Meet Josselyn's Fall 2026 Intern Cohort

39 Interns Learning, Growing, and Serving at Josselyn

Graduate education in counseling and clinical social work is built on a simple but profound principle: students become clinicians by learning alongside experienced professionals while serving real people with real needs. Classroom learning provides the foundation, but professional identity, clinical judgment, and therapeutic skills develop through supervised practice, reflection, and direct engagement with clients.

This fall, 39 clinical interns are gaining that experience at Josselyn. Together, they represent students at distinct stages of their professional development who share a commitment to learning, serving their communities, and advancing Josselyn’s vision of Mental health for all.

Josselyn’s Fall 2026 cohort includes 25 second-year interns who are continuing to build their clinical skills through the organization’s established advanced internship program. This year also marks an important milestone: the 14 first-year MSW interns make up the largest group of first-year social work students Josselyn has supported to date.

Anastasia Raquel, a first-year MSW intern from the University of Illinois Chicago Jane Addams College of Social Work working with Nuestro Josselyn, was looking specifically for an internship where supervision would be an important part of her development. “I emphasized to my liaison that I appreciate lots of supervision and guidance, and this was not only advertised by Josselyn, but fulfilled,” Raquel said. “I was met with nothing but support since my first interview and reassured time and time again that I have many others to lean on during this period of growth.”

For Alaya Castro, also a first-year MSW intern from the University of Illinois Chicago working with the intake team, Josselyn’s sense of community stood out alongside its mission.

“The atmosphere at Josselyn is very welcoming and shows to me that the people here care about not only their clients but also the people that they work with,” Castro said.

That mission is also resonating with interns as they develop their identities as social workers. Liset Rivera, who is completing her internship within Josselyn’s IOP, described Mental health for all as something that goes beyond a slogan.

“Mental health for all is not just a statement. It’s a choice made every day by each person in the mental health field,” Rivera said.

Savannah Hofmann, a first-year MSW intern from the University of Illinois Chicago, similarly sees Josselyn’s mission through the lens of equity.

“To me, Mental health for all means people of all identities in all communities should have equitable access to mental health education and services,” she said.

Christianna Dalton, a second-year MSW intern from the University of Illinois Chicago, said Josselyn’s commitment to developing future clinicians was part of what attracted her to the organization.

“I value Josselyn’s dedication to educating a new generation of therapists, as is evidenced by their massive clinical internship program,” Dalton said.

For Miracle Williams, who is pursuing a master’s in counseling at The Chicago School, Josselyn offered both support and the opportunity to gain experience from a diverse client population.

“I heard about how Josselyn provides a ton of supervision and the opportunity to collaborate with people of all backgrounds to strengthen my skill set,” Williams said.

For Nikki Tsolakidis, a second-year MSW intern from Loyola University of Chicago, the opportunity to broaden her experience was especially important.

After working with one age group during her previous internship, she wanted experience across the lifespan. “Josselyn seemed like the perfect fit!” she said.

This expansion reflects Josselyn’s commitment to developing the next generation of mental health professionals while remaining responsive to the needs of the children, families, and adults it serves. Through structured supervision, training, and experiential learning, interns gain exposure to the realities of community mental health care while making meaningful contributions to clients’ lives.