Zhenni (Jennie) Wang 王珍妮 is a psychologist (pronouns: she/her) and provides services in English and mandarin. She was born in Shanghai, China. She studied in Ontario, Canada before working in a neuropsychology lab at Wayne State University and getting her doctorate degree from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). She also worked at the UIUC Disability Resources Center and Ball State University.
Like many people with broad interests, Zhenni changed career decisions before finding her true passion: psychology. She initially wanted to be a fashion designer or a teacher. She was accepted into pharmacy graduate school but was lucky to discover psychology right at that time. She can relate to the difficulties of making tough decisions while managing multiple stressors and is an advocate of empowering people with tools to make successful life transitions.
Zhenni believes in meeting people where they are at. She adopts an integrative approach to clinical work that includes multicultural, cognitive-behavioral, client-centered principles, and mindfulness-based practices. Zhenni takes into account individual-level factors (e.g., neurodiversity, personality), the role of socio-cultural factors (e.g., gender roles, economic status), and systemic factors that effects the ways people develop across the life span. Her work with clients is collaborative and strength-based. Her professional interest includes trauma, relationship concerns, depression, anxiety, grief/loss, adjustment, identity development, and multicultural/diversity issues.
If she has free time, Zhenni enjoys designing, reading (more precisely, audiobooks), life hacks, board games, hanging out with friends, watching YouTube, roller skating and the list is ever-growing.