Counseling and Psychological Services Staff

Professional Staff Bios

David Bush, Ph.D. is the Acting Director / Training Director and the Center's liaison to the Academic Resource Center, Center for Persons with Disabilities (CPD) and the Retention and First year Experience office as well as the College of Business. He joined the Center staff in 1989. He completed his undergraduate training in psychology at BYU, together with a Master's in Counseling. His Ph.D. in Combined Clinical/Counseling was awarded from USU in 1984. His experience includes school counseling, community mental health and private practice. His theoretical orientation comes from a Quantum model that borrows from quantum mechanics and includes a spiritual dimension as well as focus on thoughts, feelings, needs, and actions. His research interests include group work and depression. Clinical focus has been on assessment of learning disorders and treatment of sexual addictions. He loves teaching and averages a class each semester for the Psychology Department.

Mark Nafziger, Ph.D. is Clinical Coordinator and the Center's liaison to the Student Health Center, Office of University Advising as well as the College of Natural Resources and College of Agriculture. He has been at USU since 1990. Prior to that time, he completed his internship at Notre Dame University's Counseling Center and Oaklawn Psychiatric Hospital and his Ph.D. at Ohio State University. Undergraduate training was completed at Goshen College in Psychology. Mark is a licensed psychologist involved in volunteer work for a statewide Critical Incident Stress Management Team. His therapeutic orientation combines cognitive, behavioral, and existential perspectives. Present research focuses on counseling center outcome studies using the College Adjustment Scale and the OQ45. He is also interested in the interface between psychology and wellness/healthy living.

LuAnn Helms, Ph.D. is Internship Coordinator and the Center's liaison to Student Support Services, GLBTA Services, Allies on Campus and Campus Police as well as the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences. She has been at USU since 2003. She received her Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Texas A&M University in 2002. She completed her Master's Degree in Counseling at California State University, Sacramento with a dual major in School Counseling and in Marriage, Family, and Child Counseling in 1995. Prior to graduate school, she completed her Bachelor's Degree at Missouri Valley College with a dual major in Youth and Human Service Agency Management and in Alcohol and Drug Studies. Her professional interests include: Individual, group, and couples therapy; anger, anxiety, and stress management; therapist training and supervision; program development; diversity issues; substance abuse treatment and prevention; domestic violence issues; identity and self-esteem development; and wellness. She conceptualizes clients mostly from the Multimodal Therapy perspective and her therapeutic interventions are eclectic, but predominately cognitive behavioral.

Thomas Berry, Ph.D. is the Reach Peer / Outreach Coordinator and the Center's liaison to Career Services, Pride Alliance, Student Wellness Center and Residence Life as well as the College of Science. He came to USU in 2004 after working in several other university/college counseling centers. He earned his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2001 and completed his internship at the University of Wyoming Counseling Center. He had previously earned masters degrees in counseling and psychology from the Universities of Houston and Missouri respectively and his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. His therapeutic orientation integrates across interpersonal, object relations and cognitive-behavioral perspectives and he is particularly interested in Schema Therapy. His clinical interests include group therapy, working with individuals dealing with stress, anxiety and depression, issues of sexuality, and life course and career decision making. His teaching interests include issues of diversity, college student development, personality, abnormal psychology, history of psychology and statistics and research methods. His research interest include student retention, the effect of campus climate on student success, clinical supervision and problem-solving conceptualizations of college student adjustment.

Amy Kleiner, Ph.D. is the Practicum Coordinator and Center's liaison to Multicultural Student Services, Student Involvement and Leadership, Department of Psychology/Community Clinic, SAAVI (Sexual Assault and Anti Violence Office, and the College of Education and Human Services. She joined the Counseling Center staff in 2005 after completing her predoctoral internship at the Center. She earned her Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Indiana University, Bloomington in 2005. She earned her master's degree in counseling from Northeastern University in 2000. Her bachelor's in psychology is from Cornell College. Amy's primary areas of clinical and research interest include: models and stages of therapeutic change, counselor training and supervision, diversity and social justice issues, and marriage and family therapy. She conceptualizes clients from an integrative approach, specifically focusing on phases of the therapeutic change process, common mechanisms of change, and client readiness for change. Amy lives in Logan with her husband and two daughters. She also enjoys many outdoor activities in the Rocky Mountains, especially downhill skiing, hiking, backpacking, and cycling.

Eri Bentley, Ph.D. is the Center's liaison to the Disability Resource Center, Office of International Students and Scholars, Women'/Re-Entry Student Center/Veteran Resource Office, and Athletics Department as well as the College of Engineering. She is a member of the division-wide services for Student veterans advisory board. Eri jointed the Counseling Center staff in 2008, after completing her pre-doctoral internship at Washington State University Counseling and Testing Services. She earned her Ph.D. degree in Psychology from Utah State University. Her undergraduate degree was in psychology from Humboldt State University. Her professional interests are individual and group therapy, counselor training and supervision, and program development. Issues of particular interest to her include diversity, veterans' adjustment to college, trauma, eating disorders, and substance/alcohol use and abuse. She works with clients from an integrative perspective, using cognitive-behavioral therapy, emotion-focused therapy, and interpersonal therapy. Her style is collaborative, and her intervention is matched with clients readiness for change. Her personal interests include fly fishing, cooking and spending time with her family of two dogs, two cats and one human. One of her dogs, Boris, works with her as a therapy dog at the Counseling Center. She, (yes, Boris is a girl) is a very sweet 5-year-old yellow Lab mix, and enjoys receiving visitors/admirers.