Faculty & Staff

Dr. Michael Gale is a licensed psychologist in private practice. He earned his Ph.D. in counseling psychology and M.S. in mental health counseling at the University at Albany, SUNY. He completed his predoctoral internship at the University of Maryland Counseling Center where he provided individual and group psychotherapy, psychological assessment, consultation and outreach. During the first few years of his appointment as assistant professor of clinical psychology in the Graduate Institute of Professional Psychology at the University of Hartford, he also served as a postdoctoral clinician at the UHart Counseling Center.
 
Dr. Gale has been providing psychotherapy since 2011 and has worked with Westminster students and families since 2020. His clinical work focuses on providing individualized treatment to adolescents and young adults. He provides individualized therapy that integrates cognitive-behavioral, humanistic and multicultural approaches within a developmental context. His work focuses on building new skills and using each person’s unique strengths to overcome personal challenges. Previous settings in which he has provided therapy include college counseling centers, community mental health centers and the Albany Stratton VA Medical Center. At Westminster, Dr. Gale meets with students two days per week and consults with the Health Center staff to provide treatment to students in crisis.
 
Dr. Gale’s clinical, professional and research interests center on topics of multiculturalism and diversity. His research focuses on the psychological experiences of oppression and social justice, racial health disparities and multicultural counseling training. His most recent publication is a meta-analysis (study of studies) that demonstrates the significant relation between internalized racism and poorer mental and physical health outcomes. He is actively involved in the academic training of doctoral-level psychology students at the University of Hartford, Springfield College, and Yale University. He teaches doctoral courses in Clinical Practicum, Multicultural Considerations in Psychology, Psychological Assessment, Group Therapy, and Clinical Supervision. He is a member of the American Psychological Association and the Connecticut Psychological Association.
 
Dr. Gale was born and raised in Connecticut and was happy to return home after graduate school and internship. He currently spends the bulk of his free time with his wife and two young daughters.

Dr. Vincenza A. Guariniello is a clinical child and adolescent psychologist who recently graduated from the University of Hartford’s Graduate Institute of Professional Psychology. She completed her American Psychological Association (APA) accredited doctoral psychology internship at Astor Services for Children and Families in Dutchess County. During this experience, she worked as a clinical specialist for female, male and transgender youth in an outpatient community mental health clinic and in an unlocked psychiatric residential treatment facility. Some of her experiences included collaborating within a multidisciplinary team to establish treatment goals, safety plans, positive behavior incentive systems as well as individual, family and group therapy. Multiple comprehensive psychological evaluations were also completed during this experience. Dr. Guariniello plans to continue working within a multidisciplinary team and aims to become board certified in clinical child and adolescent psychology. One major takeaway that Dr. Guariniello would like to instill in the youth and families that she works with is the importance of balancing structure, flexibility and fun!

Janna brings an extensive background in pediatric nursing to her position as director of health services. Prior to assuming this position, she served two years as director of nursing at the center. Before that, she served as a staff nurse in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Johns Hopkins Hospital Children’s Center, in the Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant Unit and Pediatric Hematology-Oncology Unit of C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital and in the Transitional Infant Care program at the Children’s Home of Pittsburgh. As a pediatric nurse practitioner, she worked at the Children’s Medical Group of Atlanta for two years and at Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine of Simsbury for 10 years. She is also an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant and volunteers her time to help women overcome breastfeeding difficulties.