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.

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.

For some interns, learning begins in Intake. A first conversation with Josselyn can be one of the most important moments in a person’s mental health journey. Clients may be seeking therapy for the first time, navigating a crisis, or simply trying to find support to help them get through another day. Under close supervision, interns learn how to engage with compassion, assess needs, provide information about Josselyn’s services, and connect individuals and families with resources that can help them move forward.

Other interns work within Nuestro, Josselyn’s community-based program serving children and families. In these settings, interns learn how to support young people through group interventions, build relationships with children, and help create spaces where students can develop social-emotional skills and a sense of belonging. These experiences provide valuable opportunities to understand how culture, community, family, and systems all influence mental health and well-being.

Interns within Josselyn’s Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) gain experience supporting children and adolescents facing more significant mental health challenges that require a higher level of care than traditional outpatient therapy. Through structured therapeutic groups, skill-building activities, family engagement, and multidisciplinary collaboration, the IOP helps young people strengthen coping skills, build emotional regulation, improve relationships, and maintain stability while remaining connected to their homes, schools, and communities. Collaborating with experienced clinicians, interns observe and participate in treatment that helps youth manage symptoms, prevent hospitalization when appropriate, and continue progressing toward their goals.

Across these settings, Josselyn provides the supervision and educational structure that graduate counseling and social work programs expect. Interns receive guidance from licensed clinicians, opportunities for reflection and consultation, and firsthand experiences that help bridge the gap between academic learning and professional practice. They learn not only clinical skills, but also the values that define community mental health: accessibility, cultural responsiveness, collaboration, and commitment to meeting people where they are.

For interns beginning their experience at Josselyn, that combination of learning, support, and mission is a major reason they chose the organization.

Anastasia Raquel, a first-year UIC Jane Addams College of Social Work MSW intern in Nuestro, 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 UIC working in Intake, 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 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.

Together, the Fall 2026 cohort reflects both the strength of Josselyn’s internship program and its broader commitment to the future of the mental health workforce. Interns at various stages of their education are gaining extensive clinical experience and supervision while developing the skills, confidence, and professional judgment needed to become effective counselors and social workers.

Christianna Dalton, a second-year MSW intern from UIC, 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 Loyola University of Chicago MSW intern, 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.

Josselyn’s Fall 2026 intern cohort represents more than an investment in education. It is an investment in the future of mental health care. By providing high-quality training, supervision, and experiential learning, Josselyn helps prepare the next generation of counselors and social workers while ensuring that today’s clients receive compassionate, responsive care. Every day, these interns are learning how to become mental health professionals. At the same time, they are already contributing to the well-being of children, families, and communities across Josselyn’s programs. As they continue through the year, they are not simply preparing for careers in mental health. They are already helping put Mental health for all into practice.