Counseling Services Graduate Trainees
SUNY Geneseo Counseling Services serves as a counselor training program for graduate students from qualifying programs at local graduate institutions. All trainees are supervised by licensed clinical staff members.
2025-26 Trainees
Lionel Jensen
Spring 2026 – Spring 2027
- MS, Mental Health Counseling, SUNY Brockport (May 2027)
- BA, Philosophy, Carleton College
Welcome to Counseling Services! I am a graduate trainee from the Mental Health Counseling Master’s program at SUNY Brockport. After growing up in New York City and getting my Bachelor’s in Philosophy at Carleton College, I spent around a decade in Tech before starting my journey as a counselor. I am very excited to continue that journey as a trainee here at SUNY Geneseo!
My goal as a counselor is to provide a safe, accepting, and non-judgemental space to explore the challenges you’re facing. I work from a belief that each individual is unique, and hope to tailor our time together in a way that is most helpful to you, working with your strengths, beliefs, and understandings to identify meaningful ways forward. I enjoy using mindfulness, meditation, and breathing exercises as coping strategies in my own life, and I hope to work with you to find strategies that feel impactful to you.
In my spare time I love to read, exercise (whether lifting, hiking, or practicing yoga), meditate, volunteer, listen to music, watch old movies, and get out into nature when the weather allows!
Ashlyn Maggs
Spring 2026 – Spring 2027
- MSEd and CAS, Mental Health Counseling, Alfred University (May 2027)
- BA, English and Psychology, SUNY Albany (May 2025)
Hello! I’m Ashlyn, a graduate trainee from Alfred University. During my time here at Geneseo, I hope to provide a safe and supportive environment for every student that I work with. Kindness and compassion are central to who I am, so I’m passionate about taking the time to understand each individual’s unique experiences and needs. I am an avid believer that the way we think shapes the course of our lives, and as a future therapist, my desire is to help my clients reach their goals and build lives that align with their values and aspirations. I view the therapeutic process as collaborative, and I look forward to learning just as much from my clients as they can from me!
In my free time, I enjoy exercising, spending time with my loved ones, cooking, and attending to live music whenever I get a chance.
Zhongyu Zhao
Spring 2026 – Spring 2027
Hi, my name is Zhongyu Zhao, a current master’s student in the Mental Health Counseling program at the University of Rochester. It is my pleasure to have my practicum in Geneseo.
College can be a transformative stage where both challenges and opportunities exist. The counseling team and I are here to support you
throughout the process. My counseling approach is primarily person-centered, with an emphasis on empowering your unique emotional experiences. In addition to that, I believe the most important factor in our work is the relationship between you and me. Though there are professional boundaries and limitations, I genuinely connect with you and am devoted to this “I-Thou” relationship.
I grew up in a very demanding education system. Over the years, I have been fighting against internalized perfectionism, self-criticism, a constant sense of inferiority, procrastination, and the depression and anxiety that accompany
them. Thus, if you have the above experience, beyond my expertise, I can connect with you as a more experienced “patient.”
In my spare time, I love to try anything to keep myself lively and refreshed.