University Counseling Center

I am humbled by the strength and resilience that students exhibit every day, and it is a privilege to support them on their academic journey. In therapy, I strive to collaborate with students to create a warm, affirming, compassionate, and validating space for growth and healing to take place. As a provider who identifies as Latina and immigrated to the US as a child, my identities also inform my professional values, which are rooted in liberation psychology and include a commitment to empower students by honoring their unique lived experiences and strengths, exploring the impact of systems of inequity, and advocating for meaningful change.

Speaks conversational Spanish.

Ruth received her Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and completed her doctoral internship at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s counseling center. Prior to joining the UCC, Ruth taught undergraduate and graduate-level psychology courses and has worked in a variety of treatment settings including a non-profit mental health agency committed to supporting the LGBTQ+ community, a dual diagnosis treatment center, and community mental health centers. Drawing from these diverse clinical experiences and her professional values, Ruth uses a humanistic, multicultural, and feminist theoretical lens in therapy and integrates emotion-focused, CBT, mindfulness, self-compassion, and EMDR interventions.

Outside of work, Ruth enjoys listening to live music, planning her next trip, and spending time with loved ones. Ruth is also open to recommendations for good TV shows, podcasts, and Nashville restaurants.