Jean Riney-Niewiadomski has lived across the United States and has spent the past 25 years working in the nonprofit sector as both a clinician and a clinical director. Her area of specialty is children’s mental health. Jean’s background includes clinic, community, school and hospital settings.
Prior to serving as a full time faculty member at Santa Clara University, Jean held a senior leadership position with EMQ Children & Family Services (now Uplift Family Service). At EMQ, Jean was responsible for developing, implementing and overseeing programs throughout the Bay Area providing therapeutic services to thousands of children and their families over a period of 16 years.
Jean has assisted local and state agencies, including the Board of Commissioners for California Mental Health Services, in designing programs for children and families that are strength-based, need-driven, culturally competent and outcome focused. She spent several years teaching and training members of the San Jose Police Academy Crisis Intervention team.
Previously, in Anchorage, Alaska, Jean served children through the Alaska Youth Initiative (AYI) who would otherwise have been removed from their homes and separated from their families. She also worked at the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Unit at the University of Michigan (C.S. Mott Children’s) Hospital.
Jean has coordinated weekly practicum and has been a lecturer at Santa Clara University since 2010.