral therapeutic approach with a focus on self-regulation and mindfulness. I look forward to working with students as they navigate the complexities that comes their way. Outside of work, my kids keep me very busy! Our favorite family activity is sitting around our fire pit (which we built together) and making / eating s'mores.

Kate Keyser Rossi, Psy.D.

Part-time Psychologist

Hello! I’m so excited to be joining the counseling center at Hamilton College. I received my doctorate at the American School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University in Virginia, and completed my doctoral internship at the Emily Program in St. Paul, Minnesota. Since then, I have worked in private practice in Alexandria, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C. My therapeutic interests include eating disorders, anxiety, depression, and navigating life transitions and relationships. I have an integrated approach to therapy that uses techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, interpersonal therapy, and client centered approaches. I love working with a client to figure out what approach is going to be most helpful to that person. When I’m not at the office, you will find me behind my spinning wheel, knitting, or up to my elbows in a fiber dye pot. I also love spending time outside on my farm chasing around my two vivacious children.

Mackay Rippey, LAc, MAc

Acupuncturist

Acupuncture is on hold for now, but we hope it will return in 2024! Acupuncture grabbed my attention more than 30 years ago when I was an undergrad studying English literature and it hasn’t let go. What resonated then is the underlying philosophy of acupuncture that health and happiness are emergent properties produced by the “10,000 comings and goings” in our lives. Said simply, wellness is generated as much as by what is apparent and obvious as what is hidden and unknowable. Today, after being part of the Hamilton Women's Lacrosse coaching staff for 20 years and retiring in 2018, it’s good to give back and stay connected by offering community acupuncture in the beautiful Johnson Center. One last thing, my wife, Sharon, is the Director of Alumni Relations and my daughter, Aurora, is a '12 graduate.

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In Crisis?

Call 315-859-4340 and press option 2 to speak with a counselor 24/7/365.

If you want off-campus help, call 1-800-273-TALK or text “START” to 741-741.

Contact

Contact Name

Counseling Center

Office Location
Johnson Center for Health and Wellness

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